compost

[arthur e]

I see a lot of people are getting free compost from their local council, well I was wondering if anybody saw a lorry with the name Murphy on the side of it collecting at the same time. I've just bought my annual 3 bags for a tenner with Murphy on the bag and I've never seen such a load of rubbish in my life, considering it's supposed to be responsibly harvested peat the fact it is full of shredded straw and coarsely chopped branches and shredded plastic makes me wonder where the peat bog is that it's come from. As I generally plant every thing in multi purpose compost I'm very reluctant to plant seeds in this stuff. It looks as though it will be a good as a soil conditioner and for hanging baskets etc but I'm now going to have to find something better for seeds. I could kick myself because I emptied the leftovers from my Focus bag (beautiful stuff which would have done me for the rest of this year)to a planter in readiness for the summer.
If you have the Murphy stuff like mine I suggest you handle it with thick gloves because some of the wood splinters are very sharp.

[sandersj89]

Yes, I have 3 bags of theirs and while not so full of rubbish as yours it is very course and fill of wood shavings and the like. Sieving it was no good as 80% of the stuff was too large to go through the sieve.

I have been using it when potting on this and in my large pots for potatoes.

Jerry

[pigletwillie]

We tried some from our council and again it was crap. Its suitable for use as a soil conditioner and mulch but thats about it.

[nog]

But there are two types of compost. General and Potting. Potting is finer has lots of PEAT and has a moisture retainer in it then there is general compost which is a soil conditioner. All the Council stuff and the compost you make your self fits in the second catagory.

[peterf]

how about murphys compost with 2 chards of glass and a beer bottle top all inclusive.you get what you pay for i think,it will be levingtons all the way for me.

[nog]

I buy the Council stuff by the ton. I go up the depot and they dump it in the trailer with a JCB and off I go. Costs me £10 if I go up the stables I get manure for free but it takes me a morning to shovel it in the trailer. I then mix it with my own manure (that I make not produce) and peleted chicken manure or blood fish and bone and use it on my plot.

[Johnboy]

When this first became available I invested quite a considerable sum and my reward was a 11/2" glass shard which went down the back of my finger nail down to my first Knuckle and spent over 3 months doing bugger all but point at people. Seriously though be exceedingly careful when handling it and always use stout gloves. I now would not use if it even if it was free to us in this district.
BTW the Local Authority would not admit that it was from their product as they said it was screend. We actually found more glass shards and the council representative said that I had put them there and would not admit any liability. Par for the course I suppose!!

[Allan]

There is economy and economy. Is it that people don't understand what is meant by the term 'compost' meaning it is a mixture of ingredients. However for propogation it has to
be given a specific name such as seed compost, cactus compost, ericacious compost
etc. meaning it is to made for a specific purpose.The only sort that I would present to my
seeds is from a reputable brand with it described on the bag as suitable for seeds. For many years I made my own seed and potting composts roughly to the JI formula but with
added sieved sterilised leafmould and it worked fine. Totally different is garden compost
but it is too rich in nitrates for seed use although you can get away with using it for large
seeds but it isn't sterile as made. All this recycled stuff such as Council compost is only fit for use as a mulch or soil improver and must be treated with suspicion even there.
Allan