[rockyracoon]

I've just been in the garden sorting out all my pots for planting on my toms etc and was wondering what all of you do with the old compost from last year.  I've stuck all mine in 1 massive pot, but now I don't know where to get rid of it.

Thanks for any replies

Rocky

[mumofstig]

put it on the beds and borders it's good soil conditioner

[rockyracoon]

Fantastic, thank you.  Thought I'd be making a trip to the dump.

[SarahB]

Check for beasties first though - found a bunch of vine weevil larvae in a pot I was sorting out the other day.    Not good things to transfer around the garden!

[Loubs]

I either tip old compost into container plants to top them up in Spring, or into the compost bin, or straight onto the allotment plot.

[Kristen]

I bag mine as it ends its life (plants that didn't make it, urns that I turn out in the Autumn, and other plants in pots when they finish for the season etc.)

I use it for:

Carrots in containers - mix 50:50 with sharp sand

Starting off leeks in containers - I don't feel the need to use fresh compost for them.

Potatoes in containers (mixed with well rotted manure / compost heap)

And plants going back into the urns this year - old compost goes in the bottom with manure (and water-gel), fresh compost for the top half

Apart from the carrots I mix in some Chicken Manure Pellets for the spuds, and the long-life fertilizer granules (for container growing) for everything else to reinvigorate it.

I don't use it for any seed sowing, or potting on young plants, which I think benefit from sterile compost so they don't have to fight any nasties

[mumofstig]

Yes to all of those things, but as we are in 'General Gardening' I didn't think that rocky wanted veg based answers 

[Kristen]

Sorry, didn't spot the forum, just saw that the compost had come from Toms and assumed Veg Gardening ... senior moment

[mumofstig]

Sorry, didn't spot the forum, just saw that the compost had come from Toms and assumed Veg Gardening ... senior moment

no need for apologies, it's the sort of thing I do all the time.....it just amused me that's all...that's why I added the LOL...........but I guess the tone is formal when you type it out and I really didn't mean it that way

[rockyracoon]

Thanks for all your answers, glad I can put them to use as there's so much compost left over from last year.

[sclarke624]

Me too I do the same as Kristen except I don't use the water retaining gel and I do use mine for seed sowing every year for flowers and  veg.  Infact its spookily similar right down to the chicken pellets and fertilizer granules.