[ThatsNice]

Anyone have any recommendations for buying bags of compost please. My local council tip sell it for £3.25 for a huge bag but I'm nervous in case there are bits of mares tail etc in it. I know I put plenty of the stuff in my green waste bags at my old house that would have gone to their composters! So anyway.. Wolko? B&cue etc? On-line? Where can I get best buy from please? Sorry mods if I'm in wrong forum section.

[mumofstig]

What do you want to use it for?

What you buy/get from the council is ok for soil conditioning/digging in but I wouldn't want to raise plants in it

[ThatsNice]

Initially just to pot up some stuff as an interim measure before I've got some of my plot cleared. Then to improve the soil and help along the potatoes that will need planting out in a few weeks.

Once I've got more of the plot cleared, I'm looking to bigger quantities to improve the soil. I've just emailed the horse riding school over the road from me to ask what the do with their manure. Hoping they can be a longer term option eventually.

[compostqueen]

The plot shop 

[surbie100]

I've used B&Q Verve for most of the last year (including for potatoes) and will be going for it again this year, tried Westland compost but it was rubbish - very twiggy. There used to be a thread on types of compost for 2012, but I can't find it anymore. I seem to remember Clover came out well, if anyone sells it in your area.

And I'm getting compost bins!

[DD.]

There used to be a thread on types of compost for 2012, but I can't find it anymore.

This one?

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=88535.0

[surbie100]

Yes, exactly that one! Cheers DD 

[ThatsNice]

Will have a read of that, thank you. Unfortunately compost queen, our site doesn't have a shop 

[GrannieAnnie]

I am lucky as we have a fairly local horticultural/agricultural shop not too far away and I get my 300 litres for £11 I think it is now, been using them for 6 years now.

[bravemurphy]

Got the verve (B&Q)stuff from down our way last year and will not be getting it again it was full of wood shavings.

[JayG]

There used to be a thread on types of compost for 2012, but I can't find it anymore.

This one?
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=88535.0

Will have a read of that, thank you. Unfortunately compost queen, our site doesn't have a shop 

You may have noticed that the Wickes compost was a huge disappointment last year but they apparently subsequently withdrew it - if they went back to their previous formula and pricing it would be good stuff and reasonably cheap, but unfortunately I can't tell you whether that's actually the case (not bought any compost yet this year.)

[mumofstig]

I will certainly only try one bag before I go for the multibuy offer in the spring.

Meanwhile I have 4 bags of Murphy's to use up -  it is ok for most things. Although I do sieve it for tiny seeds

[ThatsNice]

I bought a small 99p bag of basics compost just to put my rhubarb in pots this afternoon. Still need to read through the link but already from comments can see its probably going to be a trial and error job with varying opinions   

[JayG]

I bought a small 99p bag of basics compost just to put my rhubarb in pots this afternoon. Still need to read through the link but already from comments can see its probably going to be a trial and error job with varying opinions   

Trouble is it's not just the opinions that vary, so does the compost, and that's the main problem really - lack of consistency from one year to the next. 

[ThatsNice]

Yeah, that's what I meant too by the trial and error but didn't explain very well. Thank you for everyone's suggestions