ACT - Homemade or Store-bought Compost

[1st Gen Gardener]

I've read thru the long ACT Sticky, as well as other related topics in the Organic Gardening and Composting Forums, but still had a quick question about starting out...

Is it better to use finished homemade compost or store-bought manure/mushroom compost you can find bagged at large retailers such as Lowes?

I'm pretty sure it would work either way, but seem to remember someone recommended using store bought compost and couldn't figure out why.

Thanks.

[GeorgiaGirl]

I personally would use homemade if I had to choose (mainly because I know the microbes are healthy and active and haven't been sitting in a plastic bag on a store shelf for who-knows-how-long).

But, why choose? When I started my first compost pile, I threw in a handful of compost from several sources (homemade, mushroom compost, some compost I had ordered from Gardens Alive, a big scoop of rich forest soil behind my house, etc.).

My reasoning was that using several different sources would increase the diversity of microorganisms in my compost pile. That plan worked out great... the compost I pull from the bottom of my bin is AWESOME stuff!

[GardenJester]

I think one reason to recommend store bought compost would be the compost are most likely free of live seeds and have been pasturized by steam. Homemade compost might contain things you don't want. For example, if you accidentally composted the tomato plants afflicted with late blight, the blight could conceivably survive the winter in the warm and humid condition of the compost pile.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Homemade (if it is healthy and fresh) is always the better bet than bagged, because a sealed bag is a bad place for aerobic organisms...

Personally my favorite is worm castings; all the biology and more with added enzymes and such. These can be found bagged on ocassion and would be worth it. I have some farmers I deal with who make MUCH better compost than I do and that is a good bet too...

HG

[rainbowgardener]

1st gen didn't say where they are located. If you have a compost pile outdoors in a cold weather climate, where temps are below freezing for a considerable period, late blight will not survive it. Nonetheless, it is never recommended to put diseased plants into the compost pile. I'm with HG... you know what is in your own compost and it hasn't been sealed into an airtight plastic bag. My mother taught me, "if you want something done right, do it yourself!"