With winter coming in with a vengance here ,its either cold or very wet ,and we have had the first couple of air frosts .
its time to put the container veggie containers away.
Whats the best way to use or reuse the spent potting compost .
use it as a mulch in the garden , add it to the compost heap,or send of to land fill (don't like that idea ,as the compost has a good texture)
All ideas welcome !
End of season container compost!
A gardener with a small shady back garden and a balcony with containers ,
biggest problem not enough sunshine !
biggest problem not enough sunshine !
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rot
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whaddaya got
..
If it's more organic material than earth or dirt then throw it on the heap.
If it's more earth or dirt with the nutrients removed by the veggies stir it up, mix in some new compost and let it sit for the winter. When spring comes you can add a little more compost and you're ready for planting.
to sense
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If it's more organic material than earth or dirt then throw it on the heap.
If it's more earth or dirt with the nutrients removed by the veggies stir it up, mix in some new compost and let it sit for the winter. When spring comes you can add a little more compost and you're ready for planting.
to sense
..
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rainbowgardener
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Absolutely don't send it to the landfill!! That would be very wasteful. Any of the above. It will add nice texture to your soil if you put it in a garden bed or as noted it can be recharged and reused. I tend to dump a bunch of containers worth of soil together in a wheelbarrow add at least half that much fresh potting soil, stir it all together and reuse.
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toxcrusadr
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I do the same, Rainbow. I screen out the roots and stuff using a chicken wire screen, and store the potting mix in a bin (not sealed though) over the winter. In spring mix in some screened fresh compost for microbes, maybe some potting soil for texture, maybe a handful of balanced fertilizer, and go to town.
One caution though, if you tend to have diseases that live in the soil, you may not want to reuse as potting soil so just compost it. We have bad tomato blight around here, so when I planted my big maters in pots last spring I used the old stuff in the bottom half of the pot, and put fresh over top, so the blight wouldn't splash up onto the leaves. Worked pretty well.
You can always compost or put it into the garden.
One caution though, if you tend to have diseases that live in the soil, you may not want to reuse as potting soil so just compost it. We have bad tomato blight around here, so when I planted my big maters in pots last spring I used the old stuff in the bottom half of the pot, and put fresh over top, so the blight wouldn't splash up onto the leaves. Worked pretty well.
You can always compost or put it into the garden.
Tox
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The Helpful Gardener
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rot
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What art thou MG?
..
Halfway, I give up. What id you mean by MG?
Winter is short here. I stir in some compost and churn the roots up some and let set for our brief winter so the newly stirred in compost breaks down some creating fresh nutrients to be directly taken in by next season's plants. Not that I have any evidence that it works really great, it's just my way of thinking. When Planting time comes, I'll add some more.
to sense
..
Halfway, I give up. What id you mean by MG?
Winter is short here. I stir in some compost and churn the roots up some and let set for our brief winter so the newly stirred in compost breaks down some creating fresh nutrients to be directly taken in by next season's plants. Not that I have any evidence that it works really great, it's just my way of thinking. When Planting time comes, I'll add some more.
to sense
..
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DoubleDogFarm
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Well
my plans are now set some spread as a mulch in the garden over the leaves i have had my council collect for me
Some into the compost heap,and the rest mixed with compost ready for next years growing campaign on the balcony !
Thanks for the input ,more welcomed !
my plans are now set some spread as a mulch in the garden over the leaves i have had my council collect for me
Some into the compost heap,and the rest mixed with compost ready for next years growing campaign on the balcony !
Thanks for the input ,more welcomed !
A gardener with a small shady back garden and a balcony with containers ,
biggest problem not enough sunshine !
biggest problem not enough sunshine !
Re: What art thou MG?
Miracle Grow.rot wrote:..
Halfway, I give up. What id you mean by MG?
Winter is short here. I stir in some compost and churn the roots up some and let set for our brief winter so the newly stirred in compost breaks down some creating fresh nutrients to be directly taken in by next season's plants. Not that I have any evidence that it works really great, it's just my way of thinking. When Planting time comes, I'll add some more.
to sense
..
Zone 4a.