Buying compost?

I don't know whether you are having the same problems as we are in deciding which type of compost is the most reliable and gives the best results.

We're still finding that different bags of the same brand of compost produce variable results.

Last year we had tomatoes growing in two identical grow bags. These were in the plot greenhouse, grown under identical conditions but whereas one lot grew as expected the other lot were weak and stunted.

I wrote to the producers who replied saying their mixes were all thoroughly tested etc etc. but sent us a voucher to buy more compost as way of a goodwill gesture.

I'm not sure testing formulae can detect all problems as the raw product can be variable. For instance some brands use green waste. Where does this actually come from and is there any possibility that ingredients that shouldn't be there have sneaked into the chain? I would guess that much of what goes into council green waste bins is suspect and not everything will be removed by the processes used by the composters.

Another issue appears to be that composts run out of steam as the nutrient level is either poor to start with or isn't very long lasting. I also read somewhere that if there are pieces of twigs or wood in the compost that as these decay they deplete the nitrogen levels in the compost. I can't say whether this is true maybe someone else knows.

Then there is the issue of texture, some compost is very coarse and others more the texture of dried grass clippings. Some bags of compost have even been found to contain bits of plastic and even glass.

We are watching the Scottish gardening programme Beechgrove Garden with interest as they are carrying out another compost trial this year. (If you have Sky you can watch this even if you are outside of Scotland). They carried out tests last year with disappointing results but so far this year things seem to be going better.

I suppose this year it will be difficult for us to know whether poor germination and subsequent poor growth is as a direct result of poor compost or poor growing conditions.

Lots of gardeners advocate making their own composts but we just wouldn't be able to create enough and then there is the prospect of growing lots of weeds amongst the seedlings.

We use lots of compost and so cost is another consideration as is availability - we don't want to have to travel miles just to buy compost.

Just out of interest I thought it would be interesting to carry out a little survey about what composts people have found to be good or on the other hand to be rubbish so if you have a few minutes to spare will you post a comment describing your experiences?

PS: Don't forget to enter the Fruit Seeds competition here