B & Q Multi Purpose

[RudeDog]

Anyone using this?

I was a bit strapped for cash to get some of my usual medium so I thought I'd try B & Q purple bag stuff.

Anyway, after about 20 days the plants started looking like they needed feeding, so I fed them. No matter what I fed them had no effect on them. Gave them MaxiCrop, Bio-Bizz, BBF and made guano teas, all did nothing.

Also had a bout of spider mite as well which turned up after switching to this stuff. I've got the borg under control now but the plants were chopped 3 weeks early.

The cash situation has impoved so I've invested in some bits and pieces, mixed up me own soil and thing are looking good.

Has anyone else had problems with the purple bag MPC or are people using it with no problems?

Cheers

 

[rocket high]

if you remeber i ran
J.A Bowers MPC
B&Q MPC
BIO BIZ ALL MIX

The BioBiz Allmix won hands down as it fed to the end of the seed run with little problems but the JA Bowers was absolute crap and B&Q was acceptable but still needed amended from week 3 of flowering... so the expensive one works the best . B&Q isnt ideal for weed
i think the ph is kinda high in the B&Q stuff.... there's where the problem might be ....

 

[RudeDog]

Yeah Rocket...I'm sure I read on here that B & Q stuff was rated. Could of been an old thread though and the stuff might of changed since then.

 

[Dr. D]

Never buy B&Q's own soil its shit!
I went through every potting compost available and found the best quality and best all round to be Westlands Mutli-Purpose with added John Innes and Perlite. I find most of them just aren't broken down enough and theres alot of this peat free stuff coming out now which imo is absolute shit..Peace

 

[rocket high]

Never buy B&Q's own soil its shit!
I went through every potting compost available and found the best quality and best all round to be Westlands Mutli-Purpose with added John Innes and Perlite. I find most of them just aren't broken down enough and theres alot of this peat free stuff coming out now which imo is absolute shit..Peace

Too true .. i used the new horizon peat free last year and it wasn't up to the job ..... im using westland (potting soil) in my seedlings right now and it looks good so far .........

 

[RudeDog]

Might try some of that Westlands in me greenhouse.

Experimenting with me own mix of peat, top soil, EWC, perlite and some old time compost bought from an old time gardener. Trying a couple of plants with Levingtons Farmyard Manure in the mix instead of the compost.

 

[rocket high]

Here's a pic of the stuff i used from walmart

it works well its got no big chunks of wood or roots ... so its well worth the purchase

 

[Dr. D]

Too true .. i used the new horizon peat free last year and it wasn't up to the job ..... im using westland (potting soil) in my seedlings right now and it looks good so far .........

Yeh Westlands stuff seems to be the better quality Levingtons is pretty good too but i prefer the Westland, havent done soil in ages!

 

[theherbalizor]

Man the levingtons seed and cutting is like mud. Its shit. All the peppers I started in the westlands came up and the ones in levingtons about 40% success rates. Perhaps the levingtons is good if you mix it up with some verm, peerlite etc.

I use plant magic soil for all soil growing. My peppers the day after transplant from the levingtons are just leaps and bounds better.

The levingtons was £1.69 for 6 lt bag, plant magic is £10 for 50 l. So cheaper also.

Although the plant magic is a bit hot for strait seedlings. Next year if I can not get any westlands I will go with light mix biobizz for starting off the chill is and peppers.

 

[Dr. D]

Dont think i ever seen Plant Magic herb il have to look out for that one, i have some of the Levingtons Multi-purpose with added John Innes ( couldnt get the westlands) here for my chillies and its ok seems to dry a bit quick is all or maybe im just too used to coco...Chillies are getting binned anyway i noticed the other day they are showing some of the same TMV symptoms as my grow!!

 

[VerdantGreen]

if you have to mix a quick soil up with bagged stuff then its best to do 1/3rd JI or topsoil (westland topsoil is pretty good) with 2/3rds peat based or peat free growbags (growbags have a bit more food because they were designed for tomatoes)

peat free is particularly sh1t for seedlings and young plants. bigger plants can fare better in it. which mag found New horizon peat free growbags and vital earth peat free the best of the peatless composts last year i think.

VG

 

[theherbalizor]

I find it very odd that your getting tmv type symptoms on all your plants, including chillis. I have the chem d with tmv for years and can only get that to spread onto chem strains. But i am thinking it's a trait showing in later generation cuttings. I have a friend who has the c4d and took the original mom from seed, he did not have the chem d and still doesn't. But as he has moved his mo on through generations of cuttings it's strparting to show the symptoms.

I just wonder if you have something going on wi your water that could be effcting all your plant?

 

[Dr. D]

I find it very odd that your getting tmv type symptoms on all your plants, including chillis. I have the chem d with tmv for years and can only get that to spread onto chem strains. But i am thinking it's a trait showing in later generation cuttings. I have a friend who has the c4d and took the original mom from seed, he did not have the chem d and still doesn't. But as he has moved his mo on through generations of cuttings it's strparting to show the symptoms.

I just wonder if you have something going on wi your water that could be effcting all your plant?

Chem D does not have TMV it only even shows one type of symptom, if it did it would infect everything, period.
If its not TMV its something very similar what i have in my garden that spreads very easily and trust me my chillies now have exactly the same symptoms ( and the only crossover of utensils is a water bottle used for watering). Ive had this shit since last July im just flowering out the last of my stuff then starting fresh with new tents, pots, nutes everything! My water is fine also im not even in the same house i was in when it started...il start putting up some pics when ive charged my cam...Peace

 

[VerdantGreen]

i sent some leaves from the chem D to a friend (of a friend) earlier this week who's getting it properly tested for mosaic virus. be interesting to see the results if all goes well. i still lean towards it (the leaf streak) being a heritable genetic trait in the chem D but im just just guessing really...

sorry off topic

VG

 

[theherbalizor]

Actually that is the first time I have said the chem d has tmv, I usually refeer to is as the what ever. Lol.

Wow, dr. D, I worn where you contracted your bug from. Nasty. Good luck with that.

 

[Harry Gypsna]

DR d is right about westland. Awsome compost, cheap, feels lovely in your hands, crumbles up great after you squeeze a clump together, very little debris and un rotted pieces in it. I used to get the bales of b and q, but it needs a lot doing to it, i must have spent hours riddling roots and bark and stones out of that crap. A real bitch to re-wet if it gets dry too. Its ok for its price, if you are just going to use a mineral feed but its not a great base for building good "just add water" soilmix IME.
I dont think comparing purpose made growshop mixes, with general purpose potting composts is an ideal comparison TBH Bio bizz, canna are made for a very specific purpose, whereas ur garden centre type mixes are made to suit a broader range of applications and be altered to suit.

 

[rocket high]

I dont think comparing purpose made growshop mixes, with general purpose potting composts is an ideal comparison.

i agree i dont think its a good comparison ... compost selection is really playing russian roulette some are good some are crap ...but westland wins at the moment imo.

 

[JGP]

I've tried lots and lots of different composts over the years and the best i have found is PlantMagic.It's great for seedlings, cuttings and general growth.It also works wonders when used with there granules, which make the roots explode with growth and help with the uptake of nutrients.It's so good i'm planning on recycling it for my next grow.

 

[Yes_I_Am]

im using a cheaper soil this run ive run into all types of ph problems, ive got some dolomite now so all should be good, id go hydro if i could get the flavour i want.

 

[shafty420]

I've tried lots and lots of different composts over the years and the best i have found is PlantMagic.It's great for seedlings, cuttings and general growth.It also works wonders when used with there granules, which make the roots explode with growth and help with the uptake of nutrients.It's so good i'm planning on recycling it for my next grow.

ditto just switched to this plants love it have there range of nutrients there bloody brilliant especially the granules/root stim