General Questions ?

[Bigmallly]

Forgive me for asking but do you have a fetish for grit?.....................

[Penellype]

I'm not a particular fan of herbs so I only grow a few - chives, oregano, mint and thyme. I haven't put grit in any of the pots (the thyme is in soil which has added grit because it tends to be wet).

Grit is useful as a mulch layer on top of the compost - it suppresses weeds somewhat and also keeps the leaves clean - getting compost off hairy leaves like those of oregano or sage can be tricky as it doesn't wash off easily.

Grit will make your pots heavy if you add a lot of it - consider this if you want to move them about.

[Guest]

I will just slap BM for you (tsk tsk, asking a newbie personal questions )

Norfolk Grey,

Can I ask what you use to grow your veg and herbs ?

Also As I have bought a bag of grit , I want to use it , but only if it doesnt harm my veg and herbs.

Will it at the very least not do any harm

For pots I just use b+q verve multi purpose compost. If they are going to be in a long time without repotting I add slow release fertilizer as I am rubbish at liquid feeds (med. herbs don't need extra feed though). I tend to use added grit for cuttings. Otherwise I use it as a top dressing as it looks better than bare soil, can help reduce slug damage, add weight to the pot to stop it toppling, reduce weeds and lock in moisture.

Adding grit won't hurt any of your plants.

[Tarragon2017]

Hhahaha no fetish just bought a bag of it and it was heavy so I want to use the damm stuff plus lots of people say use it , then of couse they say perlite , vermiculite etc etc.Herbs need good drainage is all I keep hearing hahahah

understandably I want to give my veg and herbs the best chance so just wanted some advice from you guys to correct me or confirm what I have researched.

One thing about putting grit on the surface would you have to remove it to check if the soil is damp. so you know when to water ?

[Guest]

If you just poke your finger on the soil below the gravel line you can check if it is wet or dry. If soil sticks to your finger it is okay and wet

[Tarragon2017]

Would you use Grit or perlite when growing garlic ?

[Guest]

Neither. If you don't have perlite don't buy it. It is expensive and unnecessary in my opinion. As you have grit you might as well add it it won't hurt them. Be brave just bung ya veg in

[Tarragon2017]

I will do ,thanks ,

[Bigmallly]

I agree with NG, I think you are overworrying it. Nature doesn't bother with grit, perlite, vermiculite etc...........the main thing is warmth, light, feed & water (for most plants)..............a bit like me & thee really.

[vixylix]

Hi Tarragon and welcome! You sound just like me when I started out!

There is no rule book for gardening - there are different opinions, different conditions, different rules for different varieties and there are ALWAYS exceptions to the general rule.

Don't try to over plan it or over think it - its a learning curve, which never ends - you'll just absorb bits as you go.

Relax and give things a try - somethings will do so much better than you expect and somethings might do worse, but everything will teach you something!

[Tarragon2017]

Thanks Vixylix I guess i am seeking perfection which in gardening is impossible ,

[rary]

Welcome Tarragon, I like to add course sand to all my growing mixes, both sowing and potting on, if it's soil I am using its a 50/50 mix, if it's a cheap (I like that) compost its 2/1 compost/sand mix if a good quality compost 3/1 compost/sand mix, if its for potatoes I try to use a soil compost mix the cheaper the compost the better, for flowers and veg seed sowing I use my best quality compost but even the cheapest can be riddled to remove any lumps and any lumps removed by the riddleing go into the bottom of my pots or baskets, if I had perlite I would use it in hanging baskets to keep them lighter

[Tarragon2017]

Thanks Rary

So to confirm you always add sand to most things your growing

is John innes 3 good quality compost ?

I think ill use sand next year but I have a big bag of horitculture grit

Would I be able to use this in the veg

Do you put sand at the bottom or do you mix the sand generally with the soil ?

[rary]

I mix course sand ( by that I mean concrete sand) with everything, and I mix it through the compost/soil I would imagine horticultural grit would be much the same, as for John Innes I have never used it so can't comment on it

[veggiechicken]

Questions for Tarragon!

We'd be able to help you better if we knew a little more about you and your gardening plans. All you've told us so far is that you want to grow herbs, garlic and a chilli, that you have some pots and a bag of grit
If you pop over to Introduce Yourself! perhaps you could tell us approximately where you live, whether you have a garden to grow in or only pots, any covered space like a greenhouse, coldframe and what you hope to grow this year. It really helps us if we know more about new members and their growing conditions.
Thanks