John innes

Hi all where can i buy a small quantity of John innes base fertilizer fed up with all the comercial rubbish around and want to make my own, bought some levington john innes and was completely gobsmacked with it didnt look anything like JI not even fit for the compost heap

 

This site gives some good detail of how to make your own JI compost though not seen anyone supplying anything other than expensive 20kg bags of JI fertiliser.
You might find a simple recipe for it if you search the web ?
However being an old formula bet if you used FB&B you would not be far out.

Same with the Loam, great if you can source some turf to turn over and store for a year but if you can find some bags of decent top soil you could use that in the meantime.

How to make your own John Innes compost | Proctors NPK

 

I've been seeing massive mole activity in the park these days, if only it was possible to get some of that molehill soil I'm sure it would be really good stuff.

 

Thanks for your replies I know how the recipe just needs JI base a bit as Ricky101 states only in expensive 20kilo bags a kilo would be good

 

Seems there are quiet a few places showing the base feritilser recipe.
e.g -

John Innes potting compost / RHS

What is John Innes compost and how to make your own! - Eutrema

You can buy small packs of said compounds from places like this, we have bought from them a few times, all good.

https://elixirgardensupplies.co.uk/...PvagRH1vC9ekhL9&product_categories=fertiliser

 

Don't think anyone sells John Innes Base fertiliser in small quantities, there will never be the volume in sales to justify a manufacturer bringing it to market.

The only sales I used to have for 25kg JIB, H&H, D'B etc etc was the allotment societies that have a shop and sell gardening products to their members of which they would sell the required weight.

An alternative to JIB fertilizer, Vitax Q4 which is very similar in NPK values as JIB. Again, it is only available in 10kg tubs or 20kg bags. There is other smaller packs of Vitax Q4 but it comes in a pellet form and is mainly used to fork into the ground, not ideal for making your own John Innes

 

You don't have to add a base fertilizer to a JI mix.
If you mix it without any base fertilizer, then you can use a diluted general purpose fertilizer to supply nutrients.
It just means you'll need to use a fertilizer more frequently when watering.

As you may be aware, JI comes in 3 basic forms - JI1 - JI2 - JI3
The only substantial difference is the amount of the added base fertilizer mix.
You can easily replicate that by adjusting the strength of the liquid feed you give your plants.
e.g 1/3 strength for seedlings - JI1
1/2 strength as they grow on - JI2
full strength when they're mature - JI3

 

Don't forget that mole hill soil belongs to the landowner, so removing it without permission would be theft.

 

Sorry but that's not quite right, it's not just the amount of fertilizer that changes. There are also changes in the ratios of loam, peat (now peat substitute) and Grit. There being very little grit in the seed mix much more in JI 3.
Chempack used to do a small base fertilizer pack but I haven't seen it recently. The original suggested use was to mix with peat or coir to make your own mix. I often used it to revitalise old spent composts. When I empty pots I keep the "soil " in an old compost bag for up to a year. When I want to use it, I use the base fertilizer and mix with up to 25% of either fresh compost or topsoil into the "rejuvenated " old compost.

 

Yes I know.
That's why I said the only 'substantial' difference.
And the OP was asking specifically about fertilizers, not about the other ingredients.

 

Yes and I gave advice about a base fertilizer.

 

I used to buy that Chempak base fertiliser and, as far as I know, its intended use was for peat, I used to buy the bales of peat, break it down and measure out the correct amount.

To my memory it contained an awful lot of lime in order to neutralise the acid of the peat.

Presumably adding it to anything other than really acidic soil could give you a very alkaline compost.

 

You are correct about its originally intended use, it was designed with the addition of sand to convert peat into potting compost . It was also stated that it could be used with coir fibre as well but would also need additional wetting agent. I have used it to revitalise old compost for years without any issues.

 

What were you wanting the JI for? :
JI No I is for seed compost only with no goodness in it.
JI No 2 is for potting on seedlings.
JI No 3 is for the final resting place for your plant to which you can add up to 10% mixture of general compost and GC manure. You could also use Vermiculite for moisture retention or perilite which helps drainage.

 

There is JI seed as well as No 1, 2 & 3. Seed has the least amount of fertilizer, JI No1 has double the amount that we incorporate into Seed Compost, JI No2 has the equivalent fertilizer as Seed & No1 combined , with No3 having the equivalent as No1 & No2 combined.

We have been making JI compost for over 50 years and very few G/C's will stock the full range, mainly because soil based compost does not have the same volume of sales as peat based M/C.

We find that most of our retailers will either stock Seed & No2 or No1 and No3, but very very few will stock all four. As there is 50 bags to a pallet, JI No2 & No3 are by far the best sellers. So a small independent G/C will takes months, if not more to sell a pallet of JI Seed where in the height of the season they can easily sell a couple of pallets of No2 & No3 in a week.

When we make John Innes for a commercial grower, then there ingredients of the mix can be totally different, example for one grower his mix was 4 parts loam, 3 parts peat, 3 parts perlite, no fertilizer was incorporated , just lime.

The most popular compost is peat based multipurpose, followed by multi/JI mix then John Innes. It's basically because there is more volume in the peat based compost, so more value for your money.