Store seed compost over winter: Seal the bag, check your supply
An opened bag needs a sheltered place. Store unused seed compost with its product information and keep track of how much you have left.
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When tidying up in November, you may find an opened bag of seed compost on the shelf. Give the unused remainder a quick storage check: close the bag, choose a sheltered place and keep the product information with it. Before your next sowing, you will know which growing medium you still have.
Sheltered storage does not mean drying it out
This product's storage instructions are clear: keep it sheltered from the weather and protect it from drying out, becoming waterlogged and direct sunlight. An open bag left outside beside the potting bench does not meet those conditions. Choose a sheltered storage space where neither rain nor direct sun reaches your supply.
A protected storage place does not mean deliberately drying out the contents. Adding water is not part of preparing the bag for storage either. The aim is to maintain the conditions specified for the growing medium.
Three steps before the winter break
- Keep the original bag. Keep the label and contents together. If useful, note the approximate amount left without covering important product information.
- Seal an opened bag tightly. Fold the bag opening together and secure it in a way that suits the bag. Check that it really stays closed. A loosely folded edge that opens up again is not enough.
- Put it away cleanly. Store the growing medium and propagation equipment cleanly. Keep the supply away from food and drink and out of the reach of children and animals.
Check again before the next sowing
A neatly sealed bag is no guarantee that its contents will remain unchanged indefinitely. Declared nutrient levels can change during storage. Read the product information again before using it; after storage, the label advises checking nutrient levels where appropriate.
The label's reference to about four to six weeks concerns checking nutrients during cultivation. It is neither a storage period nor an instruction to fertilise stored compost as a precaution. Having compost in stock does not automatically make November the right sowing time: light, temperature and timing depend on the plant concerned.
A brief safety check when handling compost
Do not inhale dust. Avoid contact with eyes, skin and clothing, and clean your hands after working. Open and move the bag carefully, keeping the storage instructions and the information on its own label to hand.
A small November job is enough: check your supply, seal the opened bag tightly and put it away under suitable protection. When planning your next sowing, focus on the crop's needs and the amount you actually have.
