Yes. We really can use the tired, lifeless old compost we’re tipping out of our pots at the end of the season. There’s always a way, whether you’ve a large garden, a small one or only a patio. Read on to see how you can save some valuable pennies.

There are a number of options in a medium or large sized garden. Although the material is inert and has no nutrient value, it can be added to a bed and raked in. The gritty, woody material adds some bulk to the ground, which is especially valuable for thin or clay soil; the decaying plant roots also help. Spent compost makes a reasonable mulch when spread more thickly round shrubs and other perennials.

If, with any size of garden, you use seed sowing compost, make your own mix. When germinating and beginning to grow, seedlings need very little nutrient, so make a mix of half spent compost with half of finely sieved home compost. Although not as good as leafmould, the spent compost does the job.

However big or small your garden, from patio to landed estate, you could combine this waste product with raw fruit and veg waste. You’ll produce compost you could use for potting next year. I call it ‘composting in a bag’.

Here’s how. Use a robust plastic bag like the one you bought this year’s compost in, and pierce the base with a fork to make holes to allow for drainage. Place the bag on soil, if you have any, or in a large plant saucer. If using a saucer, collect the liquid in a bottle and use as a liquid feed in pots next year.

Then place a 5-8cm thick layer of spent compost at the bottom of the collecting bag and cover with the same amount of raw kitchen scraps. Finally, scatter a couple of teaspoonfuls of compost activator on top. This adds microorganisms to accelerate decomposition.

Add a further layer of spent compost on top, building up layers lasagne style, till the bag is nearly full. Tie up and leave the bag in a discreet corner and start on the next one.

The kitchen scraps rot down and are incorporated into the spent compost and the resulting material is ready for use as seed sowing compost or mixed 50:50 with new multi-purpose compost.

Whatever you do with old potting compost, don’t put it in your home composter. As I’ve said, it has no nutrient so reduces the fertility of your home compost.

Plant of the Week

Hylotelephium ‘Lime Zinger’ is a low growing sedum with vibrant green foliage that is edged with red. In late summer sprays of bright pink flowers emerge that are extremely attractive to all kinds of bees, providing a great nectar source for young queens before they hibernate.

‘Lime Zinger’ grows to about 20cm and spreads to around 45cm making it a great ground cover plant for a sunny spot. It also works well in a pot.