adding compost to container gardening soil mixture?
kawaiineko_gardener
13 years ago
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jodik_gw
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agojwahlton
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Clay soil and compost as container mix?
Comments (10)I can seriously commiserate with you on this one. The higher part of our land is also heavy hillside clay. As for what you propose, I have a hard time picturing what it is you intend to do. A hundred plastic pots on a hillside with no flat areas? How will they stay put? How will you water them? I don't know which part of California you are in, but vegetables are very thirsty under the best of conditions. It's possible that you will be watering every single day, maybe even twice a day if you have a hot climate. Do you have the time for that? And would watering mean dragging a hose up and down a hill covered with a hundred pots? That doesn't sound too easy or fun? You don't say if the hill is south or north facing. If the sun is on that hill all day long then the plant roots in those pots are going to be under a lot of heat stress. I have found that very cheap plastic pots tend to deteriorate much more quickly in the sun than more expensive pots. Some don't even last a year in the sun. And finally, if you cut out the bottoms of the pots you would have to dig each pot into the ground or else you are going to lose all the soil out of them every time you water. I think you may be setting yourself up for a lot of work and a lot of frustration. What we do here with our hillsides is to terrace the land. (If you look for images of Banyalbufar in Google you will see what our terraced lands looks like) Would terracing be possible for you? Even on a small scale it can be very effective. On this island we build up our terraces with supporting rock walls but in the States you would probably use wood. Google "build hillside terraces" for ideas. With terraces you will have flat areas where you can build up your soil, for example, with the lasagna method which is reasonable cheap to do....See MoreSoil mixture for containers
Comments (5)Hi, Bluebell. I've been speaking out for years against using compost, topsoil, garden soil, or fine sand (anything smaller than 1/2 BB size) in containers. the particulates are just too small. The most frequent reason set forth in disagreeing is "It works for me", and that's fine, but by the number of posts like yours, it's pretty apparent it works poorly, at best. It is near futile to try to amend fine soils by amending with larger particles - think of a bucket of sand that you add the same volume of BB's to. An improvement? Nope. It might hold a little less water, but it will still be sorely lacking in O2, which, IMO is a container gardener's most important priority. Growing in an open mix with larger particulates and plenty of air in the soil exponentially widens your margin for error. As long as you keep the soil from drying, your watering habits become less critical as drainage/aeration increases. You can read a new post on one forum or another every day, bemoaning poor plant performance in soils comprised of the ingredients above, but I've yet to hear a complaint about a well aerated soil that drains quickly, unless it's related to the need to water/fertilize more frequently. Though no one can offer the Rx for a perfect soil that fits your exact needs, we can surely point you in the right direction and even help you make decisions along the way. Al...See More1/2 Mushroom Compost + 1/2 Top Soil Mixture
Comments (8)The people at Pennsylvania State University have not found soluble "salts" in enough quantity to be a problem for the plants growing in spent mushroom compost. Most knowledgeable people suggest working 3 to 6 inches of compost, or organic matter, into soil depending on the amount of organic matter in the soil initially. Going beyond about 6 to 8 percent OM in soil does not have much benefit and can create, drainage, problems because the excess organic matter can hold too much moisture. Here is a link that might be useful: About spent mushroom compost...See MoreWhole Foods Compost has clay added good for sandy soil
Comments (9)Until last year, I used to garden for my mother-in-law when I visited (2-3 times a year) and you could go to a pick-up place in one of the county parks (?) and take all the compost you wanted for free. I think you were supposed to be a resident, but no one was there to check. While I wasn't a resident, she was, so I felt ok about it. Over the years, I did it many times. I never had a truck, just my m-i-l's very fancy car, but I just saved the bags from when I bought other amendments or potting soil for her, and reused those and other assorted containers. Anyhow, I am not suggesting that you go to a different county to scam free compost, but that you look at other sources if you aren't happy with the compost from WF. BTW, compost from yard waste is perfectly fine to use. It heats to a much, much higher temp than home-made compost and is very, very unlikely to contain any weed seeds or pathogens. Aphids won't survive even home composting. Heck, they won't survive a blast of water from the hose. You can compost them yourself quite safely. "Some kind of mulch" is a whole 'nother story. Whatever that is, could, indeed, have brought in oak root fungus or some other disease. This would be especially true if the mulch was un-composted oak bark chips or something like that. But oak root fungus is so widespread in your region, your friend could have gotten in any number of ways. It often is dormant for many years before it starts showing symtoms, so it would be impossible to say it was "brought" in by any one item. If you can't get compost in your county for free, go to the nearest nursery or Home Depot and buy it. I would bet you nearly anything it would be cheaper than WF....See Moremeyermike_1micha
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agojwahlton
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agojane__ny
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agojodik_gw
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agofoldingchariot
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoorganic_puck
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
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