Whats the difference between 'Potting mix' and 'Potting soil'?
kris2001
16 years ago
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kristimama
16 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
difference between garden soil and potting soil..
Comments (7)I've used a garden soil/potting mix combo for the last 4 years of my rooftop container garden without knowing what I was doing. For the first three years I had lots of good growth with herbs and peppers and flowers. Certain things, like rose bushes and tomatoes, I had problems growing. Last year we had an extremely bad drought here in Chicago and I had lots of problems with some of my hardy plants like morning glories which can even grow well in cracks in the sidewalk. The lack of rain really displayed a big problem I had with my soil. This year I'm doing a modified Al's mix using lots of pine bark (knock on wood). Due to logistics and the massive amount of soil I already have I'm recycling it into the new mixture with about 40% of the mix the old "bad" soil I had been using. So far I have noticed a difference with my finger test. When I stick my finger into the soil it slides in easily and I can almost feel the air pockets in the soil. When installed in the container it kind of sits in there like a sponge. I can't report success (or hopefully not failure :-) until the end of summer but just by how this soil feels to the touch I'm converting my entire garden to this pine bark mixture. So the bottom line, you might be able to get by with a little garden soil in a mixture. I'm not sure what I'd do if I were starting from scratch since I don't necessarily want my containers to drain out quickly each and every day. There are too many to water every day and some of the hardier plants, like hot peppers and morning glory and other vines, simply don't need the greatest and most sophisticated soil mixture to survive and thrive....See MoreBought potting soil instead of potting mix
Comments (6)Sandpaper, As long as it said POTTING on the bag, it is for pots. If it's not for pots it says Garden Soil, or Top Soil. If you bought the cheapest thing they had, get rid of it anyway. That stuff is crap and I wouldn't plant anything in that. Wait til you get the money so you can buy Miracle Grow potting mix. Remember, don't go cheap on your potting soil or potting mix. If you put the money out on something decent, your plants will thrive and you just might get 2 years out of it....See Moreplanting a potted rose what mix sol sand potting mix
Comments (1)Usual recommendation is to remove the soil from the whole and mix with a combo of garden soil (NOT potting mix), humus, compost, peat and bone meal (IMHO). Your ratio should be 50-50. In zone 5a you would probably want to burry the bud union at least 2", but I'll let those that live in your area/zone weigh in on that....See MoreWhat is the difference between fertilizer and potting soil?
Comments (9)In containers, the most important thing about the potting medium you use is that it provides plenty of AIR spaces. You want your mix to be very coarse, full of large particles. Then, you can add the fertilizer product of your choice. The more porous the potting medium, the more vigorous your root system will be; the happier the root system, the more productive (healthier) the top of your plant will be! It's as simple as that and quite remarkable when you see it in action. My potting mix is a combination of a bit of peat moss, plenty of gently composted bark fines, lots and lots of perlite, and a product called Turface. I also may add granite grit for good measure. I avoid anything that might clog up the pore spaces, such as compost, manures, garden soil, etc. Depending upon what I am growing (annuals, houseplants, bonsai, etc.) I'll add a slow release micro-nutrient product, as well as occasional doses of a balanced fertilizer. These can be organic or otherwise...the plant doesn't much care which. Nitrogen is nitrogen to the plant. ;-) I have good results with fish emulsion, but also use an ordinary soluble (mix with water and apply) fertilizer. This makes a planting mix that is built to last quite a while. All commercial potting 'soils' collapse after a few months, making them very inferior for container re-use, but suitable to turn out into the garden. My mix can last for a very long time, longer than I need it to. I do use a bag or two of a potting mix made for commercial growers that has a very large percentage of bark fines in it; more bark than peat. I add lots of perlite to that and am happy to use it for my annual plantings. Peat moss mixed with 50% perlite is what I use for my seedling germination. If you are really interested in container growing, you might look into the Container Forum, right here in the Garden Web. There's lots of great information over there and some pretty interesting threads....See Morejustaguy2
16 years agolast modified: 9 years agokristimama
16 years agolast modified: 9 years agorecluse
16 years agolast modified: 9 years agojustaguy2
16 years agolast modified: 9 years agogardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
16 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
16 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
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