Maybe call them back and ask them why anything would need to be done to improve drainage if their mix is good ;) Would love to hear the response LOL.

I've used #52 extensively some time ago before I had access to pine bark fines and started brewing my own mixes. I liked it a lot and would recommend it highly, especially for anyone growing woody plants in containers.

When the rep explained what was in it, it sounded good. My fiend has been using the farfards 80% peat humus. Which in his window boxes turns to mud. With the rain coming off the roof and going right in the window boxes, they don't even have a chance. I wish i could talk him into using the gitty mix in the window boxes. Justa, I didn't even want to get into that argument with him! :)filix

I recall you mentioning the roof water into the window boxes thing before. Honestly I think the best thing for your friend is properly functioning gutters.

The amount of water coming off even a small roof during a good rain is very hard on any plant simply from the force of the water alone.

Not to mention any nutrients in the mix are going to be completely flushed every time it rains.

I don't know that any planting mix will be able to resolve all the issues roof water going directly into a window box creates.

BTW, in my first post I didn't mean to imply anything good or bad about this particularly mix (I have never used it). Rather I thought it would be funny to hear the rep struggle to explain why his company's mix, in his opinion, needed assistance with drainage. I have heard from sources I consider reliable that Fafard brand products are generally better than average as they seem to actually have some quality control in place.

I knew what you meant justa. It would have been funny do see him squirm a little trying to explain how the rocks in the bottom help! I just had a tech from farfards call me. He doesn't buy into a drainage layer. They other one does. Go figure. He told me the 3b mix would be better. I don't know anything about it. filix.

The 3b mix is more finely textured and though it has some bark in it, it's peat based. I've also used this one....when growing bedding plants in greenhouses. It's coarser than anything you'll find on the shelf locally, yet not nearly so much as the #52. Coarse is good.

Thanks rhizo. I appreciate your input. That #52 sounds allot like the 5.1.1. Justa is right of course about water from the roof pouring down on the plants. This only happends to two of them. The rest are either not under the roof line or are under allot of wisteria. But even if those window boxes were not hit directly with water. That peat soil is junk for that application. filix.

Have you ever tried farfards nursery mix?
If the strain the bag of peat, you get a 1/4 bag of peat and the rest left behind is the perfect size bark fines..
Just a dd perlite and you are ready to go...
The bag is 80% bark...

I wounder if I could add turface or perlite to this mix if i had to. It does have a wetting agent. filix.

Of course you could.

Al

Thanks Al. I have my friend convinced in changeing to #52. Thats a good thing. As far as the window boxes go, I was thinking use the #52 add some perlite or turface. Also put a wick in each one, and put pine nuggets on top to prevent soil splashing onto plants.

We have had so much rain here this june. I think even if you had one rock in the window boxes, it wouldn't drain fast enough:>) filix.