I haven't done any scientific study, but I recently purchased many, many bags of potting soil for my roses at different locations out of convenience. I have previous experience with Supersoil, but I did not purchase that this time. It's not my favorite. It tends to be damp and smell like sewage. I purchased LGM, Danish Potting Soil, Edna's Best (EB Stone), and Kellogg's Patio Plus. Of all of these, my favorite in terms of texture is LGM and it is the only one I bought more of. EB Stone seems okay, too, but a bit less loamy. Patio Plus was damp and had too much bark/compost in it for me. The Danish Potting Soil is basically just peat and I mixed it in with the others after I realized that. I don't have any experience with Miracle Gro soils so I cannot compare, but I tend to avoid Miracle Gro anything if I can avoid it because I don't trust Scotts for anything other than lawn chemicals. I mixed my own polymers into the soil ("Soil Moist") for the first time ever this season, but I have no prior experience. I am just hoping it helps keep the roses from drying out so quickly in their pots. In the six weeks I have been watering so far the soil does seem to stay much more moist, but I am not sure that's a good thing yet. I am forcing myself to water less often than I am used to based on how moist the soil feels to the touch. It's winter, so it's not a good test of how things will be when it hits 100 for a week straight, but we have had temps in the high 70's for almost that entire period, but it takes a long while for the soil to dry out. Once upon a time I bothered to create my own blend using 50% perlite as suggested by Bob Martin (http://scvrs.homestead.com/BarerootContainers.html) but I just use the potting soil these days. Bob also recommended LGM soil in his article. What's nice about LGM is that is just looks, smells, and feels like good potting soil should. Not damp, not dry, and very loamy. We'll see what my roses think of it, but they did well with it in the past. I used LGM the very first time I potted them up in 2002. I repotted a few years back, but I don't remember what soil I used then. However, comparing all of these soils side-by-side (and keeping in mind that I am not a rose) I liked the LGM best.

Hi Laura: As Jacqueline, Tessie, and JeriJen often said: "location, location ...." Tapla's recipe of 5 parts fine mulch, 1 part peat moss, 1 part perlite is best for climate like mine: low-sun, flash flood warning and fast drainage is a must. It is recommended by Douglas Green, an owner of a large Ontario nursery of many plants in pots, including roses. If I use Al's 5-1-1, there is no need to put loose gravels or bark nuggets at the bottom for fast drainage. However, I use super-slow draining MiracleGro in green bag, and medium-slow draining Organic MiracleGro. I skipped this important process of putting loose stuff at the bottom, and regret it terribly. Now I have to dump the soil out of each pot, and start all over. I realize this after a heavy-rain simulation with a hose, with the pot flooding over and loses 1" of soil - which happens every time it rains here! Sure, Field Roebuck said it's not important, just put a paper towel at the bottom of the pot, and fill up with soil. His Texas climate doesn't have the low-sun, and 6" of rain flash flood. Each region should have its own recipe of best potting soil. Now I realize that the regular MiracleGro potting soil (green bag) might have been made for indoor pots, where one puts 1 measly cup of water per week. It's not meant for several outdoor heavy thunderstorms with 4 to 6" of rain per bout like my climate.

Hi PunkRotten, what are you currently using? Leaves are smaller? It depends on the variety like a jalapeno compared to a Bhut the Bhut leaves are 3 to 4 times larger. This is what I use. 45% MG Orchid mix (not the course blend) 45% MG Organic Choice 8% Perlite 2% Bone Meal I have used just only MG Orchid mix and it works fine on its own. I've used the MG Organic choice with lots of additional perlite and that worked well. I add the bone meal for future use since its takes awhile to break down I add it to the mix and by the time it's plant useable it will be the perfect time of growth when they need it. I also use Alaska fish fert and sometimes MG fert. But at this point have not used any additional fertilizers, they have been using the already added MG ferts included with the mix. Here is a pic of one of my happy plants. Seeds were started Jan 12th. Mark This post was edited by habjolokia on Wed, Apr 3, 13 at 7:42

Hello all! So maybe it was discussed but I couldn't find the answer. I understand that if a fabric pot is placed on the soil outside, it basically erases any PWT that the pot may have. What about if a I use a fabric pot on my balcony? The balcony floor is that water proof stuff they use in apartments. Also, I would love to be able to prepare and mix Al's mix but I can't due to space and where I live. So I would like suggestions on what purchasable mix would be the best for indoor plants that would have excellent drainage for bananas and other plants. I've tried cactus and succulent mix in the past but can't tell if that was the best option or not. Thanks. Z