Do you have an easy recipe of making your own mix for a gardening-beginner? Yes. I would recommend using what is known around here as 'Al's 5-1-1 mix' for annuals and perennials grown for just a year or two before being repotted. For plants that will stay in the same container/mix for more than 2 years I would recommend what is known around here as 'Al's Gritty mix'. The 5:1:1 mix is 5 parts pine bark (very small pieces), 1 part perlite and 1 part peat. The gritty mix is 1 part pine bark fines, 1 part Turface MVP and 1 part grower grit (#2 sized). For more information on this I will refer you to this thread. Don't get too hung up on specific ingredients and percentages. The principle is using ingredients that will be of a large enough size (above 1/16th inch) for as long as the plant will be in the mix. This provides superior aeration. The higher the percentage of organic matter such as peat or bark, the faster the mix breaks down and aeration suffers. The bark breaks down much slower than peat though. Anyway, read the thread and you will learn a lot. If you can't find suitable ingredients to make your own mix in time to get the season started then just get the regular MG potting mix and take until next year to learn more and locate sources for ingredients you want.

You must use potting soil! And a good quality one at that. Garden soil, even amended garden soil, is too dense and does not provide sufficient drainage. In container gardening, drainage and aeration is key. For woody plants that intend to be maintained long term in a container you need a very textural and durable potting soil. So no MiracleGro :-) Stuff like that is far too fine a texture and collapses too quickly, limiting drainage and reducing aeration.. I've attached a link to a long-running thread from the Container Gardening forum on growing trees in containers. The author - Al - is one of the most experienced and knowledgeable container gardeners around. Take everything he says as the gospel!! You will also find various recipes for quality potting soils on that forum, should you choose to make up your own. If purchasing, you want something that has a coarse, barky texture. Farfard (#52) and Metro Mix are a couple of names you could look for. Here is a link that might be useful: Trees in Containers

I want the seedlings to adapt to real soil conditions and benefit from the compost, Nothing to be gained by exposing young seedlings to the risks associated with dirt. Best to wait until they are more mature and developed and can actually benefit from the compost. Should I apply NODAMP or a light sprinkling of cinnamon, just in case? It can't hurt and might help. But if the fungus is present then the plants may already be infected just not showing any symptoms yet. See the post further down the page called "CPR for damp-off". Good luck. Dave

I'd be less worried about pH and more concerned about the "fluff" that these companies include in the bag as a "conditioner". Forest products are in the forest for a reason and don't belong in a garden, yard, or in a planter. My answer is simple, pH will not be your problem. My question will most likely be more complex: what do the small bark nuggets and pine needle fines provide your pots that is useful? If you are interested in testing the soil, conditioner or the combined result, then let me know. I use an incredible lab based in the midwest that can help you find out for sure if your pH is an issue but its not going to be. Refocus on what nutrients your plants are being provided or not provided from soil microbes and the organic matter. Also, focus on creating an ideal texture for proper drainage and the health of your organic matter digesting microbes. The pH discussion is overdone all over the world to this day because a researcher found that sulphur helped high pH soils and calcium helped low pH soils. In reality, the improvement came from the increased availability and texture benefits of the calcium. Also, those soluble fertilizers are only providing your plant with N and burning up any beneficial compost and the corresponding microbes.