Fiberglass would certainly make it stronger, but unless you really plan to abuse the devil out of them, peat should be adequate, and then you won't get itchy. You could use coir instead of peat moss, which in addition to being ecoloigacly superior, would make for a more durable pot since it is more fibrous than peat. You'll need to use a mold or form of some sort. It doesn't quite have the consistency to be workable on its own. Personally, I made a simple box using some foam-core paperboard. I glued some decorative pebbles to the inside of the paperboard mold, which resulted in having them embedded on the outside of finished pot. I then filled the box with the hyperturfa mixture, and forced a plastic pot into the mixture to create the inside diameter of the pot. After a couple weeks, I tore off all the paper, and removed the plastic pot. It will fill pretty small spaces, so using something like a fancy bunch bowl with a lot of detail really could produce some excellent results. Just be sure to tamp and tap the mixture to get it to fill every last nook and cranny. The hyperturfa made a surprisingly strong bond with both the paper and the plastic. You may need to experiment with something to help release the hyperturfa from the mold if you don't want to damage the mold/form. You could use plastic wrap or even petroleum jelly. Finally, don't worry about a drainage hole until after the pot has cured. Then just use a 1/2" masonry bit to punch a quick hole or two in the bottom.

An average loam soil will have 4000 pounds of nitrogen, 4000 pounds of phosphorous, and 20,000 pounds of potassium per acre in the top eight inches most of it in forms that are unavailable to plants. Many minerals present in the soil are most available to plants if the soil pH is neutral to very slightly acid. Soil in my region is neutral. We do not run fertilizer through the irrigation system. If your irrigation water is alkaline, you will have to adjust it to increase soil fertility. Your county ag agent is your best source for information. We use organic mulches and green manure crops for soil fertility. We do use bone meal at planting time on our large dahlia crop. But, hey, I think we need to use alfalfa like LizaLily because we want 100 blooms per day on our Chilsean's Pride dahlia. In correcting deficiencies of minor elements, it is important to realize that the difference between a therapeutic dose and a toxic dose is pretty small for some of the nutrients. Essentially, what we use here in the Great Lakes Region is probably going to have no bearing on what someone uses in your area. Talk to growers in your area and your ag agent. We have received valuable information from both.

You, too, and good luck with your project. I've certainly thought about soil testing, and have always been stymied by not knowing who could do it. And the answer is idiotically simple: go to our local nursery and ask. Instead I'd rather do it the hard way (and it is hard). I never claimed to be a smart gardener. About my soil amending and fertilizing practices: I was much influenced by a book, 'Teaming with Microbes', that was recommended to me by my horticulturalist sister. Basically it talked about the importance of establishing a thriving soil microlife that then nourishes the garden plants. The gardener establishes a virtuous (as opposed to vicious) cycle in which the microlife supplies nutrients to the plants, which grow, die, and the detritus of which feeds the soil microorganisms which recycle the nutrients. Getting the process started is the hard part, in land like ours which is poor in organic matter--hence all the holes and amending--but which, once the cycle gets going well, can pretty much be left to itself. We have so much land to turn into garden that the work is enormous. But I look out my living room window right now at the garden outside (it used to be the farm courtyard), and I think, this works. I don't fertilize my two-story tall 'Jaune Desprez', the substantial shrubs of pittosporum, sarcococca, myrtle, the hardy palms and Tea roses. The bed gets pruning clippings and plant debris, and everything grows fine. Of course we have our clay soil. But if you look at Florida, for example, much of it has very poor sandy soil. And yet jungles grow there. The nutrition isn't coming from the mineral-rich soil, and not from any added fertilizer. It's due to the recycling of nutrients.

Fertilizing a medium that allows you to water freely to beyond the point where your soil is completely saturated (so you're 'flushing' the soil when you water) without having to worry the soil will remain soggy for extended periods, is very different, less complicated, and more forgiving of grower error, than soils you have to fight tooth and nail for control over your plants vitality (health). To illustrate how stark the difference is, I can describe or prescribe a very easy, flexible, and extremely effective fertilizing plan in a paragraph or two if I know you're using a medium that allows you to water correctly. I can take a little longer and describe to you how to deal with excessive water retention, at least to the degree that it allows you to fertilize effectively. If you are limited in your ability to water correctly, and aren't taking steps to foil your soil's tendency to hold excessive amounts of water, no one can offer meaningful advice on how to approach nutritional supplementation without producing a tome full of qualifying comments to cover the myriad combinations of issues likely to affect how much of their potential your plants can realize. Leibig's Law of the Minimum states that the nutritional or cultural influence that is most lacking is what is limiting your plant. It could be a nutrient, temperature, light levels, insects ......... A very large fraction of growers are limited by their soil choice and watering habits. There are soils that are good, better, and nearly best, all of which allow the grower to water correctly. If you remain interested in plants, my best advice would be to learn how to make your soil work for you, instead at cross purposes with your intentions. It will make a world of difference in how quickly you progress in the hobby. This Basic Overview might be of interest. Al