PrairieMoon2, I have a seed starting mix from Gardens Alive! (I got it free) that is very nice. The fluffy stuff in it is coir based, I don't recall what else is in it, but Gardens Alive! is online and easy to find. I just use that for starting seeds, though. For regular plants in pots I mix ordinary soil and compost, or ordinary soil and aged horse manure. I grew a few tomatoes and peppers in containers last year (just to avoid having to weed part of the garden to plant them.) They were in a soil/manure mix. I didn't know I wasn't supposed to do that, so they grew really well! :-) I have always used some real soil in my pots, I have a few houseplants that are almost 30 years old, so I would have to say it does work. For my rosemary plant I mixed soil with sand about 50/50, as rosemary has specific drainage and growth requirements. But normally I just use what I have, which is soil, compost, and horse manure. I age/compost horse manure in large containers so that I usually have some old stuff that is safe to work with. Marcia

I have been starting my own seedlings for over 30 years and have tried many , many products but over the last 10 years or so I have found that my seedlings do much better with FAFARD seed starting mix . I don't have the damping off and I don't lose a lot of plants , sometimes I will add some extra perlite though .I start well over 2400 plants a year and can't afford to lose a lot of them . If you live in the Denver Metro area , O'tooles Garden Centers sell this product . I believe the bales are close to 4 cf . It can be over 30 bucks a bale but believe me It is well worth It . The Pro Mix was ok but I like the Fafard more . You should never start seedlings with a lot of fertilizers in the mix . A good fertilizer I use after the seedlings are up about 2-3 weeks is 'Age old grow' formula, diluted . I hope this helps some of you make a choice . Happy Gardening Everyone and hope you have beautiful gardens in 2016 , Jerry

yep. part of hte GTA. While i have had raccoon problems I haven't had problems with them digging out the soil I don't think it would be an issue. My problem with raccoons has to do with my veggie garden but in the past couple of years they haven't caused problems. I do have problems with rabbits and sometimes finches which ate up my kale leaves but I find them cute and don't mind at all.

I use 2/3 perlite, 1/3 or less peat moss. I dampen it and use plastic water bottles, drill or punch big round holes in the bottom and a few on the sides 1-2" from the bottom. I don't cut much off of the top of the water bottles because I don't want too much water to get in if it rains. Then I wedge styrofoam in the top to secure them and to further block water from entering. I sit them in the hottest place I can find, usually the driveway or on top of Pinebark in a bed by the driveway, in full sun most of the day. I think the clear containers help them root faster. I've tried using eggs in them, honestly didn't notice any difference. I did 2 Singapores, one with the egg, one without, they rooted at the same time and roots were the same size. Both cuttings from the same tree. If we get lots of rain and I think they are too wet, I bring them inside in the air conditioning and let them go bone dry before I put them back in the sun and heat. If you don't want to worry about them getting too wet, just use perlite alone. That works fine too. Also course builders sand but if you use the sand be careful when you cut the bottle and take them out, the sand is heavy and can break the roots. Rinse the sand away, then lift them out. That's what has worked best for me here in zone 11.