Miracle-Gro soil mix for potted maples?
marchela
15 years ago
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gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
15 years agodavidv
15 years agoRelated Discussions
Miracle Gro Potting mix problems
Comments (66)Irene, I'd like to send you a personal message, but your settings don't allow. Maybe you'd consider sending me your email addy in a Houzz message? Sometimes explanations get lost in the back and forth between people with different viewpoints, but the fact is, soils with a large % of fine particles are always going to pose limitations that result from too much water retention. Even though that fact is carved in stone and can't be argued (because it's governed by predictable laws of physics), there are those very few that insist on arguing the point over and over. Any roots existing within the perched water column will be deprived of O2 for the duration of the saturation. I made that last period bold, but you probably didn't even notice. ;-) The question isn't whether geography or hot dry hurricane windy conditions lift the limitation imposed by the saturation, they don't; the only question is, "How long will the limitations last". In many cases, the answer is measured in weeks, in some cases, in days. A good guess about how a soil like Mg amended with some bark & perlite (let's say 5 parts soil, 1 part perlite, and 1 part pine bark) performs might go like this: Day 1, grower waters established houseplants heavily, to beyond saturation, so water exits the drain. At that point, limitations are most severe. Day 2-5, the degree of limitation gradually decreases until day 5 when the soil is reasonably well aerated and the plant is pouring energy into replacing the fine roots killed by the soggy conditions. Day 5-6, The plant has grown at it's best these 2 days because the soil is moist and about as well aerated as it can be. Almost all the roots killed by saturation have been replaced at a considerable cost in terms of energy outlay. The plant is pretty happy, but the soil is now becoming too dry for the plant to efficiently take up water and the nutrients dissolved in water. It's on the verge of suffering drought stress. Day 7, the grower waters, cycle begins anew. That isn't an exaggeration. It describes a soil that needs weekly watering. Now, a soil in a soil that holds little perched water. The soil is based on a very high % of coarse material (pine bark, perlite, peat or a water retentive bagged soil). NOTE that the ingredients are the very same ingredients as the soil discussed immediately above. The ONLY difference is the ratio of ingredients used. Day 1, grower waters established houseplants heavily, to beyond saturation, so water exits the drain. At that point, limitations are most severe, but still minimal because the soil is designed so the ht of the perched water column and saturation is minimal. Day 2, Perched water is gone, the plant is enjoying a well-aerated soil from top to bottom. Fungus gnats on notice to find more favorable accommodations. This continues until day 4 or 5. Day 4 or 5, fungus gnats have sent out scouts. Other's making preparations to leave this God forsaken place. Plant still happy, but need to water growing imminent. Day 5, grower waters & cycle begins anew. The only price paid for the second scenario is the need to water more often. The first soil was 'amended' with pine bark and perlite, so those would have been on hand anyway. Some might say I'm not going to water 100 plants every 4th, third, every other, or even every day. That's fine, but that convenience demands a soil with enough water retention to get you through whatever interval is desired by the grower. The grower might like the respite from frequent watering, but the plant won't. Convenience very often comes at a price to the plant. That's not judgmental, it's simply how things work. The gritty mix you mentioned holds no perched water if made correctly, so plants are happy from watering time until such time they need another watering. Again, because we've moved away from a perched water table entirely, the need to water the gritty mix comes more frequently than say the 5:1:1 mix, and much more frequently than a soil like you're using. It's also sometimes a challenge to find the exact ingredients, but because the gritty mix recipe I offer as a starting point is nothing more than 1 way to embody a concept, it can be worked around fairly easily. I'll watch for a message with your address. Al...See MoreSuggestions For 'Drying Out' Miracle-Gro Potting Mix in a SWC?
Comments (22)Al, I will try the all-Cactus-Mix in one 'Tainer to see how it wicks, at one end of the spectrum, then do a 1/3 Cactus Mix with 2/3 Miracle-Gro potting mix in another 'Tainer, and then straight Miracle-Gro mix "diluted" with Perlite to then compare results of the three. Where is a good source to get Perlite? At Lowes yesterday they only had very small bags of it. These moisture and pH meters are not good to rely on for absolute readings - -but I like to use them to gauge "relative change" as an indicator from one experiment to the next. It was interesting in the 'Tainer where I did not add Epsom Salts that the pH was reading 6.4 just now. Again, no faith in absolute numbers, but it indicated to me that the Epsom Salts in the one 'Tainer *may* be the cause as to why I am getting a lower reading on the scale in that one 'Tainer. Regarding tomatoes only, I had read somewhere that they did best in media that was between 6.2 and 6.5 pH. Do you not agree with this opinion? I am tempted (again), to reduce the size of the wicking basket to a 4 inch square one, with a 3.5" by 3.5" opening in the aeration bench, as a simplistic approach to continue use with the standard Miracle-Gro potting mix, to try to constrain the flow of moisture up into the SWC. But at some point in reducing the opening of the orifice the 'Tainer might not fully wick properly, and areas of potting mix may run dry. I guess I would rather find a potting mix (or a blend of two medias) that will exhibit the desired saturation characteristics ideal for tomatoes. Darn Hobby!!!!! BTW, The Peppers and Corn both love the current design's moisture eco-system! Raybo...See MoreMiracle Gro potting soil
Comments (6)Soils that retain significant volumes of perched water or can't be watered properly (so you can flush the soil at will w/o having to worry about impaired root function or root rot) are much more difficult to grow in and can't offer the same opportunity for plants to grow as close as possible to their genetic potential as soils that don't hold significant volumes of perched water and CAN be watered appropriately at will. I water my succulents on the same schedule I water all the rest of my plants, and never worry that I might be losing potential growth/vitality because I'm over-watering. Soils that are based on small particulates (peat, compost, composted forest products, coir, sand, topsoil ..... are predictably water-retentive because to a very large degree it's particle size that determines o/a water retention and the ht of the perched water table. There's little question that if you can't water correctly, you're leaving potential lying on the table. Al...See MoreUsing miracle-gro potting soil with organic seeds..still organic?
Comments (8)There are probably close to a hundred recipes on line for potting soil mixes acceptable to an organic gardener but I have had good success with my compost for many years, even though there are amny that tell me it will not work and my plants will die although they have produced a bountiful harvest growing in that medium. This link may be of some help. Here is a link that might be useful: Organic Potting soil...See Moremarchela
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