Miracle grow is mostly peat moss and the small stones are probably perlite, if they are white. It cheaper to buy peat moss separately, but you are paying for the name brand. It like regular shoes vs. designer shoes. The same shoes, but one costs more. Forest product is ground up wood. Real soil is almost never soil. Try to get some large grained sand. This is as good as soil gets. Clay makes soil harder, if you have a large amount of clay. A small amount of clay in a sandy soil is good. All soil is a mix or sand or clay and organics. There is also silt, but that is very fine sand and you don't want fine grained sand in your soil, only large grained. Fine grained sand compacts and gives you poor drainage.

This post was edited by tropical_thought on Mon, Dec 22, 14 at 11:04

No, this is not mainly peat moss. I have another smaller bag, also labeled at potting mix, I purchased several years ago. I believe they still sell it, but at higher price. The small bag contains mostly peat moss and perlite.

But this bag is totally different. The small amount of perlite is hard to see. The stones can be as large as bird eggs. I think I can tell the difference between bird egg and perlite :-)

If they sell potting mix (forest products), then it should not be potting soil. It should not contain any stone and soil....

If you read the fine print on the labels, most commercial potting mixes are principally ground-up "forest products" (wood), then peat or sphagnum moss. They might also have a modicum of manures or other fertilizers and pumice or perlite ("stones"?) for aeration. Specialized mixes (e.g., for palms and cactus) also usually contain sand. None I am familiar with contain silt or clay. They generally work fine for indoor plants, in my experience.

Depending on the amount of composting time the "forest products" receive, the mix can appear either very woody/splintery or more mealy when a bag is opened.

However, if you want to start seeds and cuttings, using "seed starting mix" is better. This usually comes in a smaller package and is primarily peat and perlite, which makes it lighter and relatively more sterile (though none, with few exceptions, are truly sterile, i.e., pasteurized) than potting mixes. I often make my own for rose cuttings, mixing 50% ground peat and 50% perlite. Once your seedlings or cuttings have developed decent roots they can be transplanted into potting mix.

catspa, I think you are correct here. The potting mix with fertilizer contains "manures". This is one stone for two birds. The manures act as filler and cheap fertilizer. I was wondering why the potting mix would contain fertilizer and that would make the mix more expensive. Actually the manure is much cheaper than the peat moss.

As I say again, the small stone is part of the perlite. They are regular heavy stones, not the light perlite.

Manure clearly is mostly regular soil with animal waste, acting as fertilizer.

Here is part of the review of this product at Lowes.com. The buyer complains about the "ordor" of this potting mix. Now I know manure makes this happen.....

"The next thing I noticed as I went to check out was an unpleasant odor that I assumed was from a broken sewer line nearby. I loaded the bag with great difficulty in my SUV. As I drove off I was overwhelmed with that same odor except stronger. Being quite sure I had not stepped in something, I associated the smell with the bag of potting soil."

I totally agree with RedSun that the stuff they sell is junk. It doesn't drain well and they only thing that helps stuff grow is the fertilizer that they put in it. Always disappointing. I did buy a small bag of seedling mix that was expensive and looked mostly like large grained sand. I think it is worth it though to start seeds.

I'm going to do some research and make my own seed starting mix. I think the home made mix should be cheaper than the good ones sold at store. The small bag ones are good, but expensive.

I'm going to use my manured potting mix for outdoor containers.

It is just one bag. So learnt something. Read the reviews at Lowes.com. Not Lowe's fault....

I bought 3 large bags of Miracle Gro potting soil two years ago. It had big white globs in it, large pieces of bark and one bag even had some sharp glass in it. I got a full refund for two of the bags. I just went to their website and complained.

Is it not possible, since they make this stuff on the ground and scoop it up with Bobcats, that the small stones are actually small stones?

i usually find a local greenhouse.. that specializes in houseplants.. in this case ... and go talk with the manager.. and see if he will sell you a bag of whatever professional mix they use ...

winter is a great time to track this stuff down.. as greenhouse growers are rather lonely.;.. rather than trying to have a conversation about this.. in the busy season ....

i dont spend much time in this forum ... but in my travels around other forums... not many peeps talk highly of bigboxstore MG stuff ...

if you simplify your thought process ... you will be further along.. understanding what you are trying to accomplish ...

pots get MEDIA ...

mother earth is SOIL ..

and the words really mean two different things .. and whoever coined the term potting SOIL ... ought to be tracked down.. and slapped.. lol ... but that was probably 50 years ago ...

a MEDIA... is engineered to serve many functions by the grower... the prime one being.. water management ... as that is the biggest hurdle in growing in pots .....

and ,... IMHO ... because of the diversity of ma nature... there is no predictability in soil ... in pots ...

so even having a conversation about you using your soil... limits the discussion to your soil.. of which none of us know a darn thing ....

so to perfect your knowledge... we need to talk about things like peat.. perlite. .. vermiculite.. and though size of particles can vary ... we all have dealt with them.. and can lead each other down the path ... and that is why.. we have long seemingly endless discussions.. about Als brilliant gritty mix.... and his other one ...

my learning curve increased 100 fold.. when i started using the word MEDIA... and dropped 'soil' from my lexicon ... because i started to understand.. the predictability factor of the media .. and how to manage.. what i put in the pot ... and what drained out the bottom ...

good luck

ken

That's what I'm thinking. They are using shredded (and some composted) materials, making this in huge batches with heavy equipment. The driving surface is gravel to prevent equipment from sinking into the mud in wet weather, and just like any composting yard, sometimes rocks get scooped up.

I don't know of any difference between 'potting mix' and 'potting soil.' It should not have soil or rocks in it. This is poor execution, I suspect.

Any organic matter like this, if it gets too wet in a plastic bag, can go anaerobic and smell funky. I would hope a $12 bag of potting mix would have proper moisture when shipped and be kept out of the rain but there's no guarantee.

I have had perfectly fine results with MG potting mixes, although I don't buy much because of the expense, but I've bought a bag or two for the past several seasons. You have to realize it's made regionally probably by different producers, supposedly/hopefully to MG's specs. Some plants are probably better than others, and even the good ones can have a bad day and scoop up some gravel.

I still think that some manure is added as fertilizer and manure is mainly regular soil. I can carry a 50 lbs bag of rice or other food easily. But that bag is very heavy. More than 50 lbs for sure. I think that bag is marked as 64 quart. With manure, small rocks make sense.

I do not care about the $14 or so. But if I start many seeds over winter, I want the seeds to grow. I do not want to waste my entire winter just to save a few dollars.

Here is what stated by the Lowe's reviewer. He is a 70 year old man, trying to lift this bag to his car. Then he had to drag it out again to return it.... Bad....

"The particular bag that I bought had been stored on a pallet exposed to rain. I first noticed that it seemed extremely heavy when I loaded it in my cart. ( I'm seventy years old and everything is heavier than it use to.)
The next thing I noticed as I went to check out was an unpleasant odor that I assumed was from a broken sewer line nearby. I loaded the bag with great difficulty in my SUV. As I drove off I was overwhelmed with that same odor except stronger. Being quite sure I had not stepped in something, I associated the smell with the bag of potting soil. I returned to the store and with the same difficulty unloaded the bag and proceeded to seek an exchange. From the look on the sale associate's face I suspect that the reason for return is not often given as it stinks. From that point everything was very nice, I received a replacement bag from a different pallet and loaded it with ease (I felt young again) and later found the product to be of good quality as expected. Only point, bags can leak and potting soil left to soak in water tend to ferment..Be selective. "

Remember, even composted tree barks, wood chips, etc, do not smell as stink. There has to be some animal content involved. And it smells when exposed to rain.

This post was edited by RedSun on Mon, Dec 22, 14 at 12:25

Read the product reviews at Lowes.com. All the Micro-Gro and Sta-green "potting mix" are bad. They contain soil, rock and even black dye that stain concrete.

It is good that I caught this before I put my seeds in this stuff.

I'll only use them in outdoor pots. $40 wasted.

The more I read the reviews, particularly on Sta-Green which I also purchased, the worse they appear to be.

I'll stopped using this stuff altogether. I'll collect all my old potting mix and add some perlite and vermiculite and use them. I'll just dump this stuff in outdoor large pots and let the potting mix sit for next year to age. I may mix with some of own yard compost and try to improve it. This stuff is more like a manure mixed with processed wood products. I think they will harm the plants. Say nothing about seedlings.

I once had a 4x4x4" rock in a bag of composted forest products. I considered complaining, but it was near the bottom of the bag and I didn't think anyone would believe me! I've been finding a lot of small stones (1/2") in potting mix recently. This seems to be a new problem, I never found stones until a few years ago. And this is all supposed to be good quality stuff purchased at an independent nursery.

This post was edited by socalgal on Mon, Dec 22, 14 at 20:33

Potting soils, or potting mixes, or any of the commercial mixes meant to be used in containers are not soils but are soilless mixes. They do not contain any soil, but are mixes of Peat Moss, Coir, "forest products" (leaf litter, ground bark, etc.), perlite/vermiculite, and maybe some kind of plant food (most often synthetic). I have not seen a commercial potting mix that contains animal manures because the smell from them would be objectionable to most people when used for plants growing in the house.

Go to Home Depot or Lowes and get a bag for yourself. I think Sta-Green is even worse. Or read the reviews by yourself.

It is such a shame for the big brand names to make such horrible products. Making a few bucks is one thing, hurting consumer's confidence and cheat with false labeling is another thing.

Do not buy potting mix with fertilizer. The fertilizer is just manure.... They should label them not for indoor use.

I use Fert-a Lome potting mix for seed starting and for repotting plants [except orchids]. I love it. Yes it is mostly peat moss. It does not contain fertilizer as use add your own to it as needed.

There would be no problem with manure COMPOST. Any organic matter, including manure, if properly and sufficiently composted, should have a pleasant odor. If they're adding manure without composting first, well, ugh.

I would complain not only to the vendor but the producer itself. If they don't get feedback it is not likely to change.

RedSun,
To answer your original question, NO.
Potting Media or Mix, doesn't contain earth regular soil.
Two different things, growing in a contained pot, with a bottom and holes for drainage, and growing in the ground, in your yard, in the earth.
Two totally different things.
Google this today. Fafard potting mix, and Pro Mix potting mix.
Take the crap back that you bought at Home Depo, or Lowes, and find a retailer near you for the Fafard potting media.
Almost every real nursery, and a big box store isn't a nursery, uses this mix, and they sell it.
It costs a little bit more than the big bag of crap you bought at Lowes, and it is wonderful.
It will say right on the bag what is in it.
It is the exact recipe that Al on the container garden forum uses, only this is already made up for you. No work involved.
They also have specialty mixes.
Fafard is the only potting media my local nursery uses. They sell only that, they pot everything in it. They also grow a great deal of their own inventory to sell, so visit a nursery and have them order it for you if they don't have it for sale.