I have grown tomatoes in pots several times, and to be honest I put in whatever I have handy. Sometimes it is my soil mixed with some compost which is almost finished. Sometimes it is whatever mix is in some pots that I have sitting around with some compost or manure mixed in. I have done the banana peel thing, too, I always add something nutritious besides plain soil. This summer I am growing 3 peppers in pots, they are vaguely similar to tomatoes in soil needs. I put some aged manure at the bottom of the pot, mixed a little of it into some topsoil I have piled up for the main middle part, and then added some more aged manure as mulch/fertilizer on top of the soil. The peppers are growing really well, so that seems to have worked great. I put seedlings I started elsewhere into big pots, I don't seed them in the giant pots. Marcia

Barb, try mixing a bit of vermiculite into Al's Mix for added help in retaining water... I can't tell you how flattering it is to find one of my threads used as a link for informational purposes! I certainly hope someone is able to draw some good conclusions and useful information from it! My medium of choice is, of course, mainly inorganic... it's comprised of pine bark particles, turface or granite chips, perlite, a bit of vermiculite, and occasionally a handful of quality bagged potting mix. I water from the top, leaching occasionally to remove any salt and mineral build-up, and the majority of my bulbs remain indoors all year long, with an eastern exposure and supplemental lighting. Since I grow indoors, my bulbs are exposed to heat from the furnace in winter and cool air from the AC unit in summer... in other words, the temperature is rather consistent all year long. The only thing that really changes is the sun coming in the east facing window... in spring, the days lengthen... and in winter, they shorten. One very important thing to remember is that a container environment is VERY different from a garden environment... In the garden, there is a constantly working and self-balancing palate of worms, insects, nematodes, micro-organisms, bacterias and fungi... they are constantly breaking down the soil components, helping to keep it aerated, and digesting any organic materials which makes it available to the plants for food. That's one of the reasons organic fertilizers work so well in the garden... they have help! All this decomp and action keeps a balance of "good and bad". In a container, we don't have those things... so it's important that the decomp be very slow, that the medium provides for excellent aeration and drainage, and that we carefully water and feed a fertilizer that is readily available to our plants for use. I'm lazy indoors, and quite busy working outside for as much of the year as I possibly can... so I might re-pot my bulbs once every 3 years, or sooner or later depending on how they're growing. For fertilizer, I use a regular store bought liquid for houseplants and I supplement with a micro-nutrient. Right now, I'm using Miracle-Gro liquid. It's better to keep a plant on a constant feeding schedule with a low dose of food than to risk burning the plant with higher doses less often... and so, I use a diluted mix of liquid food and water about every other time I water. I use the food at about half-strength or less. When choosing a decent medium for your bulbs, it's important to think about where you'll be growing them, what the climate and environment is like, and how much time you'll be able to devote to growing. Proper watering is going to play a key role in growing anything in a container. More plants are killed by over-watering than any other one thing! Bulbs are very forgiving, and it's actually better to err on the dry side with Hippeastrums... if you're not sure you can feel moisture when checking the soil, it's better to wait until you're certain they're dry than to overdo the moisture... while the soil surface my feel dry, the actual area around the root ball may be plenty moist. And since Hippeastrum bulbs are prone to rotting in a poor environment, it would be better to make certain the bulb needs a drink. My pot of choice is an unglazed clay one... the material is porous and allows for "breathing"... the porosity also allows excess salts and minerals to exit, collecting around the outside of the pot. It can be wiped away and the plant leached with plenty of clear water. I will use plastic pots if I have no other choice, but I try to re-pot into clay as soon as I am able. I find that plastic holds too much moisture for too long in my particular environment. I think I've answered all the questions asked in the original post... but if I missed anything, please ask again! I'd be happy to share my growing methods, and perhaps something I share will be usable information for someone! We all have to take into consideration our climate, the environment we can provide for our bulbs, and what materials will be available to us. Hippeastrum bulbs are very resilient, but the better we care for them, the more rewarding they will be! Happy Gardening!

I used to add it to the existing dirt around bushes and yard and what not. but my neighbor last year reused his previous years and all his plants did un*^*&%%*& believable! I am gonna use what I have in my pots this year hoping for similar results

Hi Russ, Duke is supposedly a Weimaraner mother (hence the Meth reference) and a chocolate lab father. Our vet put him down as German short hair pointer or something like that. He is just overzealous for the chase - rabbit, squirrel, or even other dogs. I thought he would calm down after a few years but he is 8 now with no sign of slowing down. That's great that you got your interest in plants from your grandfather. It seems like it is usually the women in the family - grandmother, mother, etc. My grandmother loved her flowers but my dad was a veggie grower primarily. I did get him interested in hostas later in his life though. I've heard the same thing about property values. One of the painters we had in to do our living room said he recently moved from FL (and he moved down there from GA) back home said he was able to get a much bigger house here than the one he had in FL. He was a talker though. Where in FL do you live? I am headed to Orlando the week of the 16th to buy begonias for our annual sale. I am thinking about adding an extra day and drive to Miami to go to PHOE once more and would love to go to Fairchild again but that is too much for one day (Orlando - Miami round-trip plus two visits). The biggest nelumbiifolia I ever saw was at Fairchild at the Miami Convention 2006 This was in the conservatory. But this huge begonia in the landscape was no slouch either. I think it was at the Hidden Grotto. (Back when my hands were thinner too). Another nelumbiifolia growing either on the wall, or creeping up or down (never could find where it started at. This was at the beginning of March too. Had been there the year before in May and was it ever HOT! Here is the plant I had my hand up to in the second photo. Here is another blooming begonia in the landscape - thinking Caribbean King? Chihuly was there that year (in Atlanta the year before and in Atlanta again this year).