diane_v_44: Ditto on being interested in what is said in regards to my query. I've been fascinated by Al's research into soil mediums & am now obsessed with getting my mix right, but I'm going to need help from some more experienced/knowledgeable gardeners concerning using this type of mix for my Brugs due to their rapid growth & voracious food/water requirements. I nicknamed mine the Pink Monsters because of how fast they grow!

Wow! They're gorgeous! I'm surprised at how small some of the pots seem; I guess some of these plants have compact root systems. What a relaxing place it must be to sit. I'd be sitting outside right now, but the sycamores have unleashed their fluffy seeds, and I'm sneezing. I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of the FoliagePro 3-1-2; I don't dare over-fertilize right now, as I started with the wrong stuff. I'd love to know Al's answer to my question of how finely divided organic fertilizer doesn't eventually make it out through the screen at the bottom. I won't use the alfalfa meal if it's going to clog things up.

Am I reading that correctly - you are in Orange County, CA, right? If so and you're using county water then your water quality looks great to me. If I'm looking at the right report (see here) then you have pH ~8 with ~16 ppm of Mg and ~48 ppm of Ca and total alkalinity of ~120 (180 as CaCO3 equiv). Your alkalinity is on the high side but the rest of the report looks great (for plants, I wouldn't drink it). 1 tsp of FP in 1 gallon of water will give you ~6 ppm of Mg and ~25 ppm of Ca. I mention this because your water has a good ratio of Ca:Mg and it already has both in higher levels than you'd get with typical usage of the liquid fertilizer most people around here talk about. To answer your question directly: no. The mixes are not neutral. The gritty mix will be closer to 7 than the 5-1-1 (which will be more acidic) but *it doesn't matter.* The pH of your mix initially has very little to do with the pH levels your mix will maintain over time. In containers the soil pH will be determined mostly by the pH and alkalinity of the water you use and by the type of fertilizer you use and its ratio of ammonium to nitrate (*and* the rate at which the plant is taking up both of those nutrients which can vary depending on temperature, cultivar, etc). You should basically assume that the initial pH of the mix itself is of no consequence when it comes to determining the pH of your soil over the long term. You do need to pay attention to the initial pH but only because if you transplant something into the mix you want the roots to function reasonably well from the get-go. All this means is that you need to raise the pH of the bark or peat slightly so they are more friendly to transplants - the directions for doing that are built into the 5-1-1. I grow citrus trees in both mixes. Either will work for you and there are pluses and minuses to both. In terms of pH and nutrient availability you will find that the 5-1-1 is slightly more forgiving than the gritty mix. At your pH and alkalinity if you grow citrus trees in containers you will almost certainly develop Mn and Zn deficiency even if you use something like FP (which, again: you do not need to do based on your water quality). You could avoid this by acidulating your water or by using foliar applications of Manganase Sulfate and Zinc Sulfate (1.5 g per gallon and 1 g per gallon respectively - they can be mixed and applied to new growth on plants showing deficiencies). Just looking again at your water report you also have adequate/luxury levels of B, S, Cl, Na, & Cu. Nickel will be in your soil via the bark and or peat and you likely don't need to add any. All your water may be missing is: Mo, Zn, Mn, & Fe. Were I you I would use a straight 5-1-3 fertilizer and then manage the micros as needed myself. You will find it much cheaper than the usual suggestion. You could also go with Jack's Professional 25-5-15 High Performance and you wouldn't have to manage your micros as often (you will still get Zn and Mn deficiency at your pH unless you acidulate or use a serious acid reaction fertilizer - but then you will blow your NPK ratios). The cheapest and easiest option would be to use the Jack's (or another 5-1-3 with Mo and Fe) and then use the foliar sprays 1-3 times a year. If you acidulate your water I wouldn't use sulfuric - you have a ton of S in there already. Maybe citric or vinegar (don't use phosphoric, nitric is dangerous). This will be moderately expensive and moderately time consuming even with a chemical injector. Do yourself a favor and avoid the expense of Foliage Pro with your water. You will be correcting micro issues in any case and you have better Ca/Mg/S than the fertilizer can offer you anyway.

I use 511 regularly, where I work we provide machinery that focuses on cleaning grains, plastic extrusions, reclaimed sheet rock, reclaimed glass etc. we separate unwanted fines, or unwanted particle sizes from many various products via screening, air aspiration as well as other methods. This brings me to my question about gritty mix, I just happened upon some poly beads about 3/16 diameter, could this be used as the grit fraction in gritty mix? What I mean by grit is the the granite, or the inert fraction of the mix, the beads seem to be nearly inert, I process all my pine bark through a machine called a reel eliminator, it has various sizes of screens so I can dictate what particle size I want by varying the screen size, I always look for the bags of pine bark mulch that looks some what composted, and separate that into the fines I want, typical what ever will go through a 3/8 screen. I processed 4ea. 2.5 cubic bags in 10 minutes last week, sure makes it easy compared to my screens at home. I am wanting to make up some gritty mix primarily for some citrus trees in my greenhouse, these polystyrene beads have become plentiful and don't weigh very much. You guys are the experts and would love to hear your opinions, Thanks