5-1-1 mix for the winter?
Hiro
7 years ago
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myermike_1micha
7 years agoMonyet
7 years agoRelated Discussions
5-1-1 mix vs Earthbox mix
Comments (3)Bottom watering requires soil that wicks up water against gravity. Mixes like the 5-1-1 are intended for top watering, which, in a container, requires soil that sheds water WITH gravity. The goals are opposites. And in both cases, people have spent a lot of time, money and effort in developing mixes that work with their goals in mind. The high-peat mix in the bottom-watered containers works because the soils are not watered from above - they only suck up just enough water for the plant roots to access and use. Any excess water is free to drain down to the reserve tank by gravity, so moisture reaches a healthy balance with soil air. The high-pine bark mix in top-watered containers works because excess water drains with every watering, and roots get enough water through frequent re-watering. Again, moisture reaches a healthy balance. Both mixes work, but only in their respective watering regimes. If you try to go against the logic of either soil mix/watering regime system, you're bound to fail....See More5:1:1 mix and 1:1:1 mix ingredients in NW Houston
Comments (3)Well, I'd be really impressed if you find a store that has all of those things! It took me a month to find just the 1:1:1 ingredients and of course they are at 3 different stores but well worth the effort. You'll find the gran i grit at a grain/feed store, the MVP Turface I found at an irrigation store (Ewing Irrigation - don't know if they have Houston stores), and I had to screen the Home Depot Sure Stay "Premium Pine Mulch" to get my fines. If you end up doing that, you can use the finest remaining particles in place of peat moss in the 5:1:1. Oh, and wall mart has perlite. Good luck to you on your quest, it is like a treasure hunt and so exciting when you actually find the stuff! Nik...See Morewaking up my 5-1-1 mix
Comments (4)Well, according to Al; 1- No need to add lime to last years potting soil. So I would just refurbish it is broken down too much. 2- Use a CRF with 3-1-2 ratio or close to it. AND possibly with calcium if you plant to plant tomatoes and peppers.in them In that category I am familiar with MG Shak-n-Feed (w/ tomato picture on it, not all purpose). Seysonn...See MoreIs Al's gritty mix or 5-1-1 mix really any better than other mixes?
Comments (32)@Nil13 made reference to the Whitcomb 311 mix, which is an earlier historical attempt to create a more coarse potting soil for container plants. I think it is extremely helpful to read a document written by Carl Whitcomb that explains how he came on this formula by accident. Essentially what happened is he accidentally left nine test pots under a bench and everyone forgot they were there. They had successfully nearly killed all of their test plants by watering in a normal potting soil mix and the unwatered plants started to do very well. What I have started to realize is that any plant can do well in many different soil mixes, if you are able to carefully control the watering. This explains why so many people on this forum claim gritty mix is not as good for their succulents as their (fill in some random horrible soil with lots of small particles) mix. Inevitably those people are growing their plants indoors. They have enormous experience with their plant type and they know exactly when to water the plant. So that is the case of a very skilled gardener compensating for a very bad soil. What gritty mix does for me is let me grow succulents outside in very abusive weather conditions, without the plant dying. A plant can get a week of rain and it will still drain well. During Summer, gritty mix will tolerate a bit of overwatering, although you still really need to pay attention to not overwatering. Whether you make your 511 mix with perlite/peat, or with two parts Turface, or with lava and pumice, is probably in the big picture not going to be the deciding factor in whether your plants grow well or not. Success can be add with any of those mixes because the size of the particles allows the roots to breathe and prevents capillary action of water from bring the perched water table to the top of the pot and drowning the roots. Fine-tuning how you make 511 is a question of matching the plant type to the moisture retention of the soil and to the watering habit and climate exposure. Any 511 variant is going to do better than almost any commercial potting soil because of the larger particles used in the majority of the mix....See Moremyermike_1micha
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agoHiro
7 years agomyermike_1micha
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agoMonyet
7 years agomyermike_1micha
7 years agoMonyet
7 years agoMonyet
7 years agoHiro
7 years agoMonyet
7 years agomyermike_1micha
7 years agoMonyet
7 years agomyermike_1micha
7 years agoHiro
7 years agolast modified: 7 years ago
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