Gritty mix is excellent for succulents. 511 is good for non-succulent plants.

Do not use vermiculite.

Well balanced fertilizer is suitable for all plants; making your own is not that reliable (and likely more messy & even more $). Get Folige Pro 9-3-6-or Miracle Grow either liquid (very easy to use 12-4-8) or granular/powder that is water soluble 24-8-16.

Did you read- this thread - ? I know it is lots of reading, I read it few times before things started to sink in...maybe read in sections and re-read. Read first post; you'll need to click on "Read 234 more comments" to get entire post by Al. Everything is very well explained.

I had a whole response typed out but somehow lost it before posting :-( Thankfully rina showed up and answered the same as I but in a much more concise manner!!

About the only thing I would add is that you can modify the gritty mix to accommodate your more tropical and moisture loving plants by adding higher percentages of bark and some peat (not sphagnum moss but sphagnum peat - there's a big difference). And no, bark is not just a filler- it has a very important role to play in both mixes, as a careful reading or rereading of the linked thread will explain.

You can add a granular (actually prilled) controlled release fertilizer (CRF) if you like when making up the mix but for houseplants, I prefer just to use a water soluble fert like Dyna Gro's Foliage Pro or GROW formulations, diluted and applied with every watering in season.

I never worry about pH in a container plant as the mixes I use are adjusted to neutralize pH (the dolomite lime will do the same for the peaty mix) and the applied fertilizer will address any nutrient needs that could be affected by pH levels.

Carefully rereading that thread is the best possible preparation you could have to understanding container soil mixes and generating a mix that works best for you.

Thank you so much for the replies!! very appreciated.

@ Rina - I could not find Foliage Pro aside from in the US, where can you find it around the GTA?

@Gardengal - I just get very lost with all the different names of substitutes for both mixes. Which ingredients listed in my post can I use for gritty mix & 511?

@Gardengal - The bag says "Specific Canadian sphagnum peat moss from top surface of peat bogs" ?

This fertilizer? http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/miracle-gro-all-purpose-liquid-concentrate-950-ml-0592272p.html

Gritty mix is equal parts composted bark fines, perlite or pumice (really very interchangeble) or granite grit and turface or calcined clay (same as NAPA floor dry or any other auto parts floor dry/oil absorber). Sounds like you have most of these.

To convert to something closer to the 5-1-1, you increase the bark component (the '5' in the 5-1-1) and add 1 part peat. Or you can play around with the proportions of those two ingredients to get the water retention you desire.

The MG fertilizer is not as good as the Dyna Gro products but it does offer some trace elements so should be OK.

Marie

I didn't know you are in Canada...now I see you mentioned it but missed it at first.

Yes, fertilizer you found in CT is good. I never got FoliagePro, even Amazon doesn't have it now. MG you found is good, so use that. Liquid form is easy to use.

Where did you get Mortmorilite clay? Is it calcined? It may be good to use.

For succulents, I make mix of grit, perlite and some turface. You could use aquarium gravel instead of grit - but could you post photo of it? Instead of turface, you could use oil dry (if stable) or calcined clay - but I would like to see it. Btw, I bought turface in 50lb bags from supplier close to Toronto. Lava rock would be good to use, but what I found is too large.

For non-succulent plants, I use lots of bark, good amount of perlite, grit, some soil or peat if 'short' on ingredients. Not exactly as 511 recipe calls for, but what you want is good drainage and I get that.

Thank you so much for the information!! I am so grateful for your help

@mayo - I live in the Upper Beaches area, thanks so much for sharing, Bustan Hydroponics is close by me I will definitely go check it out :D

@Rina - Thank you!!! I haven't purchased any of it yet so I don't have any visuals but here are the links to what Ive found:

Lava rock: http://homehardware.ca/en/rec/index.htm/Outdoor-Living/Yard-Decor/Water-Features/Ponds/Filters-Pumps/3-kg-Biological-Filter-Media/_/N-ntlc4Z2pqfZ67l/Ntk-All_EN/R-I5095087?Ntt=filter

Dolomitic Lime:

1) http://homehardware.ca/en/rec/index.htm/Outdoor-Living/Yard-Maintenance/Soil-Amendment-Stone/Soil/Miscellaneous/2kg-Dolomitic-Lime/_/N-2pqfZ67l/Ne-67n/No-24/Ntk-All_EN/R-I5025860?Ntt=earth&Num=0

2. http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/cil-granular-dolomitic-limestone-0592368p.0592368.html

Sphagnum:

1) http://homehardware.ca/en/rec/index.htm/Outdoor-Living/Yard-Maintenance/Soil-Amendment-Stone/Soil/Miscellaneous/8-8L-Sphagnum-Moss/_/N-2pqfZ67l/Ne-67n/Ntk-All_EN/R-I5053077?Ntt=sphagnum+moss

2. http://www.canadiantire.ca/content/canadian-tire/en/pdp/pro-mix-high-porosity-peat-growing-medium-425-l-0590931p.0590931.html

Vermiculite: http://homehardware.ca/en/rec/index.htm/Outdoor-Living/Yard-Maintenance/Soil-Amendment-Stone/Soil/Miscellaneous/5L-Premium-Vermiculite-Soil/_/N-2pqfZ67l/Ne-67n/Ntk-All_EN/R-I5053238?Ntt=vermiculite

Montmorillonite Clay (doesn't say if fired or not though): http://homehardware.ca/en/rec/index.htm/Indoor-Living/Home-Commercial-Cleaning/Floor-Care/Cleaners/Oil-Absorbant/40lbs-Oil-and-Grease-Absorbent/_/N-ntkif/R-I4534013 

Oil absorben (doesnt say that its calcined but the 2nd review by "bonzaiboy" says that it is) : http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/qualisorb-oil-absorbent-0380091p.html#spc

Bark: http://homehardware.ca/en/rec/index.htm/Outdoor-Living/Yard-Maintenance/Soil-Amendment-Stone/Mulches/Mulches/2-Cu-Ft-Pine-Bark-Garden-Mulch/_/N-2pqfZ67l/Ne-67n/Ntk-All_EN/R-I5011943?Ntt=pine+mulch

Seems like someone else used the same oil absorbent Qualisorb as I found, theres some pics of it:

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1415995/canadian-gritty-mix?n=30

Marie

That is exactly what I used (Qualisorb) before I found turface.

Just my opinion, but I would not rush to buy that lava rock from Home Hardware store; check it out first and see what it is and how much. I my experience, fancier names they give the product to and fancier and smaller packaging it is in, the cost goes thru the roof. (They are selling it as a filter media, I wonder what it really is. Many things could be used for filtration...) Oil absorbent/M. clay/lava rock would all provide more or less the same. I would choose 1 and use that (probably Oil absorbent from CT). Turface is about $20 for 50lb bag, but it is sold in Ancaster and that is too far to drive.

Do not use vermiculite, as it deteriorates very fast. Also hold too much water.

So maybe you can get bag of Qualisorb, bag of perlite, chicken grit (I bought it few times in Newmarket, but I live further north) and bag of bark (I would get bark nuggets rather than bark mulch - unless you can see what that mulch looks like. Mulch could be shredded and/or contain too much sapwood.). You can make great mix out of these. Check also Rona, Lowe's and CT - with spring approaching, lots of media will be/is available.

Btw, you need very little dolomitic lime; maybe some gardening friends have some they can share? I have plenty, but live about 100km north of you...

Thank you so much Rina!! Means a lot.

so no sphagnum? And as for chicken grit, i did see some on Amazon but gosh so expensive for a tiny bag.. anything else i could substitute it with?

Oh and no gravel?

No gravel, but grit is good.

If you drive or have access to a friend when a car, you can get 25kg for around $10 at feed stores around the city.

No sphagnum moss - sphagnum peat is fine if you are making the 5-1-1 mix or modifying the gritty mix.

Sphagnum moss and sphagnum peat (sometimes call 'peat moss') are two entirely different products with different usages, although derived from the same initial plant material.

Thank you guys!!

when you refer to "grit" do you mean chicken/poultry grit? And is there any other things I can use as replacement for that? Lava rock?

Yes, chicken grower size grit.

You can use lava rock or pumice in the appropriate size instead. Just note that it will hold more water.

Ok thank you. If I'm using the qualisorb oil absorbant, do I still need grit/lava?

I thought I could use aquarium gravel as substitute for grit Sorry this is all very confusing to me

Marie

You could use aquarium gravel, but it also comes in few sizes. I did ask you before if you have and can post a photo of it. It is best to put something common next to it for size comparison.

Here is photo of chicken grit many of us are using:

Aquarium gravel works but is not as good. It is too smooth as it is normally coated in epoxy. It's also maybe 10-15x higher cost than a bag of chicken grit.

Rina,

I have purchased the qualisorb, it was such an adventure but I finally got it. Since you've mentionned using it before, may I ask if its normal that it is extremely fine almost sand-like? It is definitely smaller in size than perlite and the photo of your chicken grit, so now I'm wondering if that will work? Thank you

Would you guys know if this would do as a turface/grit substitute?

http://www.bustan.ca/mother-earth-volcanite-pumice-1-cu-ft-1.aspx

Or

http://www.bustan.ca/growstone-coarse-soil-aerator-42l.aspx

A little bit pricey, but right next door..

Wow, those products are really $$$...Pumice is good, 2nd probably too but I am not familiar with it at all. IIRC, it is 'foamed' glass and has good porosity. Few ppl are using it.

If Qualisorb is fine, it will not work. Smallest particles I would use are ones that will not fall thru kitchen strainer...and that is smallest.

Mixing fine ingredients will not improve drainage. They will just fall in-between the bigger ones and fill up all available space.

Thank you so much Rina

So I may try to go with Oil dri instead? I've read mixed reviews in regards to that product, some batches being good and others not so good, so I'm a bit hesitant..

I just re-read the thread, so sorry i keep mixing up all these names, but do I need pumice if using perlite?

Marie

I do not use pumice sine it is difficult or too expensive to get here. I use perlite. You don't have to get the Oil dry or Qualisorb either, if they are too fine they will not help anyway.

You could make mix of just cactus & succulent soil and perlite, using more perlite than soil (approx. 40% soil, 60% perlite).

You could add other ingredients, unless they are difficult to find.

If you get the bark, mix that with soil and perlite for your non-succulent plants.

Pumice comes in many different sizes. That one is a huge range - 3/8" to 1/32"? If it's mostly on the 1/32" side it's too small. And if it's mostly on the 3/8" side it's a little too big. You have to check in person. Same for the growstone which says 1/16" to 3/8". Depending on how well sized they are you will probably have to sift before use.

You can use pumice or perlite, it's up to you. The size is important. Tiny pumice and tiny perlite are not so good.

Oil dri has risk it will disintegrate on you. You can test, but maybe you won't know really how it holds up until months later. Personally, I found spending the half day to drive to Ancaster was worth the trouble.

One or two 25kg bags of Turface MVP last a very very long time. Having to repot a large number of plants, plus driving out again, and spending more money didn't seem that worth it to me. Just my opinion!

Thank you. Unfortunately I don't have any ways to get to Ancaster. I did find some Safe-T-Sorb (which I believe is the same as turface?) at Staples for $20 + $15 shipping - Would this be good?

Hello y'all!

I've finally managed to gather all my ingredients, yay!!

@Rina, I ended up keeping the Qualisorb, and I also found small natural aquarium gravel that is not polished @ewwmayo :P

Here's the photo :)

Top; Qualisorb, Bottom left; perlite, bottom right; aquarium gravel. (I do also have in hand the bark, peat moss and lime but didn't include it on the piccie)

What do you guys think?? Is the gravel too big? The qualisorb too small? :/ Please let me know your thoughts, thank you so much in advance!!

Marie

:-)

Anyone?

A little big but try the gravel since you have it. No idea about the qualisorb because I never used it!

Thank you so much for the reply! Rina said she used qualisorb before, and found a few threads about it, it seems to be a good substitute to turface.

So the gravel a bit too big? :/ How will I know if it does the job or not?

If you bought it already just try a pot or two. =)

"Gritty mix is equal parts composted bark fines, perlite or pumice (really very interchangeble) or granite grit and turface or calcined clay (same as NAPA floor dry or any other auto parts floor dry/oil absorber). Sounds like you have most of these."

gardengal, I just want to clarify that pumice (which is porous) holds quite a bit more moisture than granite (which holds basically none), so it wouldn't be an accurate substitute for granite material in gritty mix. I'm sure it's good to use if you want a more moisture-retentive potting medium, but def. a deviation from the original recipe.

Just for reference, the water holding capacity (based on my measurements) of a several soil mix components are as follows:

1. Grit: 15%
2. Bark: 22%
3. Pumice: 17-25%
4. Perlite: 28%
5. Turface: 50%

The pumice is a range because I measured a couple different pumice types. The smoother and less porous it is, the less water it holds.