Searching both the Container Gardening forum and the Texas Gardening forums turned up these brand names: Scotchman's Landscapers Mix Calloway's Organic Compost Landscapers Pride Soil Conditioner (available at Sledd Nursery) Also Marble Falls Nursery apparently carries a reasonable facsimile of bark fines or mini bark nuggets in bulk. Or they did at one time :-) Otherwise, look at any product labeled as a 'soil conditioner', reptile bedding (sold in pet stores) or small orchid bark. Often these types of bark products are not commonly sold through the box stores but are available at better nurseries and garden centers. I would also ask if your better local garden center could order any Fafard products (SunGro Horticulture) for you. Their 3B professional growing mix is about ideal. Or Fox Farm's Ocean Forest potting soil. Whatever, I would not use that potting soil in the photo without serious modification.

Stephen, the recommended size for bark fine for a potting mix is 3/8" or about 1 cm. You can go slightly smaller or larger but I'd target that size. The exact type of bark is not so critical........the size is. I'm sorry but I have no idea where in the UK you could find this product. Here in the US, this product is sometimes sold under different product names - soil conditioner, bark nuggets, reptile bedding and orchid bark. Hope this helps narrow things down for you.

Good points about needles. I found another thread on here that answered those questions for the most part. I'll just keep that as mulch. Can the bark be too fine when in the gritty mix or 5-1-1? Like I mentioned I can shred it myself, but it gets pretty fine. After that I can just sift out the big chunks. The nearest orchid grower is about 2 hrs away, I'm probably going to check them out when I have time. Until then I have some plants that are in desperate need of repotting lol. TIA! Travis

Thank you. Karen, I see no advantage in buying C&S mix. Of the four brands of C&S available around here. Three have added sand. Two of those have an obscene amount. One of those was the most dense soil in the store. Pro-Mix has the lowest amount of sand, add peat Humus & limestone, neither I need or want. The fourth is MG, they do not list their ingredients. That bag says it's Cactus, Palm & Citrus Soil. I know from experience those three each have specific needs. Palms are fairly heavy feeders/need rich soil. Citrus is grown for fruit. Does this soil have what is needed to grow fruit. If so, It's not for me. Pro-Mix & Miracle Gro are almost identical to a good potting soil. So, why not spend less on a good potting soil if you are buying already buying extra perlite. I do have a 1 cubic bag of peat for those plants that need a little, but not the succulents. I use to use a container mix with Coir and Composted Fish and Fir that I added both Pumice and Perlite. After two year of testing coir on various plants, I have decided it was made to kill plants. I believe the soil companies are grinding it too fine, try to make it the size of peat. I understand succulent growers grind their own. Good on 'em. I like the size of the Reptibark in your Crenda. That was the size bark of the small bag sitting by the Orchid Mix I grabbed. I just forgot to feel the bag more closely. I am returning it tomorrow. The best price I can find online including the local chain, is Amazon is the 24 quarts for $28CAD. I'm going to return the orchid mix tomorrow and go to the garden centre to look at their bark. They have bags of 57 litres (60 quarts) for $13. Based on the pictures online, I might be able to get away with buying the shredded and separate the various sizes by screening it. I might have to buy the small as well. Once, I got rid of the compost, I was left with just inorganic matter. I know some people grow that alone, but they need to rely more on inorganic fertilizers. I add both beneficial bacteria and fungi to my soil. I know the mycorrhizal fungi will break down the rock into usable nutrients for the plants, but I want some nutrients easier to access. The bacteria prefer to live in organic medium. We don't have the worry of the bark breaking down terribly fast, our average high for July and August are 20c (68f). If we have temperatures around 25c (75f) for any extended period of time, there will be a heat advisory. I don't know of anyone with central air. It rarely Rains in summer. In winter, the south island only get 1/3 of precipitation Seattle and Vancouver both get in the winter. Due to the wet air we do have in winter, most tender succulents are either put in unheated greenhouse or brought inside under lights. The best professional grower I know, one of the best in the province grows in mostly ground bark, shredded bark and pumice. Below are the two sizes I use. The large pumice, perlite & bark are what I use for Agave and similar. I use the smaller for most of succulents. I do have to put a little bit of the large to block it all from coming out of the bottom. I use to use the black lava only as a top dressing. When I did test it as a part of the growing medium the plants were much happier. I can grow succulents in many types of soil. I can grow them very well in peat, but the type of medium is not for me. It is for when new staff at the garden centre are given a hose to water the plants. Or for the first time succulent grower. I am growing the plants for them. Our plants are a part of the larger business, Garden Coach Solutions. We strive for everyone to 'Garden with Confidence.' Anyone that purchases one of our plants at a garden centre receives a lifetime garden coach for their plant through emails including pictures. We are also developing some soils to sell either at the store or direct. Until then the best options at the local garden centres are in the Orchid section of the stores. You can buy small bags of various size bark, lava rock, pumice, & perlite. Epiphytes need very well drained soil. They get their moisture in the air. The plants themselves often sit on the tree, while the roots dangle down. If the plant is not sits in water it will rot. I believe this the reason their are both ground cactus from dry regions and epiphytes cactus are able to grow in wet humid environments. Smaller Mix larger mix Side by Side .