GoDawgs wrote: ↑Sat Mar 16, 2024 8:03 am

JosephineRose wrote: ↑Thu Mar 14, 2024 2:31 pm ProMix HP is my go-to for growing tomatoes in Earthboxes. It has vanished from shelves here - I am concerned it may have been discontinued.

I have checked every hydroponic store around and they all say they cannot get it in.

It's a Canadian product, correct? Has US Ag stepped in for some reason?

Not a peep anywhere on the internet that I can find as to a reason for the shortage/disappearance. I'm now wondering if the Canadian government is on a "peat sustainability" kick and limiting the use of it.

Peat shortage in the US this year due to poor weather during the short harvest season in Canada: https://www.greenhousegrower.com/produc ... on-is-key/

@Seven Bends , no doubt weather has made an impact but I don't buy it as the whole explanation. Please see my edit and additional comments on Post #40.

Pro-Mix is still in business, and their products are readily available in my part of the country. I think so far we have one report of one Pro-Mix product being unavailable in the Bay Area; has anyone else said they can't find Pro-Mix this year? Around me, it's more available now than it ever was, as you can find their consumer-oriented line of products in Home Depot and Walmart these days.

It's certainly possibly Canada will shut down peat harvesting within a few years, but they haven't done it yet or imposed any significant limits, so I don't think that's causing a shortage at this time.

I'm not looking forward to having to use coir and "aged forest products" for seed starting and potting soil; my results have been poor so far.

I have used Pro-Mix BX in my grow bags for tomato and pepper plants for the last 6 yrs. with outstanding results. Only downside is the bags dry out very fast in July and August requiring watering twice daily. Last year I paid $35.00 per 3.8 bale. I use it for 3 yrs then replace it with new fresh stuff. I don't really use it much for seed starting as I prefer Magic Moss for that. Works a treat !https://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrNYg3 ... FrrPEKQtA-

GoDawgs wrote: ↑Sat Mar 16, 2024 8:03 am
I just looked up Canadian peat and thanks to eco-warriors it's a real possibility that Canada is already or will be limiting peat :
https://www.nationalobserver.com/2023/0 ... te-dilemma

This despite that fact that Canada has 200 million acres of peat, 1/4 of the world's supply:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/peat-mo ... -1.5411539

Apparently this year England will ban peat sales with Wales and Scotland probably not far behind.:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... ed-compost

I ought to find and buy stock in a coir producer because that's what they're pushing as a replacement. That's a ton of coconuts. Hold on to your wallets or find something else. I wonder if the company that makes Pro-Mix is still in business and if so, how long they'll last.

OK, time to go on a recon mission. I guess I had better stock up on Coco Loco. Damn, I love Pro-Mix.

Has anyone successfully used coir in an EB? My results using it in seed starting have been mixed. Sometimes it smells like my cat's flea powder when rehydrated from bricks. On to the sheep wool compost!

I assume a lot to with the truckers too. How deep is the supply chain, a couple years?

I know many years the Ace had pallets of peat out all winter behind their store. Then spring comes and they bring them around front. Seemed like it was safer to get fresh stuff from a place that sells out every year. Note that I do mean just bulk peat, not necessarily pro-mix.

JosephineRose wrote: ↑Sat Mar 16, 2024 10:52 am

GoDawgs wrote: ↑Sat Mar 16, 2024 8:03 am
I just looked up Canadian peat and thanks to eco-warriors it's a real possibility that Canada is already or will be limiting peat :
https://www.nationalobserver.com/2023/0 ... te-dilemma

This despite that fact that Canada has 200 million acres of peat, 1/4 of the world's supply:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/peat-mo ... -1.5411539

Apparently this year England will ban peat sales with Wales and Scotland probably not far behind.:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... ed-compost

I ought to find and buy stock in a coir producer because that's what they're pushing as a replacement. That's a ton of coconuts. Hold on to your wallets or find something else. I wonder if the company that makes Pro-Mix is still in business and if so, how long they'll last.

OK, time to go on a recon mission. I guess I had better stock up on Coco Loco. Damn, I love Pro-Mix.

Has anyone successfully used coir in an EB? My results using it in seed starting have been mixed. Sometimes it smells like my cat's flea powder when rehydrated from bricks. On to the sheep wool compost!

I don't understand. Why not just order the bale of Pro-Mix from Ace hardware and have it shipped to your nearest Ace for free?

I went to Southern States Cooperative in Manassas, VA today to buy seed potatoes and bales of straw. They had half a pallet of 3.8 cu. ft. bales of Pro-Mix HP available for sale. I didn't ask the price as I already bought Pro-Mix BX. They also had a pallet of bales of peat and other pallets of various peat-based products, so peat supply seems to be okay here, at least at this point in the season.

This year I am changing out my greenhouse potting mix due to the Alternaria infestation. So I have no dirt to work with in the winter and had to find an alternate. My compost supplier had just two bags! Until they open up in spring. So I found ProMix for vegetables at my fert supplier and after trying a bag or two I got a bale. They told me they will have it all winter long if I need it, and I already got another bag from them to tide me over.
This stuff is not bad, it hydrates really easily, but it's not adequate for growing a vegetable past baby stage. Even adding ferts, they are yellowing lower leaves and less than perfect without a good mix of half and half compost. Well it is what it is. Another experiment.
Anyway there is no shortage of promix products here in Canada. One place only had their uncertified organic no myco stuff, which I didn't get, but my fert supplier has all the myco products which afaict are much better. And well stocked for winter such as it is.
Peat is such a nutrient free thing. Yes great to fluff up your pots but, hey. It is what it is. I need some compost!

I will trade you 1:1, my good compost for compressed peat. You pick up though, my truck won't make it.

I have been using a lot of compost this year in my blocks and trays...I upped the % in the beginning when I had little peat moss. I ran out quite a few trays back, so now it is about 75% vermicompost and to 25% perlite, with some DE too. I also half a bag of vermiculite from years back that I may as well use.

I still have plenty of perlite (luna rock grade) bought at PA Perlite up in Bethlehem. I haven't priced in years but at that time it was ~110 for 2 cu yds in a big bag and included them forklifting the pallet into your truck. I think the first year I had a high cap? and he got it in fine. So that would have been 2016/17 and we got it again since -did a lot of beds and such with the first bag. To compare, 4 cu ft at agway was $23 the year before that, and just started climbing, so that it was 3-4x cheaper to buy it bulk and better quality too, much less dust than agway perlite bags.

What is the difference of pro mix hp vs bx. I tried the sunshine mix I absolutely hate it .,so going back to pro mix because I just don’t have the space to continuously make my own mix during the winter

HP high porosity...I thought it was 10% less peat, more perlite instead. So add in 10% perlite and that is it, far as I could see.
pthorticulture.com has good info. Looks like HP=70% peat versus BX=80% peat.
https://www.pthorticulture.com/en/produ ... cification
https://www.pthorticulture.com/en/produ ... cification

Essentially
HP is 7:3 Peat to Perlite
BX is 8:2 Peat to Perlite
So....you need to add...perlite. How much exactly? I get..8% by volume? So I would go with 10%+ personally. So for 5 gallon of loose BX mix, add 1/2 gallon perlite to equal 5.5 gallon of HP mix

I've never used either though and would not be shocked if it turned out that plus minus on the BX is closer to 85% peat and on the HP is closer to 65% peat. For more product differentiation. I've never seen either with my own eyes.