2023 Potting Soil Thread

[jamiethemime]

Is there something wrong with peat

from my understanding, it grows extremely slowly, so harvesting it and just growing a new crop isn't really possible. I believe Canada says they grow more than they harvest (I'm sure there's a limit on that too), but this is not true in other places.

Peat - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peat

Peat is not a renewable source of energy, due to its extraction rate in industrialized countries far exceeding its slow regrowth rate of 1 mm (0.04 in) per year,[16] and as it is also reported that peat regrowth takes place only in 30–40% of peatlands.[17] Centuries of burning and draining of peat by humans has released a significant amount of CO2 into the atmosphere,[18] and much peatland restoration is needed to help limit climate change.[19]

[edweather]

Didn't know that. Thanks.

[rossomendblot]

Some interesting peatland facts I wrote down when last researching peat:

Peatlands only make up 3% of global land, but are the world's largest carbon store (42% of all soil carbon).
In Europe, peatlands contain 5 times more carbon than all of the forests.
Draining of peatlands is responsible for 5.6% of all human carbon emissions.

The UK was supposed to have phased out peat based compost by 2020, but didn't. Now we're set for a ban on consumer peat-based compost by 2024, I doubt this will be reached either. Many brands have reduced their peat content and there are many more peat-free composts available now, but they are often variable in quality and more expensive.

[zeuspaul]

I now have both and visually compared the two. The products are very similar. If I look closely I can see...

I came across another image comparison of the two products!

Potting Soil
Comparison of 1 seed starter and 2 potting blends
On the left is Espoma Seed Starter Mix. In the middle is Kellogg Patio Plus potting soil, and on the right is Kellogg Raised Bed potting mix. Source: Lorin Nielsen

Comparison-of-1-seed-starter-and-2-potting-blends.jpg

https://www.epicgardening.com/seed-star ... ting-soil/

[zeuspaul]

Descriptions of components of a potting mix as well as a few recipes.

HOMEMADE POTTING MIX
Commercial pre-packaged potting soils are widely available at nursery and garden supply stores, but you can also make your own potting mix at home. Making your own mix allows you to control the types and proportions of ingredients to customize your potting mix to meet your needs.

Gardeners use various potting mixtures for seedlings, transplants, and container plants. These mixtures combine a variety of ingredients to provide a good growing environment for plant roots.

https://sfyl.ifas.ufl.edu/lawn-and-gard ... tting-mix/

[MissS]

@zeuspaul that is a nice article. Thanks for sharing.

[greenthumbomaha]

WalMart is carrying a product called "GLEE" which contains what they call hydrofiber. The ingredients are peat, forest products, and a synthetic fertilizer. It's attraction is that it is very light in weight to bring home and work with. Tons of positive Amazon reviews

At least there are local choices beyond Miracle Gro . Now that other products have broken thru the MG monoculture, maybe prices will come down on more expensive brands.

- Lisa

[AKgardener]

@greenthumbomaha I was looking for a new potting soil and I did see it on Amazon so I ended up buying 2 bags of it. I used one bag of it with perlite it definitely held onto the water way more than I wanted I still have a second bag sitting on my shelf not shure if I want to use it yet but I probably didn’t give it enough time to see it it was worth it but nothing seems to grow with it but could be all me and not the product itself

[rossomendblot]

WalMart is carrying a product called "GLEE" which contains what they call hydrofiber. The ingredients are peat, forest products, and a synthetic fertilizer. It's attraction is that it is very light in weight to bring home and work with. Tons of positive Amazon reviews

At least there are local choices beyond Miracle Gro . Now that other products have broken thru the MG monoculture, maybe prices will come down on more expensive brands.

- Lisa

This Hydrafiber looks very similar to the expanded wood fibre that is used in peat free growing media over here. There is a video I watched a few days ago where a professional grower was getting very bad results from a certain brand of potting mix containing this wood fibre, but after adding extra fertiliser to the containers it produced plants as good as or even better than peat-based media. Since it's a non-composted wood product, when it's mixed with nitrogen fertiliser and is left to sit in a bag on a pallet in the rain, it will absorb moisture and start the hot composting process which will tie up the nitrogen. I've bought bags of growing media containing this stuff that are very warm to the touch and steaming when opened.

[Old chef]

hello,
has anyone tried Pittmoss? Peat free potting soil ?

Old Chef

[Cranraspberry]

@Old chef I’d love to hear about that as well. Our Ace got a shipment a few weeks ago, the smaller bags and large 1 cu ft ones. I believe the larger ones are something like $13.

[Old chef]

I heard about it on the Joe Gardener Podcast. He was very pleased with it. I figured that I would give it a try. still a bit too early to start my seeds here in zone 7

I can post on the results later

Old Chef

[AKgardener]

Since is a potting soil thread I thought I would ask my question here about topsoil,, my dilemma lies here we had top soil put in my new garden bed, great but nothing really grew well no good roots or anything due it being to dense!! My question is this I really want to use it this year what can I add to it to make it workable and till it in this is my second year of using it last year was a major fail and I don’t want to fail!!

[DriftlessRoots]

I heard about it on the Joe Gardener Podcast. He was very pleased with it. I figured that I would give it a try. still a bit too early to start my seeds here in zone 7

I can post on the results later

Old Chef

I heard that episode and it piqued my curiosity. It sounded like it needs to be treated a little differently but that they provide some guidance. I suppose they want to make sure people succeed with it. If I see some I’ll pick it up. Looking forward to hearing what you think of it.

[rossomendblot]

Since is a potting soil thread I thought I would ask my question here about topsoil,, my dilemma lies here we had top soil put in my new garden bed, great but nothing really grew well no good roots or anything due it being to dense!! My question is this I really want to use it this year what can I add to it to make it workable and till it in this is my second year of using it last year was a major fail and I don’t want to fail!!

Compost or other well broken down organic matter (manure, leaf mould...) and maybe some sharp sand?

[DriftlessRoots]

Since is a potting soil thread I thought I would ask my question here about topsoil,, my dilemma lies here we had top soil put in my new garden bed, great but nothing really grew well no good roots or anything due it being to dense!! My question is this I really want to use it this year what can I add to it to make it workable and till it in this is my second year of using it last year was a major fail and I don’t want to fail!!

Compost or other well broken down organic matter (manure, leaf mould...) and maybe some sharp sand?

Yes to compost and OM but skip the sand.

[Rockporter]

I have come across this Organic Fertilizers on this database and have some alfalfa and I have the chicken manure I have never used. I wonder also how much alfalfa should I add to my garden pots? Like how much per say 3 cubic feet?

https://garden.org/learn/articles/view/ ... rtilizers/

[rossomendblot]

I have come across this Organic Fertilizers on this database and have some alfalfa and I have the chicken manure I have never used. I wonder also how much alfalfa should I add to my garden pots? Like how much per say 3 cubic feet?

https://garden.org/learn/articles/view/ ... rtilizers/

Tomato Tone is 3-4-6 and they suggest an initial 2 cups per cubic foot. That weighs about 300 grams so contains ~10g of N, 12g of P and 20g of K. If you have the NPK values for your organic inputs you can calculate how much to add to get the equivalent quantities, though I guess alfalfa is more nitrogen heavy so you wont be able to get the exact same ratios without adding extra potassium.

The Earthbox website suggests 1.5 lbs of Tomato Tone per 2 cubic feet of growing medium as a single application.

[Rockporter]

I have come across this Organic Fertilizers on this database and have some alfalfa and I have the chicken manure I have never used. I wonder also how much alfalfa should I add to my garden pots? Like how much per say 3 cubic feet?

https://garden.org/learn/articles/view/ ... rtilizers/

Tomato Tone is 3-4-6 and they suggest an initial 2 cups per cubic foot. That weighs about 300 grams so contains ~10g of N, 12g of P and 20g of K. If you have the NPK values for your organic inputs you can calculate how much to add to get the equivalent quantities, though I guess alfalfa is more nitrogen heavy so you wont be able to get the exact same ratios without adding extra potassium.

The Earthbox website suggests 1.5 lbs of Tomato Tone per 2 cubic feet of growing medium as a single application.

Thanks so much.

[pepperhead212]

Two years ago I did a not too scientific experiment with two Earthboxes, one with the normal, granular fertilizer (10-10-10), the other organic, Ecoscraps (don't remember the numbers - had a yellow label I don't see anymore), and the organic ones grew a little slower, at first, but eventually, caught up. I planted two of the same plants in each, and any additives to the EBs were the same, so the only thing different was the two fertilizers. I put about 3 c of the organic one in.

As you can see, the organic was almost as large by 6-25 - about 7 weeks after planting - and not quite as dark green, but once they started producing, they were almost identical.
Organic EB on L, caught up in size. Sunsugar plants in the middle, Cherry Bombs on outside. 6-25 by pepperhead212, on Flickr