Can someone please explain why Miracle Gro "Organic Potting Soil" weighs a ton? And what it is good for? It seems every bit as heavy as bedding soil and I just don't get it. I thought potting soil should be pretty light for drainage and to keep compaction to a minimum.
Anyway, my husband thinks that the aforementioned product should be only thing I need for our potted tomato plants and the label on the bag implies as much. He talked me into buying some of this stuff, but to me, it seems very very heavy.
I'm happier trying to mix my own stuff, adding in vermiculite, peat moss, compost and shredded pine bark but I admit I haven't grown the best garden (but there are many many possible reasons for that!!).
Am I right that the MG Organic potting soil needs to be lightened up? And if so, WHY do they sell this stuff the way they do? And how can I explain it to hubby? In the end, it's my garden and I can and will do what I want, but I admit I am getting confused.
Potting soil
Lise, my DH bought that stuff for me one time and I too found it to be very heavy for potting soil. I had to check the bag again to make sure it wasn't garden soil - it was that heavy. I added vermiculite and some compost to it to lighten it up and it worked fine...
I've used it as is for years and it works fine. Sometimes I add to it, sometimes I don't. Just be sure to use the potting soil for containers, and the garden soil for the garden. It's a moisture retention thing.
Okay, thanks. Locakelly, you confirmed my instincts, but Sequee, it's nice to know it does work okay.
I guess we'll have peace in our household by using it "as is" for some of the plants and using a lightened version for some others. Might be interesting to compare the results.
Thanks guys!
I've used MG potting soil for years as well, for starting seeds, potting plants, whatever, with good results. At times, though, I've bought a bag that was really saturated with water from being stored outside, and then it really does weigh a ton!
Folks, I've found the MG "potting" soil is good, as is, for raised beds. It's theoretically good for only one season, but I extend the life by mixing in a ton (not literally) of composted manure for the second year.
This year I'm going to try to get a third season out of it. Wish me luck.
Will
I use mine forever, I just add to it...organic matter, manure, or even another bag or two o MG, depending on how much I need to fill the beds/boxes. I do mix in a little dolomitic lime and fertilizer for my tomatoes if I'm planting them in "used" mix.
You could theoretically use the "used" soil indefinitely by adding compost, etc, to it when you replant. As long as the prior plant had no fungus or disease you're good to go.
i do the same thing. i have reused the same stuff for 3 years just by adding a few things to the original container.
i was just recently in our local odd lot store and they hadthe same size bag as MG potting soil for containers by scottsand it was only 7 dollars. i think the MG must be going for at least 12 dollars at my local sms club.
Yeah, I think it is spendy. I think I paid $9 - or rather hubby did, since he was the one that wanted it.
Weedwhacker, you are right about the saturation. That was the problem. That bag weighed a lot and it was wet. I have since bought two more bags that are much lighter (no holes in the plastic!). It seems like good stuff, I'm happy that it's organic, and if hubby endorses the expenditure (which I still think is overpriced), I'm okay with buying it, for my tomatoes anyway. I can't afford to buy it for everything, but maybe a few bags a year and keep adding to it and everything will be great!
I'm going to try to post a link to a rather long but totally enlightening discussion about container soil. Here goes:
http://cubits.org/containergardeningwith/thread/view/1084/
If the above isn't a link, go to cue bitts and find Al's (tapla's) Container Garden
It is a long read, get a cup of tea or coffee and settle in to read.. I guarantee you will never look at container mix the same way again! You'll use MG for seedling plots and mulch on the ground, but not in a pot.
Cheers,
Melissa
Oh, and LisP, they sell that stuff simply because people will buy it and they make money.
An extreme example of this phenomenon is the man they caught in a big Chinese city selling fried cardboard. Yes. He went around scrounging cardboard off the streets at night, and by day, sold bits deep fried with spicy sauce. He was successful for a while, I don't know how he was caught, but he was simply selling something that people would buy.
Ever hear the phrase: Let the Buyer Beware
LOL!