Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange
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Questions tagged [potting-soil]

Soil used for pot plants

Potting soil mixes are intended for use in pots. As such they are typically mixed for particular application - unlike an outside bed which is typically topsoil or modified topsoil.

Use this tag for questions about potting soil mixtures, which to use, etc.

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Is it wise to reuse potting soil?

The potting soil in question is in medium to large sized pots that had/have tomatoes or small fruit trees in them.
Vervious
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What are some sustainable alternatives to peat for potting compost?

I've just finished writing the tag wiki for organic and was thinking about wider issues of sustainability. Perhaps the best area where I could improve things personally, would be to use an alternative medium for seed trays. At the moment I use…
winwaed
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Can we take out the whole root of Aloe Vera and replant it during transplant?

I bought a Aloe Vera in a shop a year ago and I just use the pot that came with it, so obviously I don't know what is in the soil and their components. Yesterday I felt that I should transplant the aloe because the plastic pot is broken and the soil…
lamwaiman1988
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What type of potting soil is most suitable for indoor herbs?

I've tried a few times to grow potted herbs in my apartment with varying success, and I suspect it is related to the potting soil. I have basil and rosemary that are thriving in pots filled with MiracleGro Potting Mix, but I planted chocolate mint,…
Laura
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Do I need to correct the pH of my newly re-potted citrus tree?

I tried my hand at making my own soil for my citrus tree re potting. See below for the long story reasoning. I mixed EKO store bought (I live in an apartment) organic compost with coco coir and perlite. Its about equal parts of each, maybe a little…
startoftext
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Why use potting mix instead of natural soil?

Being a layman who is thinking of starting to garden in the yard I have a question in mind. Why does one need to buy potting mix and why not use natural soil for gardening? I live in Melbourne Australia and I cannot understand why mostly smaller…
haansi
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What is a recipe for a long-lasting, fast draining container soil mix with good aeration?

I'm interested in making my own container soil for some potted citrus and figs as well as something that'll work for other house plants. I've heard of Al's Gritty Mix. Does anyone have a mix that's worked well for them over a several year period?
Tim Clymer
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What should I do before using dried up bagged potting soil?

I bought potting soil (good stuff) a year ago. Since then the bag dried out. What can I do to get it moist again? Should I just water it?
Mary-Kate
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Has anybody had any success using 5 gallon buckets as planters?

I've recently became interested in starting some outdoor planters this coming spring. After searching around, I found an interesting idea off of Popular Mechanics using 5 gallon drywall buckets as planters. What appealed to me was the low cost to…
WienerDog
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Is it okay to leave peat moss out from a soil-less mix recipe?

Is it OK to leave out peat moss in a soil recipe? I have this gardenbox and I'm looking for recipes for a mix to buy in bulk and ALL of them have peat moss, but from what I've read it's no good. Here's an example: 1/2 bushel of peat moss 1/2…
Robert
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Is there a way to recycle old potting soil?

When I repot all of my potted plants each year, I end up with a rather large amount of used potting soil. It seems like a waste of good organic material to take it to the landfill. Is there a way of saving and recycling it to make it usable in some…
J. Musser
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What are these long, mostly translucent worms in my potted trees?

I buy, re-pot and take care of Norfolk Island Pine trees in my office. They're mostly decorated and displayed around Christmas time, but I take care of them year round and sometimes decorate them for other seasons. This year I purchased a few and…
Fell
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Does commercial (bagged) soil eventually expire/die?

I have several piles of commercial, bagged top soil and potting mix that have been lying in my garage for at least 10 years. I'm doing some renovations and can really use some extra soil for some new garden beds and filling some pots. Is there such…
Robert Cartaino
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How is 'gardening soil' made?

Typical garden soil from the garden centre has a perfect black colour, with additions like peat, fertilizers, and so called 'soil improvers'. Can someone explain to me what the process is of making the 'typical' garden soil. With this I mean the…
Joris
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What are these specks of white fuzz in some of my potting soil?

I was transplanting seedlings of chives and parsley and noticed white fuzzy specks clustered in the soil. Because it exists in both sets of seedlings - neither of which started with this fuzzy stuff - I imagine it is something in the soil or it is a…
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