Overview
Potting soil is the medium of choice among container gardeners. It provides the nutrients required to help young plants develop, and promotes the vibrant growth of flowers and fruits in more mature specimens. There is an array of special-use potting soils designed for plants with unique needs.
Healthy flowering plants need quality potting soil.
image by "India Pink Zinnia 2 (explore)" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: Swami Stream (Swaminathan) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
Cacti need airy soil that doesn't retain much moisture.
image by "Cactus" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: Julia's Photography (Julia Pironea) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
Types
General-use potting soil is suitable for most flowers and herbs. Fast-draining mixtures are available for cacti and succulents. Loose mixtures, laced with bark chips, are used for specialty flowers like orchids.
Production
Commercial potting soils are produced by composting peat moss and ground bark. The mixtures are often sterilized before packaging to ward off microorganisms that are harmful to plants.
Ingredients
Compost can sometimes be too dense, so potting soils are cut with perlite, a puffed volcanic glass that appears in the mixture as small white pebbles. For convenience, a few months' supply of fertilizer is added to some mixes.
Sources
Although brand-name potting soils such as Miracle-Gro are widely available in retail stores, private farms often produce their own mixes that can be purchased locally.
Cost
Potting soil is usually sold in bags of 8 to 15 qts. that cost roughly $3 to $7 each. Premium products can fetch up to $10 per bag.
- The Tucson Gardener
- The Home Depot
- Colorado State University
Keywords:
planting, potting soil, plants
About this Author
Justin Coleman is a freelance writer based in Connecticut. Since 2007, he has covered a variety of topics, including biology and computers, amongst others. Coleman is currently a freelance nature and technology writer and wildlife photographer. When not working, Coleman tirelessly explores new areas of nature, history, philosophy, comparative religion, technology and sociology.
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