If you are a plant lover and grower, and you grow plants in containers, then you should be using potting soil for your plants. However, you cannot find a single kind of potting soil that works with every kind of plant. The best potting soil will depend on what you are trying to grow. Here are some of the best potting soils for different types of plants.
Standard Potting Soil Mixes
Most standard potting soil mixes contain tree bark, sphagnum peat moss, and vermiculite or perlite. These are the basic ingredients of potting soil mixes but there can be many more contained in the mix. The purpose of these ingredients is to retain moisture and nutrients while giving plenty of air to your plants. It also gives stability to your plant. Quality potting soil will contain all the nutrients your plant needs to grow. They are light, fluffy, and not compact easily. The roots will be able to easily access air and oxygen for their optimal development.
The best potting soil balances water retention and aeration. They must drain well to avoid rotting or molds. But they also retain some moisture for the plant roots to drink. A good potting mix’s consistency will allow plants to anchor their roots. The root system of the plant will then become stable. This prevents them from falling over or being torn out by the wind.
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Miracle-Gro Potting Mix
Miracle-Gro Premium Potting Mix is good for both indoor and outdoor plants. It contains the right kinds of nutrients that will help feed your plants. The formulation of this mix is for your plants and flowers to have more blooms and more colors. You will have flowers and ferns that will be twice as big. This potting mix contains a mixture of sphagnum peat moss, sand, composted forest products, and perlite. It helps to improve drainage and prevents soil compaction.
Make sure to water only when the mix is dry to the touch. It is not good to let the plant sit in drainage water. But if you have outdoor plants, you can water them once a day in hot, dry conditions. To replenish nutrients and avoid soil compaction, you should re-pot your container plants annually with this potting mix.
Miracle-Gro Indoor Potting Mix
Gardeners usually worry about attracting gnats to their potting mix. Although gnats will not harm your potting mix, it will definitely harm your plants. Miracle-Gro Indoor Potting Mix is specifically designed to repel gnats and other small bugs. It does not contain bark or compost which are known shelters of fungus gnats.
The mix can be used for a wide variety of container plants. It consists of coconut coir which can hold and release water to help the soil re-wet. It has water retention, porosity, and pH balancing properties.
Espoma Organic Potting Mix
Espoma Organic Potting mix is good for both indoor and outdoor containers. It contains sphagnum peat moss, humus, and perlite. It is also enhanced with Myco-tone water saving formula. This is a blend of 11 different strains of mycorrhizae. It helps promote root growth, reduce drought stress, increase water uptake, and transplant shock.
It is an all-natural formula fortified with earthworm castings, kelp meal, alfalfa meal, feather meal, and yucca extract. It does not contain any synthetic plant foods or chemicals.
Fertilome Ultimate Potting Mix
Fertilome is an all-purpose potting mix. It can be used for both indoor and outdoor plants. It contains everything that plants need to grow. The plant foods that it offers include root stimulator, start and grow, blooming and rooting, geranium and hanging baskets food, tomato and vegetable, and fish emulsion. There is no bark added to this mix and it help to optimize water retention.
If you want one soil for everything, this potting mix is the best for all types of plants. It contains sphagnum peat moss, perlite, wetting agent, and slow release humic acids.
For more information on other types of soils, check here. The Best Soil for All Types of Gardens
Potting soil mix for cactus and succulents
With potting soil mix for cactus and succulents, you are provided with soil that can enhance drainage, increase evaporation, and give your cactus the dry conditions that they need. This type of mix copies the natural gritty, arid, and low nutrient soils they grow in naturally.
The right potting mix for cactus and succulents, whether you’re growing them indoors or outdoors must have the following: an excellent drainage, well-aerated, soil-less, and light. This type of potting mix is available in most nurseries and garden centers. It forms a better basis for cactus roots than regular soil. It keeps roots and stems from sitting in moisture which can cause rot.
Sun Gro Horticulture Black Gold Cactus
This Black Gold mix is good for hot climates, thinner-leaved succulents, or for those who seem to always forget to water their plants. This mix suits the unique growing needs of all cactus and succulents. It consists of volcanic pumice, sand, perlite, earthworm castings, and forest humus.
The mixture is not too rich but just right. No additives are included.This mix provides all types of cacti, bromeliads, and succulents perfect soil structure and drainage.
Soil for Orchids
Orchids may be difficult to grow but they are also just like other plants. You simply need to give them the correct planting medium, light, and moisture and they will thrive. But just don’t treat orchids like any other houseplant.
Soil for orchids is a mix of chunky ingredients that copies the environment that orchids use in the wild. Aeration and drainage are the most important features of orchid soil. Their roots are not the same as houseplants. Their roots will rot if left in moisture for long.
The proper potting material for Phalaenopsis orchids should be able to hold the orchid in place, provide aeration to its roots, retain enough water needed by the plant, and provide proper drainage so that the roots will not be overexposed to water.
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All Natural Orchid Potting Mix
Organic orchid potting mix by Perfect Plants is an all-purpose mix composed of charcoal, pine bark, sponge rock, and coconut chips. Since orchid roots love to climb and expand, this mix allows them to stretch to their full potential.
The mix does not compact or suffocate orchid roots. It provides good aeration. It also provides proper drainage while still giving roots access to moisture.
Besgrow New Zealand Sphagnum Moss
New Zealand sphagnum moss has natural properties and excellent water holding capacity. This type of sphagnum moss is recognized worldwide as a premium product in the orchid growing industry. Its maximum water holding capacity is 96% since it is naturally air-dried. This helps the moss retain water and nutrients that can easily be released to the plants. It does not accumulate unwanted salts.
Sphagnum moss does not change its structure for many years. This can still be used for re-potting which can help reduce your costs. Sphagnum moss also helps prevent plant pathogens from attacking the roots. This is due to its sterile nature.
Phalaenopsis Imperial Orchid Mix – AAA Gold
With Phalaenopsis Gold classic orchid mix, you are provided with excellent drainage but still retains ample moisture. This mix contains New Zealand sphagnum moss with sponge rock and medium coconut husk chips. It helps to promote strong growth and with the sphagnum moss, rewetting is easier.
If you have weak and recovering plans, this classical orchid mix is an excellent choice.
Soil Add-Ons
Our container plants need extra help, so it is important to have soil add-ons. Their roots are confined. This means that they can’t reach out to the soil surrounding them to search for nutrients. You need to supply them with nutrients that they need to thrive.
Potting mixes also don’t contain soil, so they don’t have their own nutrients. You must supply fertilizer to your plants.
And, potting mixes don’t have beneficial microbes. These mixes are sterilized so that they are free from plant disease organisms. Fertilizers depend on soil microbes to break them down for us. In containers without microbes, you need to provide nutrients that are readily available to plants.
Miracle-Gro Pound Water-Soluble All Purpose Plant Food
This plant food contains essential nutrients. If you feed your plans with this, you will have bigger and more beautiful plants. This is good for all flowers, vegetables, trees, shrubs, and houseplants. When used properly, it does not burn and works instantly.
It is composed of 10 micro-nutrients. This ensures that your plants grow healthy. You can easily apply this product with a watering can or with the Micro-Gro Feeder.
Worm Castings Organic Fertilizer, Wiggle Worm Soil Builder
This worm casting fertilizer helps your plants grow beautifully with good yield. It is good for both indoor and outdoor plants.
Earthworms feed on very rich organic material that they digest and pass out. When this happens, the material is altered both chemically and physically. The end product is super humus which is an extremely fertile organic fertilizer. It helps promote root growth and has all the elements required for optimum plant nutrition.
Final Thoughts
Potting soil helps support the plant and deliver water and nutrients. Good potting soil will resemble the native soil of the plant.
Now you know the best potting mixes for different types of plants. While a general potting mix will be sufficient for many types of house plants, others, like succulents and orchids, require a specific mix catered to their needs.
