Potting Soil Recipes for Container Gardening
Make quality potting soil and soil-less mixes at home.
Seedling mix for seedlings in styrofoam flats :
- 2 parts compost
- 2 part peat moss or coir
- 1 part perlite
The second recipe is a soilless recipe based on the Cornell Mix concept; the third is a classic soil-based formula.
Organic substitute for Cornell Mix (large quantity):
- 1/2 cu. yd. Sphagnum peat or coir
- 1/2 cu. yd perlite
- 10 lbs. bonemeal
- 5 lbs. ground limestone
- 5 lbs. bloodmeal
Classic soil-based mix:
- 1/3 mature compost or leaf mold, screened
- 1/3 garden topsoil
- 1/3 sharp sand
Note: This mix results in a potting soil that is heavier than modern peat mixes, but still has good drainage. Compost has been shown to promote a healthy soil mix that can reduce root diseases. Perlite can be used instead of sand. Organic fertilizer can be added to this base.
Prick-out mix for growing seedlings to transplant size:
- 6 parts compost
- 3 parts soil
- 1-2 parts sand
- 1-2 parts aged manure
- 1 part peat moss, pre-wet and sifted
- 1-2 parts leaf mold, if available
- 1 6″ pot bone meal
Organic potting mix:
- 1 part sphagnum peat or coir
- 1 part peat humus (short fiber)
- 1 part compost
- 1 part sharp sand (builder’s)
to every 80 qts. of this add:
- 1 cup greensand
- 1 cup colloidal phosphate
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups crabmeal, or bloodmeal
- 1/2 cup lime
