Just finishing my 4th year WS and have used only Miracle Grow potting mix since half way through the first year.
That first year I had lots of "soil bricks" and very little germination in them. Everything in the miracle grow germinated.
I usually have between 80-90% germination with the miracle grow potting mix. Wouldn't use anything else.
Purchase it in 2 and 2 1/2 cubic foot bags.

Fran

I purchase large bales of soiless Pro-mix (3sq ft)for seed starting. Light, fluffy,drains well, sterile - - -perfect for seed starting but no nutrition. So you have to feed after the sprouts arrive. I've also been using it in deck flower containers (to keep them light, not so hard to move)but this year I am going to use some miracle grow instead, the kind that has the plant food (and moisture control)built in for my pots. I've read here the flowers do better.

Nancy

I make my own.

I've been buying potting mix on sale, ranging from ProMix to MetroMix, and none of the redi-made stuff is exactly right.

I keep a variety of amendments on hand, so I can create exactly the mix I need for the application. They include Perlite, Vermiculite, Turface and finely ground pine bark. I also will shred dry Eelgrass which I add to some potting mixes for micro-nutes.

For WS'ing, I usually sift ProMix and add sifted vermiculite at about a 50/50 ratio. I recently found a local source for pre-sifted coarse vermiculite, which is great stuff.

For potting, it depends on what plant I'm potting up. Veggies get more organic matter and nutes than grasses. Big pots get more pine bark than small pots, and so on.

My own compost, and compost/Eelgrass tea are a very important part of my mixes. I make two different kinds of compost. One is yard and garden waste, made in large bins. The other is fruit and veggie kitchen scraps, UCG's and fine wood shavings, made in it's own small bin. It's much richer and less sandy than the yard and garden compost. When it's just finished, it'll make the hair on the back of my hands grow.

I love the chemistry of organic gardening.

This year I'm doing a 'mix". WalMarts Expert Potting Mix is $7 something a bag and Miracle Grow is $9 something a bag. I found the Miracle Grow a bit too fluffy. The Expert Mix has a bit more heft to the soil, if you don't mind the tree branches in it. By mixing these 50/50, I seem to get a good mix that wets easily, yet still drains well and so far the germination has been great. I'm also saving 2.00 on every 2 bags I buy. The cheap stuff just ain't worth it. I wouldn't take that stuff if they gave it away!

I used to use MG only. This year I tried ProMix after using up MG. It dries up too fast. I think I'll go back to MG next year. I also get better results from MG than ProMix.

Pro-Mix to start-I get it in the huge bales from the local feed & garden store-the big box stores don't always carry it. Once I plant out, they get my good compost

Last year I started with MiracleGro and switched to Expert Gardener, the Wal-Mart brand, after reading favorable comments about it. I really like the W-M brand and now use it exclusively. It stays light and fluffy and has much less debris than MiracleGro. (Perhaps there are regional differences in the formula; I don't know.) Today I planted out some red hot poker that I WSed last year and repotted into a larger container in the fall. The soil (Expert Gardener) was still light and fluffy after all that time. One I would never use is StaGreen. I used it for houseplants and it turned into a brick.

wow, and think I always thought dirt was dirt!! LOL!!

I use Miracle grow mix too.I started out with it and will stay with it because I have such great results.When planting out I use organic compost and my own compost,mixed.Works great for me.
moonphase

This is the first year I've used the MG potting soil and I'm impressed! I swear I got 96% germination in all my milk jugs. I started with the cheapest a few years ago and got bricks. I'm sticking with the MG.
Marcy

I am using MG right now exclusively b/c I got the biggest bags for $5.00 a piece in the fall but I get my best soil mix by adding my own compost to it. I also loke Expert Gardener but again I add my own compost to the mix.

Penny

I asked my local garden retailer if he would sell me some of the potting soil he uses. He sold it to me very inexpensively, in fact, I asked him, "Are you sure you're charging me enough for this?" It is so wonderful. Powdery and light. He told me it has 1/2 fertilizer which is perfect for the seedling.

I'll never use anything else.

The store-bought stuff I used to use turns into a brick.

ellen

I keep a variety of amendments on hand, so I can create exactly the mix I need for the application. They include Perlite, Vermiculite, Turface and finely ground pine bark. .

Donn do you ground your own pine bark if so how. I'm planning on making alot of container mix and want to use the pine bark fines talked about on the soil forum, but haven't yet found any pre-packaged.

I have been running pine bark nuggets (from the big box stores) through the chipper/shredder, but I just found a source for stuff called "Pine Bark Soil Conditioner." It's described as "super fine ground pine bark." It's only $3.95 for a 2 cubic foot bag, so I'll check it out.

donn - - When you say you just found a source for Pine Bark Soil Conditioner - I am wondering if what you are referring to is different than what Lowe's and Home Depot have - which is labeled Pine Bark Soil Conditioner. I have been using that soil conditioner now for over ten years - adding it to my hard clay for a bit of aeration. I am curious as to where you found your source and if it is a bit better than the box stores. Thanks - Carrie

Carrie..I haven't seen soil conditioner at the box stores around here. Probably because our soil is so sandy. The stuff I buy there is mini pine bark nuggets, which aren't mini enough, so I run them through the chipper/shredder.

The stuff I'm going to try is carried at a wholesale nursery supply yard I just opened an account with. I'll probably be heading up there this coming week, because I'm running low on lots of potting soil components.

It's not a touchy subject per se. Those of us who protest against cheap soil have had the heartbreak of dealing with the cement bricks and choked sprouts. It's not a matter of one thing working slightly better than the other...it's a matter of losing darn near everything in the containers with the cheapo soil.

Given these small disasters, we tend to protest vigorously against cheap soil.

I have been really happy with ProMix. I purchased one of the 3.8 cu ft bales of compressed potting mix and it has filled 37 containers (mostly 1 gallon), 81 four inch pots and I still have a little left. Not bad for $28. The ProMix is a bit harder to wet than MG.

- Brent

I only ONCE got the fine ground pine bark soil conditioner and that was from a specialty place delivered. After that, they only had Nature's Helper which is much larger bits. The "pine bark fines" are what professionals use in their pots down here and it is great.
I have been lucky enough to be using Fafard mix most of the spring season. I would want to add more vermiculite to it if I was using it for WS. This year I was using the cheaper fake Wal-Mart miracle grow stuff, but it rotted out a lot of my seeds as it held too much water. It is very difficult to find vermiculite here in bulk. I did find some today, but wouldn't ya know, the trunk was already stuffed FULL of plants and seeds :(

GGG