It looks good to me. I never sift soil conditioner if it looks partially composted, and usually skip the peat and mix in some (30-50%) of the AGWAY Pine Bark Mulch and perlite. They don't have Pine Bark Mulch?...that's odd. Ask them if they can order some.

Where are you located?

If you have an agway store, they should be able to order you as many bags as you want.

I had my store order me some in December. Arrived the next week for $6 for the 3 cubic foot bags.

give your local store a call and ask them to order some.

Just use ProMix and the correct NPK fert for your plants.

ProMix? Never.

why not

I live in the Pittsburgh PA area. The Agway I went to said it's not a big seller so they don't stock it. He did offer to place an order but I assumed they couldn't just order a single bag. I will stop back or give them a call if the soil conditioner is not good.

Yuan,

he was looking to go with the 5:1:1 mix. Promix is nothing like that.

You might as well just use miracle gro potting mix if you're going to use promix.

lol noob

It's ok, you'll learn as you go along. Have a look around here.

no, you

I was being sarcastic because I know that's how you meant it.

promix is a peat based mix and its no better than MG as far as the PWT is concerned. You'll deal with all the same issues.

The gritty mix and 5:1:1 are far superior if you want a mix that's fast draining.

No need for any name calling or acting childish. Everyone is here to help.

Read up on this thread if you have the time:

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1405347/container-soils-water-movement-and-retention-xiv?n=158

Yuan, Read the above link Dave provided, it's logic is unassailable.

If you want to act like a child, please do it elsewhere.

fb02: I am in Pittsburgh too. Home depot used to have pine bark mulch (Golden Trophy #302) but this year they seemed to have not stocked any. If you can find that let me know too. Which Agway did you go to. May be I should try having them order in some.

Tropicofcancer: The Agway I went to is in Imperial. If I find either I will let you know.

Tropicofcancer, I did notice that and I thought he was joking at first.

As far as Agway is concerned, I do believe, if you ask, they will order you all the pine bark mulch you'll need. At least, my local Agway had no problem doing so, and it was the middle of winter, too!

fb02: Thanks, I am in the city and all the Agways are out there far away :(.

You should sift pine bark when it is mostly dry. Your pictures of pine bark looks quite wet. It is easier to sift because it is lighter and they do not stick together as much. If you are also sifting out the fines (less than 1/8") it is almost necessary. I try do as much as possible late summer and store them in bags for the next season. The downside is that re-wetting pine bark takes more time.

Thanks Dave, I will try Agway. I need to check a few more of the local stores first.

TOC & fb02, perhaps you could combine orders and make it a bit easier for the AGWAY, and mine here is the burbs of Harrisburg has a price break if you buy 4 bags or more.

BTW...GO PENS!!!

I guess they can order any amount. I don't know the price but I have 2 bags coming next week.

I paid $6 per 3 cu ft bag here in VT. I hope your pricing is similar!

fb02: Please do post a picture of the pine bark when you get it. I may also end up ordering some if it looks good.

mblan: good idea on combining order. Next time. I generally tend to hoard when I get a good source.

Dave or mblan: Could one of you post a pic of the bark? After sifting what is the yield approximately? I usually sift into three parts: less than 1/8, between 1/8 and 1/4 and the rest. For 511, I would add back a small amount of the finer stuff. Otherwise, most of the finer stuff goes into the yard or hypertufa projects.

Sure, I'll post a pic of the mulch later next week.

Heres some finished 5:1:1 I made yesterday:

Thanks Dave. That looks great. Is that all below 1/2 inch? I think I will order some soon.

@yuan I originally thought that ProMix HPCC (high porosity/coconut coir) http://www.pthorticulture.com/en/products/pro-mix-hp-cc-mycorrhizae/

would be good enough for my emerald cedars in containers. I bought 2 bushels and later opened it to find out that its really mushy since its 65-75% peat moss. I decided to bite the bullet and make my own 5-1-1. I've never gardened in my life... I was hoping to just buy something prepackaged.

I found Alltreat Pine Bark Fines and sifted through 1/2" and used 5x of that, 1x of the Promix HPCC (65-75% moss, some CC and some perlite) and 1x perlite. I should probably mix a 1/4 more Promix HPCC in there to get more moss.

Anyways, I'm from GTA, Ontario, Canada and finding these things items were a pain in the butt but if you do need info on where to get it in the GTA.

TOC don't we all hoard!...LOL. I found a great partially composted PBF soil conditioner, I just got 1 bag to see if it was worth getting more...it was perfect! When I went back on the weekend, someone had bought the rest of the skid! Stock up BEFORE you post a good source! Luckily they got more.

I too get 90+% usage out of a bag...Awesome stuff. Anything over 1/2" gets used to mulch pots or garden beds, so nothing gets wasted (except ME, when I'm done!).

Do you guys seriously use bark. Nitro. Bugs. Fungus. Ugh.

Yuan, you have a lot of learning to do.

do you read any of the posts or threads on this forum? Or just tell everyone to use promix?

No bugs, No Fungus, No ugh either...not sure what "Nitro" refers to, but I'll say its probably no as well.

I had all that with store bought, peat based, bagged soil. The only problem with 5-1-1 is it doesn't come pre-made in a bag, and you have to water a little more.

Have you ever tried it, Yuan?

I can't read.

R u srs.

HAHAHAHAHA pepper ur wallet!

Where's the ignore button? Ha

Promix.

hahahahaha

Nitrogen...

Know how I know I won't ever try 511?

Yuan, it doesn't matter. Take care and I wish you the best.

because your a 12 year old troll that doesn't even have a garden?

ur not getting pics

Tropicofcancer: Picked up the pine bark today and took a quick pic. I won't be able to get to it for a couple of days to see how it is.
$6.89 a bag plus tax.

Don't feed the troll. Just ignore him.

fb02: That looks great. Is it 3 cu ft? That is a great deal. I will be heading to Agway for my order.

Nil: I think the troll is getting ready to make a series of one liner gibberish posts.

Dave from Vermont, I know this is a bit off the topic but please tell me that isn't SNOW I can see stuck to your boots in your photo posted on May10 above??

Harry

Yes it's a 3cu ft bag. I did a quick sift through the 1/2" screen. I think I got closer to 20% waste. Very strong pine smell!

Thanks, looking very good. BTW there is a store in North hills called Best Feeds. They have two types of Soil Conditioners. One of them is good for 511 or gritty. I forget which one but they have samples of each. Both have a bit more dust for my liking but the second is high in dust and for gritty mix the yield is low. It is a great place though. You can also get the granite grit there if you ever want to try gritty mix. Turface is available at EH Griffith.

You're welcome. I made the gritty mix awhile back with the 511. Traveled all over the place to get everything. What a pain. I didn't know about Best Feeds. It's good to know there's one place that has 2 of the ingredients. Another place for turface is John Deere Landscapes in Mt. Nebo. Or at least they did when I bought it back then.