VonsGardens wrote: There have been dozens if not hundreds of threads on this topic across the boards. .
John

This is our first "soil thread" ...... are we part of the fraternity now

Oops, I thought we were talking about floor sweep for the garage floor, my bad.

keep it green,
Harry

Um, I guess you missed my humor- I use purely inorganic soil for everything.

Best of luck,
John

I got it , I do the same................

keep it green,
Harry

When you say purely inorganic thats no pine bark or sand at all right. I mixed some of the fired clay with a bit of unfertilized potting soil and the soil seemed to act as glue binding it all up. Surprisingly the chinese elm has been doing fine in it though.

I have a fukein tea that I'm about to put in a training pot with a mix of fired clay, pine bark, and sand at 2:2:1 ratio

And a ficus with the same mix but at a 3:1:1
Any warnings or tips before I do it.
Our temp has been dropping already so I plan on making the move Sat or Sunday...

Kinda went off topic but:o

VonsGardens wrote:Um, I guess you missed my humor- I use purely inorganic soil for everything.

Best of luck,
John

I can't remember if John uses charcoal of not, but add a little to your mix to help absorb impurities that could be toxic to roots.

keep it green,
Harry

Awesome! Never heard that before. Where would I get that, a garden or hardware store, or I guess I could cut a new brita filter open too. Thanks for the help

Anthony

Anthony wrote:Awesome! Never heard that before. Where would I get that, a garden or hardware store, or I guess I could cut a new brita filter open too. Thanks for the help

Anthony

Garden centers will have it, about one cup per 5 gals. of soil mix.

keep it green,
Harry

Thanks Harry!!! I'll probably go to one after work. I'd post pick after I do it but there going into training pots with the rocks under ground so not much to see really.

All the Best,
Anthony

Anthony, you mention using potting soil (as in for houseplants) in your mix. The objective is to get a mix that drains quickly, retains some moisture but not too much and has the right amount of air space. Houseplant mix generally holds TOO much water, and has too little airspace for bonsai because the particle size is too small. Plus most potting mixes are mostly peat or other organic material that breaks down very quickly becoming mush.

Sand can also have too small a particle size, depending on what kind of sand you are using. BUT...sand, is NOT organic, so its not eliminated from a non-organic mix for the same reasons as pine bark. IF it is sifted so your particle size is good and it contains no limestone, it can work as an inert substance in your mix. Sifting should leave you with particles between 1/8th of an inch and 1/4 of an inch or larger for some trees. Typical playground sand is too fine. Most builders sand I've seen has a wide assortment of particle sizes, so watch it. Poultry grit WITHOUT SHELL (I get a quartzite product here) comes in different sizes and works well with nothing more than rinsing.