recycling potting mix

rags57078 · May 18, 2014

I ended up with 200 or so gallons of used potting mix , this stuff is only lightly used maybe plants for a month or so . I mixed with 30% peat , 30% compost.

I screened the peat

added the used potting mix

mixed real well

these are my mini strawberry beds , 9 inches deep and 22 inches in dia.

Redbaron · May 18, 2014

That'll make some stuff grow! Great recycle!

HiPoha · May 18, 2014

Tell us how it works out for you. I am having some problems with my old potting soils too. I have tried to reuse them by turning them over and mixing in new compost and perlite. But the soil is like bog. Nothing is growing well in them.

zeroma · June 3, 2014

This year I reused all my last years Pro Mix that grew tomatoes. Also the little bits of Pro Mix that fell away from my seedlings as I planted them in the ground this year.

I made quick 4 week compost in a Big Brute trash can using well shredded dried leaves, a few broken pinecones, some Nitrogen only lawn fertilizer, small twigs, kitchen scrapes blended in home blender, fine shredded paper, and coffee in the garage.

Part of my garden is a water holding area, with hard lumps of clay that I dug out and dried.

So, I sifted about half a 5 gallon bucket of it with an old wire French fry basket to be able to reuse it in another area..... and mixed it all up with the other stuff and added maybe 2 5 gallons of used Pro Mix with it to fluff it up. Ended up with 4 Rubber Maid containers of great textured soil for the garden. I added it to my no dig garden.

rags57078 · June 30, 2014

A bit of an update , the tomato plants are 3 ft tall and starting to put on blossoms , the strawberries are looking good . They look real healthy

jakebb · June 30, 2014

What tomatoes varieties are you growing in them? I have only a few plants that have passed 3 ft so far.

rags57078 · June 30, 2014

Trip L crop , ultimate , Kentucky wonder

rags57078 · July 9, 2014

I updated the pics
http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=33268

zipcode · July 10, 2014

It's the fourth year now that my brother is using the same potting mix (2 tomato plants in one 10 gallon container). And they're doing really well.

May 18, 2014	#1
rags57078 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: South Dakota Posts: 278	recycling potting mix I ended up with 200 or so gallons of used potting mix , this stuff is only lightly used maybe plants for a month or so . I mixed with 30% peat , 30% compost. I screened the peat added the used potting mix mixed real well these are my mini strawberry beds , 9 inches deep and 22 inches in dia.

May 18, 2014	#2
Redbaron Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 4,488	That'll make some stuff grow! Great recycle! __________________ Scott AKA The Redbaron "Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted & thoughtful observation rather than protracted & thoughtless labour; & of looking at plants & animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system." Bill Mollison co-founder of permaculture

May 18, 2014	#3
HiPoha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Hawaii Posts: 130	Tell us how it works out for you. I am having some problems with my old potting soils too. I have tried to reuse them by turning them over and mixing in new compost and perlite. But the soil is like bog. Nothing is growing well in them.

June 3, 2014	#4
zeroma Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: SW Ohio Posts: 637	This year I reused all my last years Pro Mix that grew tomatoes. Also the little bits of Pro Mix that fell away from my seedlings as I planted them in the ground this year. I made quick 4 week compost in a Big Brute trash can using well shredded dried leaves, a few broken pinecones, some Nitrogen only lawn fertilizer, small twigs, kitchen scrapes blended in home blender, fine shredded paper, and coffee in the garage. Part of my garden is a water holding area, with hard lumps of clay that I dug out and dried. So, I sifted about half a 5 gallon bucket of it with an old wire French fry basket to be able to reuse it in another area..... and mixed it all up with the other stuff and added maybe 2 5 gallons of used Pro Mix with it to fluff it up. Ended up with 4 Rubber Maid containers of great textured soil for the garden. I added it to my no dig garden.

June 30, 2014	#5
rags57078 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: South Dakota Posts: 278	A bit of an update , the tomato plants are 3 ft tall and starting to put on blossoms , the strawberries are looking good . They look real healthy

June 30, 2014	#6
jakebb Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: South Dakota USDA Zone 4b Posts: 24	What tomatoes varieties are you growing in them? I have only a few plants that have passed 3 ft so far.

July 9, 2014	#8
rags57078 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: South Dakota Posts: 278	I updated the pics http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=33268

July 10, 2014	#9
zipcode Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Romania/Germany , z 4-6 Posts: 1,582	It's the fourth year now that my brother is using the same potting mix (2 tomato plants in one 10 gallon container). And they're doing really well.