Wow!!! I went to pick up pro-mix to fill my containers. I couldn't believe how much the price has jumped. Last year I paid $26.00 per bale, now it's $33.00 per bale. With my containers and Hubbie's EB's this can get expensive. Any ideas for mixing potting mix.
Peg
Pro-Mix for Containers
I solved this problem last year by filling the bottom of my containers with chunks of stryofoam insulation/packing material. It makes the pot lighter and easier to move, is cheaper for soil mix, and most plant roots don't need a full pot. And I never had a drainage problem.
Make sure you read tapla's sticky thread in this forum on water movement in containers before you try that approach--you can run into more problems with root rot if you add drainage material to the bottom of containers--sort of counter-intuitive at first but once you read through his info it makes sense. I think there are also some container soil recipes in that thread if you want to try and make your own.
I'd shop around, I paid 23.00 at agway last week end.
I paid $26. at my local nursery (I was in a hurry) and they're known to be a bit on the high side. I'd say you should call around and see if anyone else is carrying it cheaper.
MollyD
Peg, not sure where Wingate is... but I think I'm paying $28 a bale at Dutch Plant Farm in Frederick (Baughman's Lane, just off 40, behind JoAnn's). I keep an eye out at Home Depot, as they sometimes get one pallet of it in... it's cheaper, but it goes fast, and if they had it last year I missed it!
If you can buy wholesale, Promix has a website that lists sellers and you can get the large bales for about $20 bucks. Home Depot carries the Promix for containers here and it's only about $14 for a bale. It's a bit smaller than the commercial size but still not a bad price. If you know of a nursery that carries it, some will deal with you if they know you will buy a larger amount than the home gardener usually needs. They may tack on a buck or two to cover their shipping costs but it beats paying retail!
Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I will check around, but I live on the eastern shore of MD. we don't have many options here. If I can't find it cheaper I'll look up the recipe for it on Tapia's thread. I hate to change because pro-mix always works great for me.
Peg
Chele do you have that link for the Promix wholesale? I tried looking for them before and found nothing under their name.
MollyD
Boy, you guys back East are lucky. I've been paying $33 in Washington State for years. And they are all charging that. Jeanette
Jeanette,
between your unfriendly neighbors and these prices you have just got to move east!
MollyD
Hi guys, HD near me don't sell PM but 6 miles farther W. in farm country I get PM for $14.00; but after 07/04 price usually drops to $12.00-that's when I nuy.
I thought EB potting mixes could be used for up to 5 years before tossing it on the mulch pile? An updated diy EB potting mix recipe would be nice too.
Bernie
Chesapeake, I started using ProMix back in the 70's when I had my own greenhouse and also worked for a large wholesale fern grower. I was living in Salisbury, MD at the time. I still use it and find the best prices are in the feed and seed places and I am sure they still have plenty of those on the shore. They can order it for you if they don't stock it.
The other day went to buy ProMix and they were out and I had to come home with a huge bag of Fafard. It was cheaper than PM but it was also only about half as much. Those bales of PM are compressed so you get far more product in the bag.
I've been using Perfect Mix from Walmart. 2 cubic yards for $7.99. but it doesn't go far. Pro-mix is compressed 3.8 cubic and goes a lot futher when wet. Every time I buy the Perfect Mix I say well I don't need that much more. As you all know there is always something else to plant or repot. Guess I'll just go back to the Pro-mix and stop crying over the price. I really like it a lot better. Checked all around me and cost is roughly $33.00.
The price really went up after they started adding the mychorrhiza (sp?). That's a good thing but the price sure is high now.
How many cu.ft. are there in a bale? Down here I use Jungle Growth in a 2 cu ft bag for about $7. My EBs hold exactly that amount.
The bales are 3.8 cu ft of compressed mix...probably the equivalent of about 6 cu ft of uncompressed.
BTW, what fertilizer are you using with Pro-Mix? I tried mixing some Plant-Tone (organic fertilizer) with Pro-Mix when potting up some seedlings and I had poor results. I had much better success using MiracleGro potting mix but I attribute that to my lack of knowledge about organic fertilizers.
- Brent
The peat harvests in Quebec and out West have been terrible for the past few years. That's the primary reason the price is going up. If you've never seen peat being harvested, it's really a sight to see. The bogs look like northern France after the battle of the Somme.
Here's the web address for ProMix http://www.premierhort.com/eProMix/index.htm
I couldn't find any this past weekend at my usual place, so I wound up at Lowe's with Miracle Gro. Any feedback on MG?
You're paying a premium for the MG name, which over the years they've earned the right to charge. As a capitalist, I support them for doing so. However, I wouldn't buy a potting soil that contained a water soluble or slow release fertilizer, since you're paying for something that will be of no use to you by the time you get it home. Better to buy a good unfertilized growing media and do your own fertilizing.
I buy MG potting mix all the time because it's easy to find and I trust the brand and I'm too busy (or is it lazy?) to mix up my own potting mixes. I don't really care about the fertilizer that's in there, it's OK as a boost to things when you first plant them but I know it doesn't really do much and that doesn't bother me. My plants have always done well with it.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating. I've always used ProMix and added polymers and Osmocote, but it would be nice if all that were already in the mix. I'll see how the MG does for my Broadway Lights Shasta daisy.