Has anybody else run into this stuff? They sell this brand at Walmart here. It's awful! The mix is FULL of pieces of wood. It's like they mixed wood mulch in with the soil. I'm constantly picking out huge chunks of wood, and you never get rid of all of it. I finally got tired of it and today went out for some Schultz's.
I just can't see how all that stray organic matter is good for the cacti. Is it something aimed at the succulent market?
It reminds me of when I used to use Hyponex potting soil years ago. That stuff was like concrete.
From the label: "This product is regionally formulated from composted materials (derived from one or more of the following: forest products, peat, or compost)"
I think John Prescott knows the word to describe this stuff
i,ve wondered bout using amended regular potting soil myself ..seems like even regular potting soil not even amended is way lighter an drys twice as quickly as any store bought cactus soil wether you amend it or no..
all of the commercially available "cactus and succulent" potting mixes are truly horrible if used without amendments, except that they will generally work all right for the most easily grown and least picky species (which are also most often the plants that are in wholesale trade).
Potting mixes seem to be highly dependent on local conditions including atmospheric humidity, water chemistry, climate, growing season, etc. This is why you hear growers in the southwest railing against peat (and it is true-- here in New Mexico, too much peat or indeed for some species *any* peat at all is a recipe for disaster) whereas growers elsewhere have great success (even with desert rats) using a peat-based mix.
i have just given up using what sells as cactus compost in this country......it looks just like peat with added sand to me when it dries out it's really hard to get wet again
the plants i bought from the specialist grower last week were in what looks like my garden soil with lots of added small grit, so i'm experimenting with loam based john innes no 2 with added grit and perlite.
incurable cactoholic
growing rebutia's with a mix of others.
Yes, the Schultz's certainly has organic matter too, but far less.
I'm actually not averse to some more "traditional" potting soil in my mix (at least so far!), but this is ridiculous. It looks like it was made for bromeliads or orchids. In fact, I think I'll save it in case I ever try an epiphyllum again.
I'm still looking at the aquatic potting mix every time I'm in a garden center.
I've really not had trouble with any of these turning into concrete, although I've always added extra perlite. It's the cr*p that comes from some of the greenhouses that's like concrete!
I suspect you will eventually come to dislike the Schultz too. It is also made from peat but they have used a mix of sphagnum moss peat and sedge peat (plus sand and perlite) which is relatively crumbly and appears superficially like a mineral soil. But it isn't! Over time, even just a matter of months if you have very hard water, it will decompose to form a clogging sludge or a solid caked lump. If you use this product, plan on repotting in fresh soil every year, or two at the most.
Well i use B&Q ccti and succulent compost is basically the complete oposite to what Daiv uses because the compost is 80% peat i do find the odd twig but nothing major.
Yeah, it's definitely not desert soil. But it's interesting how some plants thrive in something different from their native habitat. It's as though they were living in a shack and they're perfectly happy to move to a mansion. But I know that's not always the case.
So far I haven't had any problems with the Schultz+perlite losing its drainage properties or anything. I'm going to have to take the plunge with the aquatic soil.
If you are having problems with chunks and pieces of organic items in your mix, you can buy a piece of screen to shift, or if you do any prospecting you can use your separator to filter the mix.
Every bag of Schultz cactus soil have semi hard chunks in it. I assume it be peat.
I always cut it with a local brand and then filter the two. It gets rid of the chunks and other odds and ends found in these mixes.
After that I add the course material and come out with a good blend.
A piece of screen is cheap and gets rid of a lot of crap you don't want.
I killed one cactus experiment of mine with it, a silver cholla segment. The soil seemed to stay wet for so long its base rotted & it fell over.
The soil wasnt mixed, just right out of the bag & I think thats where I learned a lesson. I left it alone & another sprout came out of the base but I gave up on it. -comike
Has anybody else run into this stuff? They sell this brand at Walmart here. It's awful! The mix is FULL of pieces of wood. It's like they mixed wood mulch in with the soil. I'm constantly picking out huge chunks of wood, and you never get rid of all of it. I finally got tired of it and today went out for some Schultz's.
when it dries out it's really hard to get wet again 