Miracle Gro Organic Garden Soil

[Southern_Candy]

I just bought a couple bags of this stuff. As soon as I get home I see a label on the back that says "do not use this in potted" plants...

Should I even bother with it or go get the potting soil mix? Any other thoughts?

I can't get my hands on Fox Farm Ocean Forest easily anymore so I'm giving this a shot. Any thoughts, suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

/Candy

p.s This stuff was really inexpensive.

 

[BurnOne]

Miracle Gro SUCKS!

Make your own...

Here are two very good organic soiless mixes...

LC’s Soiless Mix #1:
5 parts Canadian Spaghnam Peat or Coir or Pro-Moss
3 parts perlite
2 parts wormcastings or mushroom compost or home made compost
Powdered dolomite lime @ 2 tablespoons per gallon or 1 cup per cubic foot of the soiless mix.
...Check the link in my sig line below for cheap earthworm castings. Free shipping to the eastern USA.

Or, if you use Pro Mix or Sunshine Mix...
LC's Soiless Mix #2:
6 parts Pro Mix BX or HP / Sunshine Mix (any flavor from #1 up)
2 parts perlite
2 parts earthworm castings
Powdered dolomite lime @ 2 tablespoons per gallon or 1 cup per cubic foot of the soiless mix.
If you use a 3 qt. saucepan as “parts” in the amounts given above, it equals about 1 cu. ft. of soiless mix and you can just dump in a cup of powdered dolomite lime.

Burn1

 

[onthatlevel]

i use the mix above and its great! but if you have to use the stuff you bought i would suggest adding a bunch of perlit to it....and some lime wouldnt hurt either.

 

[3BM]

"Not suitable for potted plants" implies that the texture is not light enough for such a limited environment. Just stick your hand into that stuff and you will see it has a texture something like cement. Lots of perlite will improve the situation. Just keep adding perlite until you can plunge your hand easily to the bottom of a container. It contains poultry manure (if Im not mistaken) and will feed for a while just on that, but I would add some more nutrients to give your plants a boost. Finally, and I have posted this a lot lately so forgive my repetition ... do not add lime unless you have tested the soil and found it below 6.2. Cannabis prefers a slightly acidic soil (between 6.2-6.5 in my experience), and since most commercial soil amendments are already adjusted to about 7.0. Its likely that you will need to acidify the mix more than lime it. Well, best of luck!

 

[Skunkface]

acidification of ur soilmix is rarely needed, as pretty well all nitrogen fertilizers will lower ph.

 

[3BM]

N ferts like what? Ammonium Nitrate will for sure, but if you use that you probably arent interested in organics. Most commercially available Manure, a common N source, is adjusted to 7. Same true with mushroom compost, though slightly acidic there (around 6.7). Mexican Guano, Alfalfa, Blood meal ... none of these will sufficiently acidify a mix. Just test your medium before liming is all Im saying.

I see lots of plants in the infirmary that are missing this point. A pH of 7 will not due for most cannabis strains, your results may vary but in my experience they want something closer to 6. Getting a mix to 6.4 or lower will generally require acidifying elements, homemade compost (without any egg shells) will get you there nicely, but many commercially available products are close to neutral. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Skunkface]

fish emulsions for instance, ph 5. most composts dont come pre-adjusted and will lower ph. not as much as liquid ferts tho.

 

[Habibi]

i actually just bought this stuff, the bag with the picture of vegetables on the front. i used it as a filler kinda, the bottom 1/4th of 2 of the 25 gallon containers i have were filled with this stuff and the rest with fox farm. adding perlite probably woulda helped but i just mashed it up bit to break apart the clobs of soil.

i only used it on the bottom 1/4 so i dont know if ill even notice a difference when it comes to the plants but i did notice one thing when it rained the other day and the drip pan filled with water that drained from the drainage holes, the water was a dark yellow instead of clear like with the other containers. so you probably want to flush the medium before you ever start growing with it.

 

[vonforne]

N ferts like what? Ammonium Nitrate will for sure, but if you use that you probably arent interested in organics. Most commercially available Manure, a common N source, is adjusted to 7. Same true with mushroom compost, though slightly acidic there (around 6.7). Mexican Guano, Alfalfa, Blood meal ... none of these will sufficiently acidify a mix. Just test your medium before liming is all Im saying.

I see lots of plants in the infirmary that are missing this point. A pH of 7 will not due for most cannabis strains, your results may vary but in my experience they want something closer to 6. Getting a mix to 6.4 or lower will generally require acidifying elements, homemade compost (without any egg shells) will get you there nicely, but many commercially available products are close to neutral. Just my 2 cents.

3BM, this go around I'm working on a mix that is using only a little lime(in the peat already). I have tested my Mushroom compost to 7.4 in the ph range. This is because of the chalk used in the MC. I will add it to my mix to offset the acidic of the peat and castings. I'm hoping for around a 6.5. what is your take on this? I will be doing a side by side grow to see what the outcome is.

And there should be a sticky here to warn everyone NOT to buy that shit from the store. What a waste of money. When you could make your own and not have any problems. The store bought soil is so misleading, especially Mircle grow.

 

[Guest]

IM not too sure just how mg organic soil can suck...

If it sucks cause you cant grow plants for 6 weeks and not feed maybe....
I used the stuff with pure blend and had zero issues....


I use the stuff with lots of perlite.... its largely just soil....

The reason its not suitable IMO for potted plants is not due to the texture but because they use poultry litter for ferts... they also recommend using garden gloves with this product.... due to the poulty goodies....

h5n1 can be spread thru chicken droppings....

By the way I didnt flush it....

and my plants were perfect... using pbp and lk..... I also used some dolomite.... this lui clone in a 2 gallon container.... leaves removed



As far as ph goes clarke says 6.5 to 7.5.... 7.5 (gasps in mock horror)

I will take his word on most issues.....

If my soil was 7.0 and it stayed there without any amendments thats what I would grow in.....

the common use of dolomitic lime I would think keeps the soil for many growers well above 6.5


By the way about the sticky to recommend not buying this stuff....

The stuff is very heavy but my plants were beautiful.....


This is the second crop Ive done with the stuff....


I used to use promix....... no thanks....

I will be reusing the soil in my containters..... just chopping up the roots and putting a new plant in.....

I tried that with the last bunch and they were perfectly happy......

after 2 crops the stuff goes in the garden...... much nicer than all the peat from promix.....

 

[Guest]

SOme jerkoff just sent me a pm.... he can remain nameless if he desires....

He laughed at me cause I have only 2 grows under my belt....

that nothing about mg is organic..... called me a liar....

I would like to point out Im a former og mentor and spent most of my time in the sick plants thread....

Ask stitch who it is that helped her the most.....

I would bet any money its me....


I know what organic is.... I know what good plants look like.....


I should point out that pbp is only near organic....

so if you want to say the grow isnt organic its cause of the pbp not the mg organic soil.....

 

[3BM]

SOG said it, the MG soil is just that "soil". Adding perlite is a must, and I called the manufacturer for a description of "not suitable for potted plants", their reply was that it contains neither the nutrients to support long term growth nor the proper texture to allow growth in limited spaces. Bottom line, this soil will work as any other will. You could dig dirt out of your back yard, no need to be picky. But cannabis, like most plants, requires loose well drained soil. In nature soil life will help out a lot, worms and insects will dig around to aerate, plants will drop leaves stems and spread roots to help over time. Taken out of that environment we as indoor cultivators must help ourselves out, namely by adding textural elements like perlite, vermiculite, lava rock, pumice, etc.

Im not really adding anything here we havnt already covered, these are just things that come to mind as I read through this excellent discussion. SOG props to you for showing that it doesnt take 30$ bagged soil to generate healthy growth. Whatever you have on hand will work, its less about the product and more about the knowledge of the grower.

Hey Von, 6.5 will be great. Test your casting too to ensure they are as acidic as you expect. I had several knowledgable sales people tell me that MC was acidic, as with most compost, but as you describe that is not the case at all. I bought 3 brands of commercial compost products (manure/compost blend, Wiggle worm castings, and MC) tested them side by side and found that none were below 6.8 in pH. The manure/compost blend was best at 6.8, the MC was 7.0, and the castings were 7.2. I know that common knowledge holds that compost is acidic, I just have found many products on the market dont hold up to this expectation. I make my own compost and it hits below 6 many times, but I had to work to get it that way. I used to add egg shells to my pile, and even in small quantities these kept the pH above 7. Since I backed off of these and started adding gypsum to the mix I regularly get down into the 5's. Well this is way off topic, but I just love talking about all this. Great discussion guys, as always. Have a great day!

3bm

 

[Guest]

I would certainly agree with the nutrient part....

WIthout feeding I found that the plants became n deficient very fast....

So it comes only with modest nutes....

Back on OG one of the main situations where organic users posted in sick plants was due to BOG...

He recommended a bagged soil from walmart... blood, bone and dolomitic lime.... its not a balanced mix.... he made up for the lack of potassium by using high potassium ferts....

So we commonly got Potassium defs....


I very much like to use complete ferts....

As you point out..... ferts that can grow nice plants in cardboard.....

I know that pbp is not entirely organic but its easy and works really well....

Thanks for your measured reply....

 

[vonforne]

Thanks 3BM, as always you came in at the right time. My compost is not ready yet so I will have to rely on the commercial products available. I have been keeping an eye on the ph thing. I have had good results at 7 with the dolomite but would like to do a side by side just for shits and grins. I still rely on the dolomite for my Ca and Mg. and to buffer the ph in the soil mixture but have been trying new ways with ingredients to control the PH for the most part. I just cannot bring myself to grow in commercial sludge like Miracle grow as some do.

Good to have ya back 3BM

 

[Habibi]

marijuana will grow in any soil its put into, its just growers personal preference

its perfectly fine to grow in this miracle grow stuff, after the whole yellow water stuff i saw i would just reccomend flushing it with water once so your smaller plants dont get nute burn

 

[Guest]

I used the mg orgainc for my first grow and the plants came out sticky and dense. The plant were doing fine until i ran into ph problems from feeding with liquid ferts and my ph plunged to 5.0! Next time around i will add more perolite and lime. ALL and All the plants were happy as pigs in shit in this medium dark green and grew fast.

 

[3BM]

Thanks Von, and I'd love to see that comparison grow! I used to grow exclusively at 7, but after a few runs it drifted up into the 7's and I had big problems. I started dropping the starting point a bit just to be sure this didnt happen again, and the garden seemed to come alive for me. Since then I have never looked back. I know Soma prefers 6.2-6.4, and waters at 6.0. Im generally a little loose with pH, but I aim to get well below 7. Man this is really off topic, but hopefully Candy got some good stuff from all of this.

I know what you mean about relying on lime for Ca and Mg. The proportions are correct, and I use RO water so I really need those nutrients. I kept adding lime because I liked the nutrients but pretty soon the pH spiraled out of control, and the plants along with it. I tested a batch of soil at over 8 My solution was to get my compost as acidic as I could so that the soil mix would actually require lime to raise it above 6. Gypsum creates sufluric acid as it breaks down, and while slow to act, will do a great job acidifying a compost pile. It is commonly recomended to amend clay soils, which are often highly alkaline. As I said above egg shells were also holding me back. Now my compost gets well below 7, and often even below 6. Adding this to soil remixes keeps it around 6 and a little lime here and there gets me back to 6.4 and supplies the much needed Mg.

 

[AccountWontWork]

Miracle Gro SUCKS!

Burn1

... Miracle Grow isn't #1 because it sucks buddy... I bet you have never even used MG. Don't say things when you don't know what the hell you are talking about. People like you piss me off.

Congratulations dude! Your the first person I've given NEGATIVE reputation to.

I've used MG, it works great. So have many other people on these forums and they all agree. MG will work just as good as your organic soil recipes. Do some research on people on these forums who have done SIDE BY SIDE grows of organic mediums, and MG mediums, and their plants turn out the SAME.

Jesus, you have a brain, use it. You insult the collective knowledge on this website.

End rant

 

[Guest]

LOL... I know what you are saying.....

I dont think you get a lot of support in the organic forum however....

A prime example was the series of pms I received today....

MOst MG ferts arent complete they do not contain either Mg or Ca...

If you decide to try to grow without dolomitic lime you are asking for trouble....

Im sure it wont be received well but I call some narrow minded organic growers....

organic nazis.....

mostly due to the attitude from some thats hard to not notice.....

 

[vonforne]

... Miracle Grow isn't #1 because it sucks buddy...

MG is #1 because house wives buy it.