sparklemotion
Shohin
Ha... I spent an afternoon sifting that same giant bag last summer. ?
Be sure to wear a mask!
Be sure to wear a mask!
Have you made your own soil?
- Thread starter Zerik
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- bonsai soil
Paul F.
Shohin
Tieball
Masterpiece
Chiming in.....Just my opinion. The bag is Gypsum according to the label. I didn’t see Pine Bark as a primary. If you’re looking at Lowe’s and can’t find small chip bark...find a Pet Shop (PetCo, Pet Smart) and pick up a bag of Repti-Bark. It’s small size Douglas Fir chips. All of it....no other ingredients. Works very well. It’s cleaned really well also and has almost no fines due it’s sale use for reptile beds.
Paul F.
Shohin
I cant find the soil conditioner with "pine" at lowes or Home Depot for that matter, at least on their web sites. I also have the fir bark you speak of but honestly, I don't like it as much as the pine bark fines. The repti-bark has way more larger pieces than smaller ones and its pretty expensive where I live. The way I get pine bark fines now is I sift Miracle Grow Potting Mix. I get a lot of pine fines but its a pain in the you know what. I'd rather the giant bag of soil conditioner that Jim speaks of.
rockm
Spuds Moyogi
Home Depot--Natures Helper Organic Soil Conditioner composted pine bark
theone420
Shohin
here it is on lowes site
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Nature-s-Helper-1-5-cu-ft-Organic-Soil-Conditioner/3608104
Paul F.
Shohin
Paul F.
Shohin
On the Lowes site it says Unavailable for Pickup at Homestead Lowe's and Delivery Currently unavailable.. LOL. What the heck.
rockm
Spuds Moyogi
I got it at Lowes. Get HD and Lowes mixed up all the time.
I've seen it in the late spring/early summer there. it's a seasonal item. Might ask the Lowians if they can get it for you.
I don't bother to sift it. Sifting it breaks it down even more, not worth the trouble.
Lazylightningny
Masterpiece
That would be a good soil experiment
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Lazylightningny
Masterpiece
My Lowe's garden dept sucks so bad it sucked the chrome off my trailer hitch (old movie reference- who can guess it?)
rockm
Spuds Moyogi
Willie Nelson, Electric Horseman.
Paul F.
Shohin
Beat me to it!
Lazylightningny
Masterpiece
Nice one!
TN_Jim
Omono
I’m not sure on that product. I use this (link). It sifts out to the perfect size. The fines I use to make a separate mix for garden/potting soil.
https://m.lowes.com/pd/Evergreen-2-...MIp6_D25KB2gIVVDuBCh2Ehw37EAQYASABEgKwwfD_BwE
Paul F.
Shohin
Of course they dont have that at my lowe's which is still 3 hours away from my house and delivery is $65! But thank you for showing me that. Ill look out for it in my travels.
RobertB
Chumono
I like to use the concrete mixing large grain sand from lowes. Its builders gravel. Works well for pre bonsai as a component.
rockm
Spuds Moyogi
I've found a better alternative to silica sand is swimming pool filter sand--specifically Mystic White which is crushed quartz. More uniform grain size (it's already sifted), a little larger that any builders' sand. Vance Wood told me about this stuff a long time ago.
You can find it if you look, WalMart sometimes stocks it. I used to find it at the local above ground pool supplier
https://shopcaribbeanpools.com/product/sand-mystic-white-50-bag/
TN_Jim
Omono
Hey @Paul F.
I had no idea this would be a problem having been around many huge FL commercial loblolly pine stands/forests, but I just realized that those are primarily in the north above that freeze line.
One thing to consider is having no organics whatsoever. This was tough for me to do, I wanted to hang on tight to organics because not using them seemed just wrong. However, I have been going that direction since my original post in this thread, due to the thread created by Source : Napa Oil Dry part no. 8822.
That is a big and controversial thread. I suppose anytime soil is the topic, it will be controversial. While there is a tremendous wealth of information there from many many knowledgeable folks, posts from @source and @M. Frary are ones that stick out as ones providing convincing evidence that gave me the stones to ditch a reliance on pine bark in my mix(es). They also provide good reasons for not using pine bark due to later root damage in repotting etc.
So...I may end up going completely to a mix of lava & #8822. I have gone crazy experimenting with 100% #8822, even successfully with cuttings, potted veg., and houseplants..ex: green onions, ficus, christmas cactus. All of the trees I recently collected are in 100%. Whew.. Lastly, a big plus for me is that when I get that lava/8822 just right for my zone and make a big batch of it, I may not have to buy soil again for a decade (dream big right!?..HA).
Paul, it does look like you got ~4 napa stores around the keys. I would consider ditching the pine idea. Also, while I have studied this affordable/realistic-for-me soil topic for a spell, I am very new to bonsai, and everything I do is an experiment, regardless of being based on informed decisions. Hope this helps
