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I'm potting plants but not sure what to pot with!

HanyhairHanyhair Posts: 94
in The potting shed
Hi I'm fairly new to the more intricate details of gardening and am looking to pot some plants and want to make my own potting mix any suggestions! Also which is better for pots vermiculite or perlite (I think that's how you spell it) please help!! 🤔😁
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  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    Welcome to the forum  :)
    It very much depends on what you have available (especially under the current circumstances). I don't think it really matters which one you use, but l'm guessing Perlite might be the better of the two.
    I'm sure there are a few people on here who make their own,  in the meantime have a look here 
    http://www.askorganic.co.uk/organicgardening/DIY Potting Mixes.htm
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Hi @Hanyhair -It depends what it is you're potting  :)
    Small cuttings for example,  would need sharp drainage, so you would mix something like perlite with your compost. It's ideal for that. Vermiculite is similar, so it's often personal  preference, although apparently, vermiculite holds water more than Perlite.

    If you're just moving something into a slightly bigger pot, you don't need to bother so much - a standard compost will do.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • HanyhairHanyhair Posts: 94
    Thank you! that's great will check that out, I have to hand vermiculite, coir peat, top soil and multipurpose compost, oh and some fertiliser! I can get some perlite online probs Ebay, but meanwhile I'll have a look at the link you sent and give it a bash 😁
  • HanyhairHanyhair Posts: 94
    @Fairygirl ok so I'm potting some campions in rather large deep pots and I think I need to move some leucanthemums! Because I've spotted stuff in just compost before and they are ok for a little bit but then become water logged and I never really no what to do after that! I've just read an article saying about mixing coir peat, compost and vermiculite  together makes a good general potting mix but then somewhere else it says that coir peat can become to waterlogged die to the fact that it's really hard to work out whether it needs watering or not as it stays dry when loaded with water! I am really confused 🤯 sorry for long essay!! Lol!!
  • HanyhairHanyhair Posts: 94
    Potted not spotted!! Bloody predictive text
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I've never used coir, and have no intention of doing so  :)
    A lot depends on the size of the plant [and it's rootball] and how big a pot it's going in. 
    It also depends on the compost - some are more moisture retentive than others.
    I'd be inclined to just use your compost with some vermiculite, and be careful with the watering once they're settled in. If it's a heavier compost, add more vermiculite, or fine gravel. Leucanthemums like quite free draining soil - I don't grow Campion, so I'm not sure what they like.
    Make sure the pots are up off the ground too, and you have a decent crock in the bottom so that the holes don't get blocked up. If you have anything else like egg boxes or bits of polystyrene, you can put those in the bottom of big pots, so that you're not filling them totally with compost. 
    For example - if I was putting some Dianthus in a 15 or 18 inch pot, [something I have done last autumn]  I wouldn't fill the whole thing with soil and compost - it's not necessary. I'd fill at least half with a mix of other stuff to bulk it out, cover it with some landscape fabric to prevent all the compost getting washed through the gaps, then use a gritty mix of about four or five inches for the planting.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • HanyhairHanyhair Posts: 94
    Thanks for that bit of info now I'm a lot less confused, it all makes sense now I'm off to pot some  flowers and me and the kids will be collecting egg boxes lol! The amount of times I have filled pots all way up and wondered why I'm always running out of compost, what a great idea! Thanks for that little tip! 😁
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    It does depend on what sort of size the plant is and what it's needs are. Some need more soil than others  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • HanyhairHanyhair Posts: 94
    Yes that makes sense, looking back some of the plants i have potted haven't really needed that much soil but I have always filled up anyway! Doh!!
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    Campions are weeds, (wild flowers 😀) something I pull out in my garden or they would cover it by next year, so the roughest old soil the better, they grow in anything, between slabs, along the roads, we’ve just seen some coming up in the tarmac along the verge.
    any wild flowers need the poorest of soil so no fertiliser or anything added to garden soil. 
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

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