Potting soil: what's in it? 7 differences to potting soil

All plants need a species-appropriate supply of light, water, warmth and soil. The selection of the substrate for growing, planting and keeping the crops is important so that they can grow healthily without suffering from deficiency symptoms. The question often arises as to which components belong to the potting soil and how it differs from the potting soil that is often offered. The individual subspecies such as vegetable soil or potting soil must also be considered.

Potting soil

What is potting soil?

The components of the individual earths are specified by the intended use. It is not always easy to distinguish between these, as the terms potting soil and potting soil run into one another and every supplier of potting soil can decide for himself what to call it. The composition of the soil does not define the intended use and so it may be that the same product is offered by different manufacturers as potting soil or potting soil. For this reason, many people assume that using potting soil will give them beautiful flowers, but this is not guaranteed. Despite this problem, the terms can be defined more precisely.

Potting soil

• suitable for plants in gardens, greenhouses, vegetable beds, raised beds and containers

Potting soil

• suitable for indoor, potted, balcony and terrace plants, often annual or permanently kept in pots

use

Potting soils, despite the confusing and not really illuminating name, are the most common for these Areas used and are therefore completely different in composition compared to the Potting soil. Nevertheless, it cannot be avoided that you will come across products in the hardware store or on the Internet that have exactly the same composition but a different name. Of course, you can also use these, but you should pay attention to the components before buying. Potting soils are mainly used for the following purposes.

• Soil improvement
• Transplanting adult plants
• Transplant young plants in the pot after a while
• Can be kept outdoors and for the winter

Basically, potting soil is not used exclusively as a substrate, except for keeping pots, and it helps to optimize locations in their procurement. They act as a general soil and are not designed directly for a plant species or family. Special soils are used here, such as vegetable soil.

Typical plants in the garden that benefit from the potting soil:

• All kinds of trees
• Roses
• Garden flowers
• Hedges
• Perennials

Tip: Often, potting soil is also referred to as garden soil, which makes it easy to distinguish it from potting soil. Often, however, garden soil is not always recommended for keeping in pots due to its properties, but this varies from substrate to substrate.

Components

Components of potting soil

The potting soil needs a special composition that provides the garden plants with sufficient nutrients, especially if the actual soil does not allow the optimal properties. It has a large number of positive properties that have an effective effect on very nutrient-poor soils and make the growing medium an important helper in the garden. The potting soil offers a real boost of energy for the garden plants and they benefit from the following components.

• Humus proportions, mostly bark humus
• Compost from parts of plants
• other organic substances such as coconut and wood fibers, algae or guano
• peat
• Fertilizer that is sufficient for four to eight weeks, depending on the manufacturer

When choosing a suitable soil, you should make sure that it does not contain peat. Although peat has been an integral part of numerous substrates for decades, the degradation of the peat damages natural moorland of Europe and at the same time garden soils due to the frequent use of peat acidic. It can also be seen that potting soil usually does not have inorganic or mineral substances, as these have to be added by the gardener himself. Depending on the susceptibility of the plants or soil to moisture, you must add sand and other additives to the substrate so that the roots do not suffocate or drown.

Tip: Do not use typical potting soil for bog plants, as they require a completely different substrate. This notice is important because the sack in which the soil is delivered often does not contain any information about it.

differences

Differences to potting soil

If potting soil and potting soil are compared directly with one another, there are few or no differences at first glance. But this is deceptive, because potting soil specializes in potted plants that have to be kept completely different from their relatives outdoors. A closer comparison shows exactly how different the two substrates are, even if around 90 percent of the substrates are identical.

fertilizer

• both substrates require a different nutritional composition, which is administered via the substrate
• Potting soil: less nitrogen, less phosphate, more potassium, less sulfur
• Potting soil: more nitrogen, more phosphate, less potassium, more sulfur
• both substrates receive the same amount of magnesium

volume

• Potting soil is ideally enriched with clay, usually in the form of granules
• this means that more moisture and nutrients are stored in the soil

PH value

• The pH value of potting soil (usually 6.1) is slightly lower than that of potting soil (usually in the range 6.4 - 6.5)

place

• Potting soil is mainly used for plants that have only limited root space
• without the added clay content and optimized nutrients, they would have problems growing
• In contrast to garden plants, these cannot obtain any further nourishment from the natural soil

Microorganisms

• Potting soil is often stored longer so that more microorganisms develop, which have a positive effect on the growth of the potted plants
• Garden plants do not need this, as there are enough microorganisms in the garden

Soil condition

• Potting soil loosens the garden soil, while potting soil ensures sufficient water and oxygen storage in the pot

structure

• Potting soil must be more structurally stable, as only a few additives can be added to improve the soil in this limited space
• Potting soil uses the structural stability of the natural soil

Special earths

In addition to the actual plant and potting soil, there are numerous special soils that are put together either for a specific purpose or for individual plant species. These substrates are important as potting soil is a science in itself. Not all soil is created equal and so conventional planting or potting soil, for example, could seriously hinder the growth of seedlings, as they cannot make optimal use of the substrate. The following special soils can often be found in German gardens.

Potting soil

• Cultivation soil is a particularly nutrient-poor substrate that is used exclusively for growing seedlings
• the lack of nutrients in the substrate ensures that the roots sprout stronger in the first few weeks

Herb soil

• Herbal soil is used especially for herbs
• With a few exceptions, such as Allium ursinum (wild garlic), herbs require a nutrient-poor, permeable soil with mineral components
• quartz sand is usually mixed in by a third to make the herbal soil for the herbs even more structured

Vegetable soil

• the differences between potting soil and vegetable soil are the even higher nutrient content and the use of animal fertilizers
• Vegetables like tomatoes (bot. Solanum lycopersicum) need a lot of nutrition in order to produce the large and juicy vegetable fruits train and through the use of horn shavings or horn meal this high nutrient content achieved