TIL that expensive organic soil mix isn't worth it for basic houseplants

So I spent about 60 bucks on this fancy organic potting mix from a local nursery in Austin last spring. I thought it would make my snake plant and pothos thrive like crazy, you know? Turns out it held way too much moisture and I ended up with root rot on three plants within two months. Lost maybe 40 dollars in plants total, plus the soil was basically wasted. A regular 8 dollar bag from the hardware store works just fine as long as you add some perlite. Has anyone else blown money on premium soil that actually made things worse?

2 comments

2 Comments

julia_jones724d ago

Yeah I backed into the same wall with a more expensive organic brand last year and lost a couple pothos before I wised up. @black.mark nailed it about the mud issue, these fancy mixes just don't drain right for basic houseplants in standard pots. I stick to the cheap stuff now too and toss in handfuls of perlite from a giant bag I bought for like six bucks.

black.mark4d ago

lol I did the exact same thing last year with a bag of organic cactus mix that cost me like 18 bucks. Thought I was being a good plant parent but it just turned into mud basically overnight and killed my aloe. My 5 dollar miracle gro with extra perlite has been keeping my plants alive way better honestly. Sometimes the fancy stuff is just overpriced dirt dressed up in a pretty bag. I learned my lesson the hard way too, now I just stick to basic mix and add my own stuff to it.