Help picking soil for buckets

[Boarhead]

My friend from high school family owns this place and it is only 1 mile down the road. What soil or compost that they offer would you you recommend for my 12 gallon tomato buckets?

Thanks!

http://www.southernnurseries.com/soils

or

http://www.southernnurseries.com/compost

[puttgirl]

The two most expensive ones look good, but I would find out what the soil conditioner is, and just what exactly the ingredients are.

[Boarhead]

Their soil conditioner is Pine Fines

[habitat_gardener]

Usually soilless mixes are recommended for containers. Can they get coconut coir or peat for you? Perlite? You can use the pine fines as part of the mix. Look in the Growing in Containers forum -- a lot of people have tried different mixes and even done trials.

That said, I've used a mix of my homemade compost with coconut coir (and a little perlite or lava rock if I had it) in 5 gallon containers. I didn't expect a lot of production, I just wanted to taste different varieties.

If I were limited to the mixes on that website, I might mix my own and add earthworm castings, and then mulch the surface of each container, an inch or two.

[janezee]

Hi, Boarhead,
I grow in raised beds filled with almost 100% mushroom compost, with some perlite added. No soil. It's amazing stuff! I
add more compost, a little bone meal, and some lime to it in the
fall, and then top it up again in the spring. I'll be using Tomato
Tone, Azomite, and kelp to them as the season progresses.
I for sure wouldn't use any topsoil in containers.

Good luck to you!

[dice]

If I had to pick one of those without mixing anything else into it but
a handful of some organic fertilizer like Tomato-tone and a handful
of dolomite lime, I would go with "Survive and Thrive".

[dustdevil]

I think "Nutrisoil" would be adequate. I'd consider checking the ph.

[casserole]

Growing in a raised bed is Not the same as a bucket

[texasrockgarden]

I like this one "Survive & Thrive Mix".

This is my fourth season growing tomatoes in containers. The first season I used 5 gal buckets with coconut coir. I could not keep the growing medium moist enough for the tomato plants to thrive. At the suggestion of Carolyn I went to the larger size pots.

Season two I upgraded to twenty 13 and 27 black nursery pots used for trees. The soil mix I used was 10 % perlite, 40 % coconut coir, 25 % garden soil purchased in bulk and 25 % rose soil purchased in bulk. This mix has worked well for me. And no I don't change out the soil in my pots every year.

This season I have planted so far 39 of the large nursery pots. All my new pots are filled with rose soil only which I have always used in my 16" deep raised box beds with great success. The rose soil drains well and holds enough water so the plants only need watering every day or two and not three times a day as was the case with the straight coir.

I feed liquid fertilizer weekly alternating between MG Tomato and Medina Hasta Grow for Plants, starting with one quart per plant and working up a gallon per plant. It's what works for me and my style of gardening.

[Elliot]

We plant all of our tomatoes in buckets and when I first started I used miracle grow potting soil. Since the price has skyrocketed I have been experimenting with other less expensive options. What has seemed to have worked is a combination of "light top soil" which is sold at our local Home Depot, mixed with composted cow manure. I had some fertilizer pellets to the mix and line during the season. Lets hear what some of the others have to say.

[dice]

Testing the pH before adding any dolomite is a good idea.
(The vendor may have already limed the planting mix.)
If the pH is above 6, you might add a handful of gypsum
instead (for a calcium source).