GrowGoodNZ » Ask Bill

Is the pot 20 litres of soil or is it 20 litres all up including water and soil together?

Bill — Thu, 17 Apr 2014 00:08:16 +0000

Is the pot 20 litres of soil or is it 20 litres all up including water and soil together?

The reservoir of the small planter holds 8 litres of water. Then above it you can fit in 20 + litres of potting mix (ie half a bag of potting mix) .

Process of refreshing the potting mix.

Testing account — Wed, 02 Apr 2014 04:17:21 +0000

Hi there, I have 9 of your pots and am in the process of refreshing the potting mix.

I am finding that the potting mix is very compacted and wet and also that I seem to have a large worm population in them with some of the worms being as thick as my fingers.

I have just used a regular potting mix such as Dalton’s or Yates and then added in some compost as I planted etc.

Is this what you use or do you mix in something like vermiculite to make the mixture a little less compacted.

I have read your web page but can’t find any reference to anything other than potting mix.

Thanks for the question.
As the soil is now compacted and too wet I suggest that you turn out each pot as the plants are finished. Turn the soil over in a wheelbarrow to aerate the soil and dry it out a little for a couple of days. Add more organic fertiliser to replenish the nutrients. Then plant again. You will be able to do this for 4-5 years.
Some people add a layer of perlite or vermiculite under the potting mix to increase aeration.
In our own pots we use a regular Dalton’s potting mix from Bunnings. We do add plenty of organic manures eg Yates Dynamic Lifter (chicken manure) or sheep pellets, blood and bone.

If you have got plenty of healthy worms in the pots then it sounds like you have got healthy soil.

What is the best potting mix to start off a new box for growing veges and herbs?

Testing account — Wed, 02 Apr 2014 04:13:38 +0000

What is the best potting mix to start off a new box for growing veges and herbs?. I used to have a combination that you recommended but cannot find it.

I find that Daltons potting mix is pretty good. Here’s an article I wrote for the website about potting mix
http://growgoodnz.co.nz/potting-mix/
When you want to refresh it,just add more fertiliser to your old potting mix after you have turned it over to aerate it.Add more organic fertiliser eg 3 handfuls of Yates Dynamic lifter, 1 handful each blood and bone, lime, dolomite.

My pot has a leak

Testing account — Wed, 02 Apr 2014 04:11:50 +0000

My pot has a leak, not major just a constant drip. Can you recommend any product to repair it?

I assume that it is leaking from around one of the washers on the sight glass.
This could be due to either:
– the washer being damaged during assembly (one of the washers has notches to match up to the notches on the sight glass)
– or the nut on the inside not being sufficiently tightened. If this is the case, it will need to be tightened a little more with vice grips or large crescent.
Unfortunately you will need to take the plants and potting mix out to check exactly the location of the leak.

Some questions in reply to the best potting mix

Testing account — Wed, 02 Apr 2014 04:05:47 +0000

1. Carrots. Seems they don’t grow that well for me. Forked carrots seem to be all i get. I thought maybe it was because the potting/compost mix i am using has lots of bark and stuff in it so have sieved it all to remove all that hard and big bits. Is that a good idea?

2. When growing broccoli, i notice that there are lots of roots after the crop is done. So to plant another crop, do i need to remove all those roots or just the bigger pieces and turn the mix over to break it up and then refertilise and replant, leaving the smaller roots tin the mix to rot?

3. What is the best mix to use? I get mine from kings garden centre usually so which one from their range?
Thoughts?

I assume that you have read the recent article I posted about growing carrots. There are several possibilities.

1. If your potting mix has large chunks of bark that can certainly lead to deformed carrots. Try putting the seeds in a layer of seed raising mix on top of the potting mix.It can also be caused by heavy recent fertilisation. Try using potting mix that was fertilised prior to the prior crop. Keep in mind that when the small carrot plant has a thread-sized root you need to try to ‘force’ the plant to send its root deeper to bring up water so you don’t want the upper soil to be too moist as the root will not want to go deeper.It can fork in these conditions too.

2. After the crop is finished, tip out the potting mix, turn it over to aerate it and pull out the bigger roots then replant the pot with your next crop. as you suggest, the smaller roots will break down in the potting mix.

3. I use Dalton’s potting mix – about $7 at Bunnings. Kings don’t have stores in Wellington so I am not familiar with their potting mixes.

What type of soil and how many kg for a small pot?

Testing account — Wed, 02 Apr 2014 03:33:16 +0000

Hope you are on top form.
Back home already.
Ready to grow in Green Smart Pots!!
Please remain me what type of soil and how many kg for a small pot? Here today is 1st day of Spring. What shall I plant? I am thinking of planting small /Little plants rather than seeds?

You will need 20 litres of potting mix. Here in NZ the potting mix is sold in 40 litre bags. I am not sure what size they sell in Barcelona. I suggest that you start with some simple plants like lettuce, spinach and basil. Choose the type of lettuces that you just pick off some outer leaves. Not the type of lettuces that form a solid heart.
Have a look on the website for growing tips that I have previously posted about growing lettuces, spinach and basil.
happy gardening.