Native Plants

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Thursday - October 23, 2008

From: Smithville, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Wildflower Center, Container Gardens, Compost and Mulch, Transplants
Title: Potting soil used in Wildflower Center nursery
Answered by: Barbara Medford and Sean Watson

QUESTION:

I recently purchased several beautiful little plants at your Fall plant sale and notice how very happy and healthy they all are! Please tell me if you mix your own potting soil and what your potting mixture consists of. Also, do you use different mixtures for the different types of plants you grow? Thanks for this wonderful resource!

ANSWER:

We e-mailed the nursery manager at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Sean Watson, and got this immediate response:

We use the Gardenville "Container Mix" right now (Texas Disposal Systems produces the stuff). It is good compost pure and simple. It also has composted pecan hulls that help it to drain better, not become too compact (adds texture), and adds nutrients over time. We used to use Nature's Way Resources out of Conroe, TX, which I thought was a better compost, especially for containers (50% composted leaf mold, 50% composted hardwood mulch), but we decided to try this mix because it costs half as much and is local versus the gas we purchased for the trip from Conroe for the other. Just tryin' to lower our carbon footprint. We use it for all species, but sometimes cut it with sand for more xeric plants. Using compost also means less watering than with our previous mix (holds water more effectively).