A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 New plants and soil

I've been told and read that the soil in store bought plants is not of good quality and only is for shipping purposes. Is that true? If so, how long should you wait before putting repotting in new, fresh potting mix?

The biggest problem w/ store bought plants is that they are almost always pot-bound, so I usually replant mine anyway. And I would say that it is a good idea even if they aren't. You know nothing about the soil your plant is in, so why not give it something you have coonfidence in. Give the little green guys a fresh start in their new home.

Don't forget that some plants require themselves to be potbound in order to flower. For example: Bird of Paradice, Jade, Ivy, etc.

It is a good idea sometimes to change the soil though. When i got my ficus, i immediately went outside and tried to clean all the soil off of the roots. Since it was bought at shaws, it was full of alllllllllll kinds of bugs; silvafish, centapides, milipides, a cicada, spiders, fungus gnats, spider mites, etc. >.< I don't recommend buying from a grocery store... Stupidest thing i've ever done with plants.

I did get everything cleared out though. But ya, whatcha can also do is make your own potting mixes. I find it cheeper than buying a bag of miracle gro, or scotts all the time. Plus your plants will probably grow better, because the mix you gave it isn't a generic brand for all plants. Its made especially for that plant

I comepletely forgot about certain plants needing to be pot-bound to flower. But that whole bug thing is really yucky. I'm glad I always repot. Now I just have more reason to.

well most green houses that use pestacides are really good with plants normally their soil is clean. But for some reason, my ficus was just chock full of stuff, like it had been dug up from outside o.O I think that's what happened too. Someone planted it outside to grow, and then dug it up and stuffed it in that lil plastic pot with all the same dirt around it >.<