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I ’ve run a nursery for years , and buy potting filth in volume is normal for me . When the raw planting season fare , I find myself with a lot of quondam potting soil . If you ’re in the same office , you ’re probably wondering what you’re able to do with the erstwhile potting mix .
alternatively of thrust old potting soil away , use it as top - dressing material in your garden to ease seed sprouting . you may also spread it on your lawn , fill golf hole in the grounds with it , or dump it in garden bed and compost piles .
There are many other ways of reconditioning and making old potting land set for planting . I ’ve explained various utile path you may reprocess old potting premix below .
Ways to use old potting soil
sure-enough potting soil lacks nutrients and may hold in pathogens but it ’s not useless . You may ask to rejuvenate and plow it to avoid putting your plant at risk of pests and diseases .
Here ’s what you’re able to do with old potting ground :
1. Use it as top-dressing material
Old potting soil contains humus and pieces of perlites , making it a good wet - holding topdressing material . you’re able to apply it to region where you want to burgeon forth source in your garden .
Simply spread a thin layer of the old potting dirt on your rear garden bed , lawns , and glasshouse where you need to burgeon forth young seeds for planting .
2. Add it as a lasagna garden layer
Lasagna gardening or tack compost is a technique of using organic matter to make planting bed . constituent fabric are stacked in level to allow them to decompose and bring out food over clip .
This is where old potting territory can be useful .
Add older potting dirt as a layer in your lasagna garden to avail enrich it with good microorganisms and organic issue that will speed up up the decay of the pile .
you’re able to start with old potting dirt and then top it up with several layers of older manure , kitchen waste , foliage , and pot clippings from your lawn .
3. Use it to fill holes in the yard
Used pot soil is the best filler for hole created by moles , critters , dogs , and other animals that turn over in the yard .
For instance , if you haverat holes in your lawn , you could shut them up with erstwhile potting soil .
Simply take the air around your curtilage and pour pot filth into the small holes . Tap them with your foot to harden the grime and foreclose it from easy eroding away .
4. Add old potting mix to your compost
Adding honest-to-goodness potting soil to a pile of decompose compost is a enceinte recycling method . aside from adding nutrients to your compost , the micro-organism it contains will aid the constituent matter decompose quickly .
Ensure that you add infertile older potting soil to the compost to keep infecting your plant with disease and pests .
I recommend removing any root , endocarp ( if any ) , and debris from the old grunge mixture before throwing the soil onto your compost .
How to rejuvenate old potting soil
pot soil may seem useless because of the run through nutrients , grain , and moisture retention capacity . However , you may still use it to institute if you treat and restore its potency .
Here is how you could regenerate your old potting soil :
1. Mix old potting soil with a fresh mix
you could employ an older potting admixture to add volume to your newsoil mixing that has not expired . It ’ll avail you avoid purchasing too much potting mix , especially if you have a plant life glasshouse .
Mix the previous and the unexampled potting grime equally , then tally an constitutional fertilizer to boost the nutrients . Only use honest-to-goodness filth from previous healthy plants .
2.Heat-treat the old pot soil
Exposing erstwhile potting soil to high-pitched temperatures between 120 ° F and 212 ° F will stamp out pathogens and help sterilize the soil .
Below are two method acting of desexualise the older potting ground :
While it is ok to reprocess potting territory , DO NOT use it to bulge out seeds .
Is old potting soil harmful to plants?
Old potting grime pose several risks to plants if not do by and rejuvenated . The risks it carries include the following :
A rule of thumb is never to recycle one-time potting mixes from diseased plant to avoid infect new unity .
Should I replace potting soil every year?
I recommend the annual replacement of pot dirt to eliminate the chemicals situate by plant life and any potential pathogens .
To replace the potting soil , empty the pots at the remnant of every season , lave the container with a sterilize broker and dry them good . summate your unexampled motley to the Mary Jane and replant the plant .
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