Dirt dellima! advice?

[codykrr]

ok so i have 95 pepper plants growing this year. i bought 100 5 gallon gro bags to grow them in.

but here is the deal. i need 475 gallon of good dirt. but i cant find any cheap enough. i can get a truck load of fill dirt for 35 bucks. but it isnt quality dirt. and to make it quality, i would need to buy, a bunch of perilte, fertilizer..or cow manure.. and probably some sand.

is there some cheap, good quality potting mix i can use without breaking the bank?

PS- i have to grow in container..because the land lord wont let me dig her yard up.

but this is how i figured it(it could be wrong) 475 gallons of potting mix = 1900 quarts....well for decent potting mix...its like 12 bucks for 64 quarts...it would take 29 ,64 quart bags and at 12 bucks a bag...thats like 300 plus dollars!

so what should i do? get the fill dirt and mix it up to make it decent grow worthy soil or what?

 

[Josh]

You might want to try and mix your own. Lowes & Home Depot sell bales of peat. I would say buy those and find a place that sells large bags of perlite and mix them together. You should look for a recipe too because you will have to add lime. I think fill dirt is probably a bit too water retentive for containers. That doesn't mean it won't work, I just think it may make things more difficult than they could be. Then again this is coming from someone who isn't very successful at container growing. Good luck to you. I am sure others will have better info.

 

[jjs7741]

You could contact local nurseries and landscape supply companies in your area. It looks like you will need about 2 cubic yards or potting mix. I know in this area, the local mulch company sells compost, top soil and potting mix by the yard. I think it is about $35 a yard. Call around and see what you can find.

If I was you, I would not consider buying the 64 qt bags. If you have to go that route, try to find 3.8 cf Pro-mix bales. They uncompress to about twice that. 27 cubic feet to a cubic yard, so you would need about 7 or 8 probably to fill all the containers. That most likely would be cheaper than the $300 for the other stuff you looked at, but not sure how much cheaper as I can't find it here. Seen it sold online for as low as $25 though.

Hope this helps!
jacob

 

[wordwiz]

Do you have a truck you can haul dirt in? If so, at least here cemeteries will let you have all the dirt you want for free. A few years ago, I hauled about 12 yards of stuff in to fill a place where I had a swimming pool. If there is a place that shelters horses, they will have literally tons of compost - just be sure to find some that is old. And lots of cities around here have compost - some free, some at a minimal charge. You would be surprised how cheap you can do this!

Mike

 

[POTAWIE]

Check to see if there are any large mushroom farms around your area. They used to give mushroom compost away around here, now I pay by the scoop(tractor bucket).
You'll still want to mix this with some looser material but it could save you some money. Also look around for free aged manure, and you can even make your own compost and/or vermicompost

 

[millworkman]

I would look around to find some farms or stables in your area, a lot of those places will give it away. If you do get a bunch, mix it with peat for a great container mix.