soil I think I've made the perfect starter soil!

[LawrenceJ2007]

I have been on the search for a seedling / potting soil that meets all my needs and have never found one I could buy that really worked well. So for the past few years I've been trying different recipes for mixes and ratios with some being better than others but having their down falls. 
 
Until now.....
 
I was not satisfied with the seedling soil I made this year but it was good enough I thought, but it could be better, and i think I've made it better!
 
As for all my seedling / potting soils I start out with peat moss 3 cu ft of it. I bought mine at Lowes, tested it's pH and found it to be at around 6.3 a little low, but doable. 
 
Next I grabbed two bags of compost/manure mix 2 cu ft in total. 
 
I needed something for good drainage so I used 1 cu ft of river sand, not the play sand, just river sand. 
 
I already had Pearlite at home, the course grain size, not fine, it seems to not allow enough space for air or water retention. Around 1/2 cu ft.
 
So the ratio is:
 
40% - Peat Moss
30% - Compost/Manure
20% - River Sand
10% - Pearlite
 
I added an organic fertilizer to it as well with beneficial microbes in it. Once I tested it with a soil tester the pH was 6.8, Nitrogen was in perfect range, Potassium was in perfect range, and Phosphorous was in perfect range. Best of all, my plants love it! I also added a half dose to the whole mix of a micronutrient organic fertilizer which has really greened up my plants. 
 
I'll have to post some photos tomorrow, but it's great so far, clams right, holds just the right amount of water, and the roots are shooting through it! 
 
Here are the products I used to make it. 
 
http://www.easygardener.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=category.display&category_ID=227
 
http://www.lowes.com/pd_322730-10799-1310503_4294612793__?productId=3319744&Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNs%3Dp_product_qty_sales_dollar%7C1&facetInfo=
 
http://www.lowes.com/pd_92129-1321-00051524602218_4294612793__?productId=3047339&Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNs%3Dp_product_qty_sales_dollar%7C1%26page%3D1&facetInfo=
 
http://www.lowes.com/pd_104898-66882-104898_0__?productId=3006148&Ntt=sand&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Dsand&facetInfo=
 
I would not buy pearlite at lows because all the ones I found already had fertilizer added, so go to a garden center to find some!
 
But hope this helps some people out trying to find a good mixture for seedlings or potted plants, so far for me, it's been amazing!

 

[bestia]

It sounds like a great mix. I have made a similar one but without the sand, instead 30% perlite and my compost includes earth worm castings.

 

[LawrenceJ2007]

I may try something similar to that with worm castings foe the humic acid in them for potted plants, just so they can take up every bit of nutrients possible!