I have a couple fig trees that need to be up-potted soon and have been reading the threads on the best container soils for figs.  It seems that most people use some variation of Al’s mix.  There are a huge number of variations and this seems to be due in part to the availability of the various soil components in any given geographic area. For example, based on the suggestion from another F4F member I had planned on putting together a mix that contained Nature’s Helper Soil Conditioner but then I called the company and found that the nearest store that sells it is over 2 hours away.  My local Home Depot sells another product called Garden Pro Clay Breaker soil conditioner that could be substituted but is by no means identical and would require some changes to the other components in the mix to get the same outcome.  I apologize in advance for the local nature of this thread but it could be really useful to hear what others in my general area use in their soil mixes and where they purchase the individual components.

Steve

Bump maybe someone lives in general area.

Martin - thanks for bumping it to the top!  The lack of comments on this thread doesn't surprise me because I made it clear that I'm most interested in hearing from people in my immediate area.  Philly and New York seem to be more of a hot-bed for figs than DC.  But if any DC people are reading this and grow figs in containers I'd like to hear from you!

However, I did a bit more searching using different criteria and found this thread:

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/Potting-mix-experiment-SemiGritty-and-Promix-combo-5732950?highlight=maryland

There are some posts in the thread from people in my area who comment on where to find various mix components so I'll follow up on these leads and see where it goes.

Would the espoma soil perfector product work? I've seen that quite a bit at nurseries here in south central PA.

Tim, yes it turns out I can buy that product in my area.  Do you have a mix recipe that uses this?

Steve,

I'm a newbie so I'm very interested in what you find out.  I was told by someone that Fafard pro mix #52 was a good mix for potted figs, but I'm having problems finding this. 

Hope someone can help you with this and therefore help me.

Espoma soil conditioner and Haydite are too large to work well in container media. A reasonable degree in the uniformity of particle sizes is a considerable plus. To envision: If you mix a pint of BBs with a pint of sand, you don't accomplish anything. The BBs, which would offer great aeration and drainage on their own, are simply 'surrounded' by the sand particles and you get the same aeration/drainage (flow through rate) as if the mix was all sand. You DO get less water retention, a plus, but you don't get the benefit of greater aeration and reduced ht of the perched water table, both primary reasons for making your own soils.

Basically, if you can find pine or fir bark in an appropriate size range, you increase your options considerably, though you CAN make a perfectly serviceable soil without an organic component.

Have you read this? >  http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/contain/msg0214580016564.html

Al

Al, I really appreciate the work you have put into educating us in the gardening community about soils/media for container gardening.  So far I have only read one of your posts and skimmed over a few others.  I'll read the one you linked.  There's a lot of material there.  It seems like everyone needs to understand the logic first and then see how they can apply this given the materials that they have available in their area.

However, I have to admit that even though I'm a scientist myself there's a part of me that just wants someone to tell me to purchase a, b and c from d, e, and f stores and mix them together in x, y and z ratios :)

Anyway, I'll do some work on this and make a visit to my local Behnke's this weekend to see what they have on hand.  It sounds like they do have some form of pine bark fines.  Then I'll come up with a plan and post it in case it might be helpful to others.

Cheers,
Steve

I promised upthread that I would post the container media mix that I decided to use and where I can get the materials in my area.  After some research and leg-work this is what I came up with:

5 parts pine fines (Kambark Pine Bark mulch from Behnke’s)
1 part spanghum peat moss (Premier Sphangum Peat Moss from Home Depot)
1 part perlite (Miracle Grow perlite from Home Depot)
Handful per 15-20 gallon container (?) Dolomite lime (Epsoma Organic Garden Lime from Behnke’s)
Foliage Pro 9-3-6 (according to manufacturers instructions; from Amazon)

I decided to go with Foliage Pro because it has micronutrients included.  The one component that seems to be a guessing game is how much lime to use.  I did a search on this forum and the GW forum and different people have widely varying ideas on how much to use.  If anyone has any words of wisdom of how much lime to mix into my particular mix please join the discussion.
Cheers,
Steve

P.S. A colleague of mine works in the lung cancer field and he told me that perlite dust is very carcinogenic. From now on I will use gloves and a mask when handling it.

Rewton,
I live in Warrenton Va which is maybe 50 miles west of DC. I have had great success with fafard #52. It is pricey. I got tired of paying $28 for a 2.8 cu foot bag so I bought and split a pallet with my local nursery. I've never asked anyone here on this forum if they've tried this mix so I have no idea if others like it or not but I can tell you my figs love the stuff. I used to mix my own and btw I do not like that clay breaker stuff they sell at H Depot for pots.. Fafard #52 is considered a professional rather then a retail mix so few carry it. I'd offer you a bag for the $17 or $18 I pay for it but you're not very close by. I sell a few figs on Craigs list and am considering selling this mix along with the figs as it just makes life really easy. I give away a lot of figs to neighbors, schools, nursing homes, etc. and I have them plant in this mix in ground as well as in pots. If the hole is big enough and the soil is clay then we do use that clay breaker, btw.
Hope this helps.
mgginva

this year, i'm going to go lazy on my soils. i'm already late on my 10 gal root prune and the roots are compacted pretty bad. more than likely, i'll keep them in same soil, 5:1:1.. after the root prune coming spring. don't want to bare root them. too much work. but the new cuttings that's going to be up potted to 3 or 5 gal will go into 1:1 potting soil and perlite. i figure if the cuttings in 1:1 seedling soil and perlite is doing well in 1 gal pots.. why not in 3, 5 or 10 gal pots? when i first got into the figs and asked what type of soil i need to use to person who i bought it from.. he said he just uses whatever they sell at the local home depot. just make sure the water is well drained and it's not rotting the roots. i don't want 10 feet trees. i want them right around 6 feet at most.. i don't want them to fully realize their genetic potential. i just want them to look good and give me good tasting figs.

Mgginva, the Fafard looks like it could be a good solution if bought in bulk.  Had I heard from you previously I might have decided it was worth it to make the 1 hour drive to buy a bag from you.

Pete, how much dolomite lime would you suggest adding when mixing up the 5:1:1?

Steve, I'm in southeast Virginia. By no means am I a seasoned veteran like some of the other forum members, but I've had great success transitioning my rooted cuttings into 100% compost. No fancy ingredients, no special blends, no fuss. I don't fertilize my newly rooted
cuttings, but add 10-10-10 fert and lime the following spring.

They grow well and quickly, have healthy foliage, and produce ample fruit in pots, although I prefer to plant them in the ground long-term. I'm sure others like Al/Tapla know the hard science behind optimal planting media for long-term growing in pots, and I defer to their knowledge.

But simple compost has worked for me for the past 4 years in Virginia.

Dave, thanks for your comment.  There are many ways to grow figs. I'm not sure how long I will keep mine in containers but I suspect I will keep one or two in containers for the long term just to have a variety of different types.  By the way I've seen your blog before and it reminds me quite a bit of what I've tried to do with my ~ 0.15 acre backyard.

Best,
Steve

steve,

no exact science for me. al is the guy to listen to when it comes to soil science.

for 1 gal container, i give about table spoon of dolomite lime. for the 10 gal container, i give about 1 cup. i just top dress it on the 10 gal. for 1 gal, i tried top dressing it, and they caused some issue. the dolomite lime turns to mud when watering. it's preventing me from giving good watering to my 1 gal pots. i'll be poking holes on the soil and fill that in with dolomite lime on few of my 1 gals.

for the 10 gal containers, i also give same amount of slow release fertilizer in the spring and i also fertilize them with liquid fertilizer every week until the figs start to swell. on 1 gal, i give 1/4 strength fertilizer from the start.

so far, plants been doing very well. none of them died due to over watering or od on fertilizer. i lost about 6 cuttings this year. they were all due to not being patient.

When I make potting soil, I add about 12 oz of garden limestone to a 10 gallon mix, along with 16 oz of ground phosphate rock.  I'll spare you my soil recipe, but my garden soil is quite acid, and so is the peat moss, and tree leaves that I add.  So, I use quite a bit of limestone to bring the ph toward neutral.

Great - thanks everyone for your advice.  Now if only to get a stretch of cooler weather so that I can up-pot my figs!