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CamelliaShop Potting Soil Recipe
Last Updated: 08/09/2010
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This
article should be helpful if you are trying to decide what type of
potting soil will work best for your camellias.
Potting Soils for Camellias
Potting
soils are not created equal. Most commercially blended potting soils
that you buy in a bag have not been formulated to meet the needs of
Camellias. We’re sure that there are a lot of good soils out there that
may work, but if your soil contains a large amount of peat or compost,
it could hold too much water and not provide enough oxygen to the roots
of camellias to make then grow healthy and happy.
Unless your specific bagged soil is recommended or has been tested on camellias, we do not suggest using it.
Camellias
do not like soil that is wet, or overly moist. They need to have good
drainage. We have grown camellias for many years and we have had some
good success and some good failures with it comes to soil. We have
found that some camellias are more sensitive to soil composition than
others. Sinensis and reticulata species are very sensitive and will not
perform well or may die in soils that hold too much water.
Peat Moss
Peat
is the main ingredient in most blended soils. While it is a good
additive if you’re growing other plants, for camellias it can mean life
or death with too much of it. We use peat, but just a small amount in
our soils. Peat provides a moisture retention and helps improve soils
that are very sandy.
Aged Bark
Our
potting soil is made up of a very finely, ground, aged pine bark. The
bark grind is about ¼ to ½ inch pieces. This is not the same as the
bagged mulch you get in garden centers. Aged means that it has started
to decompose or break down. Green bark is not good for camellias in
potting soils so make sure if you are using a ground pine bark or other
bark, that it has been properly aged.
Other
barks might be cedar, fir, or oak and what you can find is dependent on
where you live and what is available to you. In Georgia, the ground
aged pine bark can be found in garden centers listed as “Soil
Conditioner”. This might be true for other areas as well. Check with a
local nursery that grows plants to see what they have available and may
be able to sell you.
Pine bark is also very acid which is great for camellias which love a pH of about 5.8 – 6.5
Sand
We
use a builder or play sand for our mix. It is very pure and grainy and
when added to soils adds more drainage to help water move away and out
of the soil.
Perlite
Although
not used in our potting soils, perlite is another additive that can
provide drainage to soils that hold too much water. Just don’t go
overboard with Perlite as it is very alkaline and could affect your
soil pH. Perlite is white volcanic matter that looks a lot like small
pieces of Styrofoam. This should not be confused with vermiculite which
is not recommended in your soils.
Compost
Compost
is not generally recommended for camellias in containers. The reason
for this is that compost tends to break down very rapidly and can cause
a mucky, or overly moist environment for camellias that may lead to
problems such as root rot, or poor performance. If you have tried a
composted soil mix with camellias and they are growing ok for you, then
by all means, keep using it. But if you've never grown camellias with
composted soil, try it first before you jump in and plant a lot of
them. Just because your compost does well for other plants, does not
necessarily mean that your camellias will like it too. Just give it a
try on a small scale first.
CamelliaShop Custom Blended Potting Soil Recipe- 8 parts finely ground aged pine or other bark ¼ to ½ grind
- 1 part peat moss
- 1-2 parts sand
Mix
well and use mix for containers, or for ground planting if your soil
needs amending. HollyTone Fertilizer can be added to your soil mix for
a super-duper boosted mix! Use 2 tablespoons to 1 quart of soil.
CamelliaShop Potting Soil Alternative Recipe
In
the event you can’t find aged ground pine or other bark, we have an
alternative that you can use to create a soil very similar in make up
to our own. Miracle Grow Orchid Mix is an excellent alternative when
combined with sand. We have not tested any other brand so we don’t know
if there are others that would work. This brand mixed with sand has
passed our drainage and pH testing.- 3 parts Miracle Grow Orchid Mix
- 1-2 parts builders sand or play sand
Note:
This potting soil contains fertilizer, so you may not want to add any
additional fertilizer for a few weeks or if you add liquid feed, use it
at ½ rate so you will not burn.
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