Skip to main content

Lots of people are fretting about how to obtain basic gardening supplies this year. Including potting soil for containers. Let me assure you, whether last year’s potting soil is piled up somewhere or still sitting in your containers, it’s perfectly safe – and very smart – to use again this year.

Can you reuse potting soil? You definitely can, and you definitely should. Here’s why:

  • Save money, save time, save resources!
  • Commercial potting soils contain no actual soil.  They’re comprised mostly of peat. Peat is a valuable natural resource. Peat is renewable and peat farmers manage their lands responsibly. However, wasting peat is not unlike wasting water or electricity – there’s just no need to throw it out.
  • Peat is well-suited to growing in containers because it’s lightweight and fast-draining. These two factors combine to minimize any risks of soil-borne diseases. So, there’s little chance that reusing potting mix will have disease issues that could impact your plantings.
  • Fertility is easily corrected. The biggest issue with reusing potting soil is that fertility is decreased, as last year’s plantings used the nutrients. Simply incorporate compost or fertilizer into the potting soil, and plan to fertilize occasionally throughout the growing season with a liquid fertilizer.

Leave a Reply