Getting Started with Fertilome Ultimate Potting Soil
Alright, let’s talk about this Fertilome Ultimate Potting Soil. I decided to give it a shot a few months back. My old standby mix just wasn’t cutting it anymore, felt like my plants were just kinda… sitting there, not really thriving, you know? Saw this bag at the local garden shop, big colorful thing, said “Ultimate” right on it. Figured, why not? Can’t hurt to try something new.
So, I grabbed a medium-sized bag. First thing I did when I got home was lug it out to the garage. Ripped the top open. The first thing I noticed was the texture. It wasn’t too heavy, not like some cheaper soils that feel like wet cement. It had a nice, loose feel to it. You could see bits of peat moss, some perlite for drainage I guess, and other darker bits of composty stuff. Didn’t have any weird chemical smell either, just smelled like damp earth, which is always a good sign in my book.
Putting it to the Test
I had a few things lined up for repotting:
- My sad-looking spider plant that was totally root-bound.
- A couple of tomato seedlings I started indoors that needed bigger pots before going outside.
- An old peace lily that just seemed generally unhappy.
So, I got my pots ready, cleaned them out first. Then I started filling them up. Scooped the Fertilome soil in. It packed down nicely without getting overly compressed. When I put the plants in, the soil held its shape around the root balls pretty well. Didn’t just fall apart. Watered them all in thoroughly afterwards. The water seemed to soak in evenly, didn’t just run straight through, but also didn’t pool on top for ages. That felt like a good balance.
Watching and Waiting
Over the next few weeks, I kept an eye on things. The spider plant perked up surprisingly fast. Started putting out new little runners within maybe two weeks. That was impressive. The tomato seedlings seemed to take off too, got much greener and sturdier than the ones I left in the old mix (yeah, I did a little comparison, haha). The peace lily… well, it’s still a peace lily, they’re always a bit dramatic, but it definitely looked better. Fewer yellow leaves, and it even pushed out a new flower stalk eventually.
I didn’t notice any fungus gnats or weird pests showing up, which has been a problem with some other bagged soils I’ve used in the past. That was a big plus. Drainage continued to be good, even after several waterings. The soil surface would dry out, but it felt like it was holding moisture down deeper where the roots needed it.
Final Thoughts (For Now)
So far, I’m pretty pleased with this Fertilome Ultimate stuff. It wasn’t the absolute cheapest option on the shelf, but it wasn’t crazy expensive either. Seems like a solid, general-purpose potting mix. My plants definitely responded well to it. It was easy to work with, had a good texture, and seemed to drain well while holding enough moisture. Based on this first run, I’d definitely grab another bag when I need more potting soil. It did the job, and did it pretty well.
