My Potting Soils Dries Out And Will Not Take Water Once Dry

I bought planter soil for a planter I was growing herbs and a few strawberry plants in. The plants are not doing well. I water regularly and the top soil looks very wet, but once I put the little shovel down into the soil it was completely dry. It was like the soil was not absorbing the water. I hand water this box bed by hand on the shower mode and water it for quite some time, but all the waters ends up running out the sides or bottom. What kind of soil should I be using to prevent this?

1 Comment (Open | Close)

1 Comment To "My Potting Soils Dries Out And Will Not Take Water Once Dry"

#1 Comment By BushDoctor On 09/01/2021 @ 11:54 am

This happens when soil has quite a bit of peat moss. Using coco coir and an acidifier will make a good replacement when mixing soils.

Alternatively, it is an avoidable situation, as long as the peat never has a chance to dry out, fully. Once this happens, it is hard to get it to take water, again.

Here are some articles that will help:

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/peat-moss-information.htm ^[1]

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/planting-in-coco-peat-media.htm ^[2]

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/peat-moss-alternatives.htm ^[3]

Article printed from Gardening Know How Questions & Answers: https://questions.gardeningknowhow.com

URL to article: https://questions.gardeningknowhow.com/my-potting-soils-dries-out-and-will-not-take-water-once-dry/

URLs in this post:

[1] https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/peat-moss-information.htm: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/peat-moss-information.htm

[2] https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/planting-in-coco-peat-media.htm: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/planting-in-coco-peat-media.htm

[3] https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/peat-moss-alternatives.htm: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/peat-moss-alternatives.htm

Have any questions about this topic? Visit us at https://questions.gardeningknowhow.com to ask your questions and get friendly answers from gardening experts.

You can also find us at:
'Like' us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gardeningknowhow
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/gardenknowhow - @gardenknowhow
Follow us on Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/gardenknowhow/