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Re: Melsoil // My experience

Square Foot Gardening List - http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html

In me humble experience, the success of peat moss depends on the quality of
the moss you use, plus getting it mixed in well and moistened properly, with
whatever soil mix you use.

Not using Melsoil per se, I used peat moss, compost and clay garden soil,
about 1/3 each, in building the raised bed that I grew my sweet potatoes in
this year, topping it off this spring with an inch or so of 1/4 inch sifted
vermicompost. The whole business was then covered with IRT plastic for mulch
and heat retention.

Last year the same soil grew a bumper crop of carrots and other things.

It is important to water it well, and keep it moist, as it does have a
tendency to be hard to re-wet once it is dry. The virtue of the sq ft raised
bed is that it concentrates growing power in one small area, easier to water
and weed and care for, but not easier to neglect altogether...watering is
crucial for raised beds especially in hot climates, and during dry spells.

So if you can't give extra water to it, you are better off not having a
raised bed, but perhaps growing in deep mulch, instead of melsoil...or on
top of it! (And maybe in a pit...like the Southwest indians used....:-)

My tuppence,

Frank Teuton---in peat mossland, aka Canada...
-----Original Message-----
From: Patricia Santhuff <psanthuff@mindspring.com>
To: Square Foot Gardening List <sqft@listbot.com>
Date: Friday, October 01, 1999 9:13 PM
Subject: Re: Melsoil // My experience


>Square Foot Gardening List - http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html
>
>Paula's question reminds me I've been planning to ask the list about
>Melsoil. I made 2 squares with it -- absent the wood ash, as I recall.,
>since I didn't have any.
>
>I'm not sure I'm all that happy with it. My first use has been to plant a
>small fall garden. Beans, peas, that kind of thing. But the raised beds I'd
>prepared had dried out so badly during our terrible drought that not
>understanding the nature of peat moss, I didn't drench it thoroughly before
>planting. So I've had a very difficult time getting water past the top very
>thin layer. And of course, once things have sprouted, you can't get too
>aggressive about poking around making holes for the water to go in. I have
>since mulched around things, so that should help retain what moisture I can
>get in there, but it's been very frustrating, to say the least. I'm not
sure
>I'd use much -- if ANY -- peat moss again. In fact, I can't wait to tear
>into these and do soemthing else with the soil. Not sure what, but
something.
>
>Any comments -- or other experience -- from Melsoil advocates?
>
>Patricia S.
>Zone 7b,. West Georgia
>
>
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