Potting mix shootout final results!

Potting mix shootout final results

Last week we took the final measurements for the parsley plants we used for our potting mix trials at NMIT Fairfield (see this link for the start of the potting mix trials http://aggregata.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/week-1-of-potting-mix-shootout.html) . Again I will say that this trial is not strictly a proper scientific experiment as there were several variables that would bias the results slightly one way or the other. That said, the trial did provide some very interesting results. Probably the most shocking result was that of the really cheap potting mixes which didn't contain any fertilizers, wetting agents or water crystals. The results were shocking for these potting mixes because the plants involved only grew a tiny amount (some even got smaller) and the plants also showed signs of nutrient deficiency (in the form of yellowing leaves). Another interesting fact that emerged from the trials was that even those bottom of the barrel potting mixes performed o.k if fertilizer was added so if you add your own fertilizer you could actually get some proper growth out of the cheap stuff.

My personal pick of the bunch for these potting mixes was the Miracle Gro multipurpose potting mix. It was fairly cheap at $6.97 and as a control (without adding any extra fertilizer) it outperformed all the other products.

The final results are below, remember each plant started at roughly 45mm in height.

Results summary for all the potting mixes

1. Hortico all purpose blend
Price: $6.30c
Description on packet: For a wide variety of indoor and outdoor plants. Composted pine bark. AS3743
compliant. Contains minerals and fertilizer. Living organisms.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer: 85mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 160mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 90mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 65mm






2. Scotts Osmocote multi purpose
Price: $7.98c
Description on packet: 4 months osmocote. AS3743 compliant. Wetting agent, composted pine bark, living organisms. For a wide variety of plants.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer: 65mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 105mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 75mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 60mm




3. Scotts Osmocote premium
Price: $10.97c
Description on packet: 6 months osmocote. AS3743 compliant. Composted pine bark, water crystals, coir, wetting agent, living organisms. For a wide variety of plants
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer: 130mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 150mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 160mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 130mm





4. Miracle gro multi purpose
Price: $6.97c
Description on packet: Controlled release fertilizer. AS3743 compliant. Composted pine bark, wetting agent, living organisms. For a wide variety of plants.

Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer: 140mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 130mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 170mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 145mm




5. Debco potmate
Price: $10.47c
Description on packet: Controlled release fertilizer. AS3743 compliant. Composted pine bark, living organisms, wetting agent. For a wide variety of plants.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer:  90mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 115mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 120mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 95mm




6. Debco organic
Price: $13.98
Description on packet: Superior composted pine bark, premium blood and bone, organic carbon, NASAA input for organic production, no household green waste, ph balanced. For a wide variety of plants. No AS3743 compliance logo.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer:  110mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 120mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 110mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 90mm



7. Rich gro all purpose
Price: $3.78c
Description on packet: Composted pine bark, living organisms, mineral fertilizer. For pots and all plant types. No AS3743 compliance logo.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer:  90mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 120mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 120mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 30mm




8. Miracle gro organic choice
Price: $9.42c
Description on packet: Composted pine bark, blood and bone, fish meal, seaweed, chicken manure, feather meal, bio stimulants, living organisms, feeds for 3 months. No AS3743 compliance logo.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer:  90mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 130mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 125mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 45mm



9. Scotts Osmocote plus organics
Price: $11.98c
Description on packet: Composted pine bark, AS3743 compliant, composted manure, blood and bone, seaweed, fish meal, gypsum, wetting agent.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer:  110mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 160mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 170mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 120mm






10. NMIT Debco pro
Price: ???
Description: This is the potting mix that NMIT TAFE buys directly from Debco by the cubic metre. I don't know much about what is in it and can only guess as the the ingredients from visual inspection. It looked to contain no control release fertilizer or water crystals. Like all the others it is made from composted pine bark.
Final measurements
Height with added nutricote fertilizer:  80mm
Height with added osmocote fertlizer: 95mm
Height with added green jacket fertilizer: 80mm
Height with no added extra fertilizers: 50mm

The plants as they were at the end of the trial. Notice the poor specimens in the centre (they are the ones that were potted up in the cheap potting mixes with no added fertilizers).

Week 1 of the potting mix shootout!

As part of my studies I have recently starting testing different commercially available potting mixes. Although the test I have performed isn't strictly scientific it should give a good indication of the effectiveness of different brands. I chose curly leaf parsley as the plant to grow and planted it out in 100mm black plastic pots. The pots are all placed in the same area in the outside growing area of Fairfield TAFE. I have also used 3 different types of fertilizer (Nutricote Exotic, Osmocote Exotic & Green Jacket Exotic) in conjunction with a control (no fertilizer). The prices of the different potting mixes vary considerably and many seem to contain the same ingredients. Some of the mixes display the logo which indicates compliance with the AS3743 Australian standard and others do not. Strangely the most expensive potting mix does not have the AS3743 logo on it and I think that may have something to do with the fact  that it is an 'organic' mix. I'm guessing this has something to do with the natural variance of organic materials. I planted out the parsley into all mixes and also fertilized each mix with the three different fertilizers mentioned above. On planting the seedlings were all healthy and were roughly 45mm tall. I will post the end results once the trial is over.

THE CONTENDERS;

1. Hortico all purpose blend
Price: $6.30c
Description on packet: For a wide variety of indoor and outdoor plants. Composted pine bark. AS3743 compliant. Contains minerals and fertilizer. Living organisms

2. Osmocote multi purpose
Price: $7.98c
Description on packet: 4 months osmocote. AS3743 compliant. Wetting agent, composted pine bark, living organisms. For a wide variety of plants.

3. Osmocote premium
Price: $10.97c
Description on packet: 6 months osmocote. AS3743 compliant. Composted pine bark, water crystals, coir, wetting agent, living organisms. For a wide variety of plants

4. Miracle gro multi purpose
Price: $6.97c
Description on packet: Controlled release fertilizer. AS3743 compliant. Composted pine bark, wetting agent, living organisms. For a wide variety of plants.

5. Debco potmate
Price: $10.47c
Description on packet: Controlled release fertilizer. AS3743 compliant. Composted pine bark, living organisms, wetting agent. For a wide variety of plants.

6. Debco organic
Price: $13.98
Description on packet: Superior composted pine bark, premium blood and bone, organic carbon, NASAA input for organic production, no household green waste, ph balanced. For a wide variety of plants. No AS3743 compliance logo.

7. Rich gro all purpose
Price: $3.78c
Description on packet: Composted pine bark, living organisms, mineral fertilizer. For pots and all plant types. No AS3743 compliance logo.

8. Miracle gro organic choice
Price: $9.42c
Description on packet: Composted pine bark, blood and bone, fish meal, seaweed, chicken manure, feather meal, bio stimulants, living organisms, feeds for 3 months. No AS3743 compliance logo.

9. Osmocote plus organics
Price: $11.98c
Description on packet: Composted pine bark, AS3743 compliant, composted manure, blood and bone, seaweed, fish meal, gypsum, wetting agent.

10. NMIT Debco pro
Price: ???
Description: This is the potting mix that NMIT TAFE buys directly from Debco by the cubic metre. I don't know much about what is in it and can only guess as the the ingredients from visual inspection. It looked to contain no control release fertilizer or water crystals. Like all the others it is made from composted pine bark.

Winter flowering tree Taiwan Cherry (Prunus campanulata)

At the NMIT Fairfield campus where I study Horticulture there is a sad looking row of Taiwan Cherry trees. Sad because the have had some bad pruning done on them but at the end of the row is the beautiful tree you see in the pictures below. Prunus campanulata is a tree native to China and Japan. According to information I've seen on the good old internet it can grow to 7m high with a spread of 7m however I can't say I've ever seen one grow to that size. Maybe in Melbourne they don't quite have the ideal conditions they require for full growth or maybe I've just been unlucky and walked past a huge specimen without looking. This beautiful tree is actually an environmental weed in New Zealand where it has spread throughout several parts of the country. Cultural notes on this tree seem to be basically the standard (ie rich and well drained soil with moist conditions) but the fact that it has escaped as a weed in New Zealand seems to suggest that it is not too fussy about its habitat. In all the cultural  notes I've found it is stated that it will grow in clay, loam or sandy soil and it also like full sun. I think that this tree would look great in conjunction with some traditional Cherry Blossom trees as it flowers at the same time.

Prunus campanulata flowers in bloom

The tree in it's entirety and in full bloom.

Close up of the flowers.

Hedging plant Loropetalum chinense 'China pink' in flower

In February I composed a blog entry on the hedging plant Loropetalum chinense 'China pink'.

http://aggregata.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/hedging-plant-loropetalam-chinense-in.html

At the time the hedge had just been trimmed and as such the flowers and pink / red foliage were not on show. I walked past the same hedge in Fairfield last week and saw that it had been left long enough to reveal its most attractive features. The coloured foliage is from new growth only which is why it has coloured up now to a pink / red colour. The colour has nothing to do with the fact that it is now Autumn. The fact that the hedge can be left to turn red with flowers or trimmed back to a more traditional green foliage hedge can be useful. If you change your mind you can change the colour of this hedge by adjusting your pruning technique.

For more detailed information on Loropetalum chinense plants please check my original blog entry listed on the above link.

It's easy to see why this plant goes by the common name of fringe flower.



Masses of flowers on the top of the hedge.

You can see the red foliage coloured up nicely. If it is left untouched for another couple of weeks it would be nearly all red foliage.

National Trust Trees in Fairfield

This Indian fig is listed on the register of significant trees of Victoria. It is located at NMIT tafe college in Fairfield Melbourne Victoria (which is where I study horticulture). Its botanical name is Ficus Palmata. I have always loved the gnarled trunks / branches of fig trees. It faces a northern aspect. On the national trust website it states this tree is 60+ years old.

This Sugar gum tree is also in fairfield and is on the National Trust register. The pictures don't do this tree justice it looks amazing in real life and it's one of my favorite eucalpyts. The tree is huge and is held together with cabling. The botanical name for this tree is Eucalyptus Cladocalyx.  On the national trust website it states this tree is 60+ years old.