Best soil from lowes?

Hello again!
I have already bought seeds and I am currently awaiting for them to come in. In the meantime, I'm stuck between what medium to get. So, what's the best soil/mix to buy from there?

What does your local Lowes have available? I've always gotten good results with the Miracle Grow Moisture control, mixed with worm castings

Find a gardening supply shop or find a retailer for good soils on the web. Fox Farms has a product locator on their website. I am sure if you contact other medium producers you can find their products as well. Loews, Home Depot etc are going to mostly have Miracle Grow and MG like products on their shelves, not optimal for cannabis. They will also have pro-mix and the needed additives. But, without a recipe and a good amount of $$$ it can be difficult to know what to buy.

$bkbbudz$ said:

Find a gardening supply shop or find a retailer for good soils on the web. Fox Farms has a product locator on their website. I am sure if you contact other medium producers you can find their products as well. Loews, Home Depot etc are going to mostly have Miracle Grow and MG like products on their shelves, not optimal for cannabis. They will also have pro-mix and the needed additives. But, without a recipe and a good amount of $$$ it can be difficult to know what to buy.

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Yea, because of my desire to not buy soil from the web, I've become quite the little mad scientist when it comes to soil recipes. Only thing is, I never write anything down. So can't really pass on 1 scoop of this + 2 scoops of that + that other thing I used last time.

dgthumb said:

Yea, because of my desire to not buy soil from the web, I've become quite the little mad scientist when it comes to soil recipes. Only thing is, I never write anything down. So can't really pass on 1 scoop of this + 2 scoops of that + that other thing I used last time.

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I understand...But, I was not suggesting buying soil on the web...shipping alone would cost way too much. Rather, finding info online for retail shops in the area that carry better mediums for cannabis. Mixing mediums can be quite expensive especially if you need to use more than 1 batch per grow or are growing a large number of plants. I use FFHF and perlite. Yes, I paid $100.00 for the FF nute system but because I only grow 2 per grow and 3 grows per year the nutes will last me a LONG TIME. So, all I have to continue to buy is the soil ($17.00 in my area) and some inert perlite.

I use the miracle grow organic line Natures Care green bag mixed 50/50 with black kow manure & compost bought from lowes. This mix is awesome for my organic mix also won't break the bank. I've used pretty much alll of the miracle grow soils and fox farm as well and IME not really that much different.

$bkbbudz$ said:

I understand...But, I was not suggesting buying soil on the web...shipping alone would cost way too much. Rather, finding info online for retail shops in the area that carry better mediums for cannabis. Mixing mediums can be quite expensive especially if you need to use more than 1 batch per grow or are growing a large number of plants. I use FFHF and perlite. Yes, I paid $100.00 for the FF nute system but because I only grow 2 per grow and 3 grows per year the nutes will last me a LONG TIME. So, all I have to continue to buy is the soil ($17.00 in my area) and some inert perlite.

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My bad, misinterpreted what you meant. Oddly enough, it was my budget that made me choose the soil mix route. I was able to pick up my soil recipe for 6, 2 liter pots for a decent price by doing a little online research and some leg work by going to various stores for different ingredients. My grow log has the mix that I'm currently using. Each time I make a batch I feel like I'm baking a cake or something

dgthumb said:

My bad, misinterpreted what you meant. Oddly enough, it was my budget that made me choose the soil mix route. I was able to pick up my soil recipe for 6, 2 liter pots for a decent price by doing a little online research and some leg work by going to various stores for different ingredients. My grow log has the mix that I'm currently using. Each time I make a batch I feel like I'm baking a cake or something

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My grow buddy just finished a batch of his recipe as well. All totaled he is at about $125.00 which will give him enough for 5 plants in 5 gallon bags. I guess I find the way I do it better for me and my budget. Also, I like the fact that as I use the same system for every grow there is little room for error or guess work. I can appreciate the benefits of a well mixed medium recipe as well. To each their own, every grow is as different as every grower.

$bkbbudz$ said:

My grow buddy just finished a batch of his recipe as well. All totaled he is at about $125.00 which will give him enough for 5 plants in 5 gallon bags. I guess I find the way I do it better for me and my budget. Also, I like the fact that as I use the same system for every grow there is little room for error or guess work. I can appreciate the benefits of a well mixed medium recipe as well. To each their own, every grow is as different as every grower.

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I've pretty much stuck with the same mixture for nearly 5 years now, due to local supplies I've alternated between guano and worm castings on some grows but the rest has stayed the same for the same reason as you, less guess work and room for error. Maybe when the garden suppliers carry more cannabis friendly products locally I'll try some new mixes, but for now I'm quite content with my mix.

dgthumb said:

I've pretty much stuck with the same mixture for nearly 5 years now, due to local supplies I've alternated between guano and worm castings on some grows but the rest has stayed the same for the same reason as you, less guess work and room for error. Maybe when the garden suppliers carry more cannabis friendly products locally I'll try some new mixes, but for now I'm quite content with my mix.

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Different methods...same results when done with growing knowledge and TLC...super dank nuggiez!

Thank you for the input! I also want to mention that I'm on a budget and I currently have a $100 gift card to Lowes

dgthumb said:

I've pretty much stuck with the same mixture for nearly 5 years now, due to local supplies I've alternated between guano and worm castings on some grows but the rest has stayed the same for the same reason as you, less guess work and room for error. Maybe when the garden suppliers carry more cannabis friendly products locally I'll try some new mixes, but for now I'm quite content with my mix.

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Can you please link me to what you use? Thank you so much!

DLegend said:

Can you please link me to what you use? Thank you so much!

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My grow log has what I'm currently using. Though, I don't think you're going to be able to get some of the items from Lowes.

I use mg potting for now till I get to the hydro store over a hr away but it works good for veg but in flower I usevthe ffof the MG has to much time released nutes in it

I didn't do much research when i bought my first ever clone, so i bought some soil from Hope Depot instead of going to my local hydro store, but i did get pretty good results from this Organic miracle grow, doesnt have any synthetic or time released fertilizers probably at your local home depot or lowes, check it out here good luck happy growing !

Traplife said:

I didn't do much research when i bought my first ever clone, so i bought some soil from Hope Depot instead of going to my local hydro store, but i did get pretty good results from this Organic miracle grow, doesnt have any synthetic or time released fertilizers probably at your local home depot or lowes, check it out here good luck happy growing !

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Yes i have to say their natures care organic line is pretty good

If you have a Menard close try the Pro-mix ultimate organic, I've used it for years. $ 6.50 a bag. Ocean Forrest cost me $23.00 where I'm at.

I too use promix.

I dont know who does what I do. When I go to Menards/Walmart/Lowes I try to be as cheap as possible.

$3.33 (each) - Just Natural Just Natural 0.75-cu ft Organic Compost
$1.33 (each) - Hapi-Gro 40-lb Organic Manure
$7.98 (each) - EcoScraps 32-Quart Organic Potting Soil
Mix all these 1:3 ratio, bake soil until center temperature reaches 180* F. Sounds like a lot of work but you are saving some money

I noticed cheap potting soil has little seeds in it and sometimes you will grow small things in your pots. I believe baking prevents this along with bacteria.

You will need to break up the composts with your hands it takes a while! Just the price of saving money though.
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Then add after breaking all those up above
$5 (each) - Perlite
$5 (each) - Vermiculite

$6.48 (1) - Sta-Green 6 Pound(S) Organic Garden Lime Hopefully someone can chime in on how much to use for how much soil (Helps balance/buffer PH)


Maybe one
$2 (each) - Garden Treasures 14-in W x 14-in L x 6.25-in D Coconut Fiber Plant Liner
for each pot, assuming they can be broken up, may take some work to pull apart? It's worth a shot but


That's like $50 for several 5 gallon buckets full


You will need to break up the composts with your hands it takes a while! Just the price of saving money though.

What can you spend that extra $50 from your gift card on .

At $6.50 a cu ft bag that's cheap enough and works good. And you know by baking you're soil at 180 Degrees you're killing all the microbial life including the good microbes.