Gary Pilarchik: How to Buy Quality Seed Starting Mix (How to Avoid Poor Quality Mixes Using 5 Tests)

16 Comments

1. 

   @THERUSTEDGARDEN 2 days ago

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2. 

   @wrea3698 2 days ago

   I never noticed "forest products" on the bags before, but I have definitely been frustrated with the wood shreds in these mixes! thank you for pointing it out ❤

3. 

   @Ms.Jlovinglife 2 days ago

   I bought a bag of miracle grow organic potting mix and I will never buy again it too consist of a lot of wood all of my starter plants have died great video ❤❤❤❤

4. 

   @raindiamonds1925 2 days ago

   Thanks so much Gary! It is very frustrating to have to buy several products just to find the one that is going to work well for our gardening needs. You have just saved us a lot of $$ and frustration. Your time and experience is so valuable to us!

5. 

   @joanies6778 2 days ago

   I've been using Jiffy Mix from the beginning with no issues of shreds or woody particles. I put the mix in an oven bag, pour boiling water on the mix and stir, then microwave it for 1 minute more. It's overkill, but I have zero fungus gnats and no other issues. It's cheaper and consistently fine for seed starting.

6. 

   @mistershawnyoung 2 days ago

   The other night, my husband and I were in bed and he asked me what I was thinking about or whatever… and I told him how I bought a potting soil and it had sticks and stuff in it and I was ticked off. I was so upset. I went off on a tangent. Then I stopped. He said "did you fall asleep?" I said "no… I'm still stewing." He said sorry I asked 😆 -Sarah

7. 

   @stephenmoberg8807 2 days ago

   Ty – I always use your formula and make my own – about 1/3 the cost – Steve zone 6 b

8. 

   @Enig_Mata 2 days ago

   Back to the Roots should be ashamed of that product; it's a disgrace to sell that as a seed starting mix; that should be mulch. I have a couple of their Coco Coir bricks(will be cautious of this company going forward) and plan on using your formula to make my own seed starting mix. Thanks for the video.

9. 

   @ausfoodgarden 2 days ago

   Wow! That "back to the roots" stuff shouldn't be sold as seed starting mix. Potting mix maybe, but the texture is far too big for seeds.
   I just use sifted coco coir and perlite similar to your mix.
   All the best. Gerry C

10. 

    @bkinder657 2 days ago

    Last year I just bought a bag of Happy Frog and sifted it for my starting mix. Everything did great. It’s pricier but I can find it close to home which saves me time.

11. 

    @TheGardenHoeChannel 2 days ago

    Thanks for sharing ❤

12. 

    @serainman 2 days ago

    [The Gardening Channel With James Prigioni] has a good formula for making your own soil that I can vouch for, he recommends: 3 parts coco coir, 2 parts compost, (.5) part vermiculite (.5) part perlite — for my version of compost i 1/4-screen-sift miracle grow (for garden vegetable) to get rid of all the plastic/metal/glass contamination (cause let's face it, none of us wanna get cut up if using bare hands) — makes a really nice fluffy light soil

13. 

    @jackzampella5758 2 days ago

    Black Kow composted cow manure is the same. LOT'S of forest products (wood). It's just not worth buying!! Thanks Gary.

14. 

    @Spnart 2 days ago

    Almost all the bagged potting products these days are awful. Even something like composted manure will be half full of chunks of wood. Usually you can find a bag with a hole in it in the store and check what you're buying if it's on pallets outside in the garden section, and then you can evaluate before you buy.

15. 

    @dcooper58923 2 days ago

    I used Coco Core and peat last year, I had pretty good luck, this year same combo with perlite the seeds I ve started so dear are doing better! Always Always use the boiling water! My biggest mistake in 2021 I didn’t seed start again with the failures until last year. I wasn’t following Gary back then.❤️

16. 

    @08kramer 1 day ago

    That back to roots is Horrible. Do not buy.