Commercial potting mixes are convenient, but most are nothing more than sterile dirt (likely treated with chemicals to eliminate weeds and pathogens). Instead of mineral-rich soil, they are mostly bark, peat or coir\u2014light enough to transport, but lacking in the essential minerals and trace elements that produce lush, fragrant flowers and nutrient-dense food.<\/p>\n

For\u00a0the most beautiful blooms and the healthiest plants, container gardeners should start with a high-quality organic potting soil and amend it with mineral-rich rock dust. A product like Cascade Minerals Remineralizing Soil Booster<\/strong> that\u00a0is made of all-natural volcanic basalt will steadily release calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese and silicon dioxide into the soil while helping improve water retention.<\/p>\n

Finely milled volcanic basalt is well-suited to the needs of most container gardeners because it produces relatively little ambient dust and is easy to add to container\u00a0mixes. Moreover, a little goes a long way. A small quantity of high-quality volcanic basalt is all it takes to provide container plants with the essential minerals and trace elements they need to stay strong, healthy and resistant to disease.<\/p>\n

Need some container inspiration? Try these tips:<\/p>\n

\n
• Start with a sturdy\u00a0container that will take\u00a0you through different seasons and can accommodate different styles<\/li>\n
• Make sure your containers have drain holes before <\/em>you begin filling them (and look for the “perfect spot\u201d while they are still empty)<\/li>\n
• Reduce the weight of a large container by filling the bottom half with lightweight materials (anything from Styrofoam peanuts to pine cones to inverted plastic pots)<\/li>\n
• Don\u2019t skimp on plants\u2014for a lush container that shines all season long, choose a dramatic mixture of \u201cthrillers, fillers and spillers\u201d<\/li>\n
• Keep things fresh by replacing wilted plants with new ones<\/li>\n
• Keep containers well-watered (water when surface soil is dry to the touch)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

   <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Commercial potting mixes are convenient, but most are nothing more than sterile dirt (likely treated with chemicals to eliminate weeds and pathogens). Instead of mineral-rich soil, they are mostly bark, peat or coir\u2014light enough to transport, but lacking in the essential minerals and trace elements that produce lush, fragrant flowers and nutrient-dense food. For\u00a0the most… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1998,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":""},"categories":[19,15],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Container-Gardening.jpg","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6YalT-d4","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/810"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=810"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/810\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1997,"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/810\/revisions\/1997"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1998"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cascademinerals.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}