Salty Thumb wrote:

Warning: blind leading the blind here or at least visually impaired
leading
the blind.

I would say it depends on what you are growing. Aside from nutrient
intake
the roots have to hold the plants in place. Is your homogenous heap
of
topsoil going provide enough stability for that? Someone else said
she had
excellent results, and I can imagine that some plants would work
really
well in pure topsoil.

All I can say for sure is I once rooted a rosemary in pure topsoil
(although it was in a gallon container) and it died, whereas the stuff
in
potting mix 90%+ survived. Looking back, this so called topsoil (el
cheapo
brand) probably didn't have much organic matter in it and crusted up
like
brick. I suppose if you make sure you have organic matter or add
compost
and have proper drainage, you should have excellent results.


So what is the official definition of "top soil". Is it like "top shelf"
in liqueur -- the most expensive name brand? Or is it simply soil
scrapped off the top of someplace?

Most of the stuff I've seen labeled as "top soil" is soil scraped off
the top, with the biggest rocks screened out. Barely a step above "clean
fill", but nowhere near what I would consider "top shelf", despite the
higher price put on it because someone decided to call it "top soil".

Of course I'm answering my own question here. "Top soil" is stuff
scrapped off the top. Mistaking the use of the word "top" in "top soil"
to infer quality is a rookie mistake.

For that matter, "potting soil" simply means it'll fit in a pot if
that's where you want to put it.

There are no official definitions of what soil labels mean. If it's a
commercial bagged mix, the label may give you some idea of what has gone
into that particular soil. You can judge drainage capabilities with some
basic tactile tests involving water. But if more is important to you
than drainage, you're just going to have to have the soil tested. Simple
labels like "top" or "potting" won't tell you what the pH is, or what
the NPK values are.

--
Warren H.

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