Hi Mark,
I'm a neighbor of yours just north of Chicago. I don't know where you are
getting
your information, but some of it sound suspect. I use the coarse sand in my
raised
beds and containers. Used in moderation, I think it's effect is
contributory. It prevents
topsoil from caking up and assists in drainage. It's hard to recommend a
single size
that fits all, in this case. Different vegetables have their own
requirements for soil
composition, ph, etc. I don't fret about this too much. It's more
important that your
containers do not dry out in the summer sun. I have been using less peat
now than in
the past, because it tends to made my soil too acidic. It is good for very
heavy clay soil,
which is only a problem for our region if you dig down about a foot in my
yard. I don't
know where you heard bad things about compost. It can only be a problem if
it is not
fully processed, which in that case it will leach out nitrogen from the
soil. It is very useful
to spread around the top of your plants to keep them from drying out in the
sun. Perlite
is good for starting plants and has less potential for containing diseases,
but I would not
use it for long term growing for containers growing veggies outside.

Mark wrote:
This summer will be the 5th year for my rooftop container garden. Last
summer we had a pretty bad drought here in Chicago which I think
exasperated some mistakes I have been making with regards to my soil
recipes. So now looking forward to Spring I'm researching on how to
build container soils and its getting so confusing I feel like my head
is about to explode. Some say add sand for drainage but sand clogs
macro and micro pores.

I'm not sure what pores you are talking about. For proper drainage in
a container, you should put stones over the holes in the bottom so that
the soil mix does not block these up.

Other sites say you need good drainage but your
containers also need to retain water -- two completely opposite
requirements.

Retaining water is not the same as drowning the roots. Just keep the
roots moist is your best guideline.

Some say use compost in your mixture others say compost
does no good and micro-organisms in your container soil is not a good
thing.

I have been getting good results using compost both in my containers.
Microorganisms are not necessarily bad for growing things. You have
them
inside your stomach helping to digest your food.





So the more I read about container soils the less I know and the now I'm
completely confused. It now amazes me how anything grew in my garden
these last 4 years because I've been doing everything wrong.

I want to keep things simple so I found this one recipe that I might use
this summer:

1 part top soil
1 part peat
1 part perlite

That seems like a lot of perlite but I suppose it helps in aeration.
There's a nursery by me that sells perlite in 3 cu. ft. bags for not
that much so that's not a big deal. But even the potting soils I see in
the stores never have this much perlite. I'm also considering using
pine bark but am a little concerned about having woody stuff in the
soil. I thought wood leeches nitrogen. Last summer I used building
sand in my soil mix and apparently that was a *big* mistake. Although I
had a good pepper and cuke crop, my tomatoes didn't do so well even
though I watered them every day.

There can be dozens of other reasons why the tomatoes didn't do well.
If you don't go overboard on the sand, you tomatoes should do fine, and
will benefit by the soil not clumping up.



Does anyone have good (hopefully simple) recipes using material that can
be purchased at Home Depot or preferably Menards?

You can't buy good compost at these stores, nor can you buy the coarse
sand
there, as well. You also cannot buy real manure there. You can use
manure
if you place it at the bottom of the pot out of direct contact with the
roots, or
mix it very thinly throughout your mix.



Is it bad to use compost in the soil for veggies?

definitely not.

I read last year that
growing tomatoes in a container requires about 1/3 compost and that's
what I used last summer but now I'm reading that using compost is not
good. Compost supposedly breaks down the soil, reduces aeration, and
increases water retention leading to root rot. I suppose everything is
a tradeoff but some of these sites use absolutes.

I don't know where you are reading these things, but using 'fully cooked'

compost as I explained, will be of great benefit. You only get root rot
if
you overwater, or block the drainage somehow by using pots with inadequate

drainage. There is a much greater danger of roots drying out than
drowning,
in most containers outdoors in the sun.



I'll be digging out all my containers and recycling the soil as the top
soil component in any recipe. Some sites say not to use this recycled
soil because its broken down and get fresh soil. But how can this soil,
after I break it up in the soil mixing box, be any worse than those bags
of dirt that you get from Menards? How do I know if the Menards soil
isn't broken down either?

I don't know what you mean by broken down soil? Soil does not 'wear
out'.
It might lose nutrients, if you don't replace whatever you take out.
Unless
your soil contains some pathogen, it's probably ok to re-cycle. You may
want to amend it, depending on what is needed.



Also if anyone has good links to soil recipes that would be good too.
Thanks for any help.

Never hurts to research this, but I think you are putting too much
emphasis
on this soil thing. Don't hesitate to add compost and sand to your
mixtures.
Proper watering, good seeds, and sufficient sunlight are much bigger
factors
in successful vegetable growing.

Sherwin D.