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Potting pond plants


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I'd like to try and put some of my aquarium plants in pots so that they can be moved around more easily, especially if I decide to convert one of my tanks to brackish. The best guide I could find was this: https://www.gardenguides.com/101705-plant-aquarium-plants-pots.html

But all it says about what soil to use is "carefully choose which soil to use." Lol My question is whether I should stay away from potting soil mixes. I have an old planter with some potting mix that has been "used up" by plants for one season- I grew Swiss chard, for example. I would expect that I could safely use this soil to pot the dwarf tiger lotus I have, which- ideally- would grow happily in my outdoor mini pond. I am planning to cap the soil in the pot with gravel. Anyone see any red flags with this plan? I don't think the soil would leach any harmful chemicals, but I am going to review Diana Walstad's book to confirm.

Edit: Got Walstad's name wrong!

Edited by Kat_Rigel
Misspelled name
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I use the non-clumping cat litter to grow my water lilies and lotus in my container water gardens.  As long as you use the really cheap cat litter (non-clumping and no fragrance), it contains nothing but clay and is safe to use.  Much easier to use and doesn't foul up the water like normal potting soil, which may contain extra fertilizer, perlite, and whatnot.

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50 minutes ago, Plutoids Mom said:

I use the non-clumping cat litter to grow my water lilies and lotus in my container water gardens.  As long as you use the really cheap cat litter (non-clumping and no fragrance), it contains nothing but clay and is safe to use.  Much easier to use and doesn't foul up the water like normal potting soil, which may contain extra fertilizer, perlite, and whatnot.

Ooooh, that is a good tip! Thank you! I would never have thought of that.

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Yeah, typical potting soils have peat in them which can do things to your water (soften it and lower the pH) that you may not want done to your water. I've used cheap top soil (the stuff that costs like $2 for a 40 lb bag) and then topped it with sand and gravel and it's been great for my pond plants. They're happy. I'm happy. It's a good cheap option for water garden plants. I've never tried it with aquarium plants, but it would probably be okay there also.

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