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Have people ever had failures in Earthboxes? I think I just did!
This is my second year using EBs for veggies (maters, squash, peppers, eggplant.) Last summer everything was gangbusters by now (early July). My tomato plants were between 2 and 3 feet tall. THIS year my veggie seedlings have barely grown at all since I put them in a the first week fo June. The only difference between this summer and last? Last summer I used Faford or Coast of Maine potting mix. This year I took the advice of an Agway employee to use the store brand of potting mix. She said she used it for her EBs and it was a good medium for them. The brand was on sale, so I filled my 12 boxes with it. (I also used the recommended EB replanting kits with new fertilizer and dolomitic lime.)
But something has gone wrong. My veggie plants are not thriving; they are scrawny and sullen (see sad photo below, taken July 7.) The soil also seems too heavy. I'm thinking I will just have to write off my plants. Replanting them all, getting new soil plus buying new ferts and dolomitic lime, is both expensive and laborious--plus I'm not even sure my little plants will do that much this late in the season. I'm bummed.
So. . . my question is: has anyone else had EB failures? Is it because I used the wrong potting mix?
And if you have success with EBs, which potting mix works best for you?
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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