Quality garden soil - Am I chasing rainbows?

[SprintSt]

For the life of me I can't find decent quality garden soil in bulk near Chiang Mai. No replies to several inquiries on Facebook.

 

Any recommendations for a source will be appreciated. I intend to go and check it out before it gets dumped in my driveway.

 

Cheers!

[Dante99]

very difficult to find even 30 years ago 

 

most nurseries have to mix  a bunch of stuff into the dirt they get in order to have a reasonable potting soil

 

[jak2002003]

I mix coconut fibre, rice husks and dry leaves from my garden plants into the soil.  Well actually I just chuck it on top, as before the soil was too hard to dig. 

 

It breaks down really quickly during the wet season and the soil is now rich and soft after a couple of years.  

 

I also don't use any chemicals in the garden so lots of worms and insects moved in and they do a good job improving the soil too.  

 

The rice husks and coconut fibre are really cheap and can be found at locally at small garden shops or some pet shops / DIY places. 

 

You can spread the mixture over lawns and the grass grows through it. 

 

Also when you cut the grass, leave the clippings on top of the lawn to decompose back into the soil.  Then you are putting nutrients back into the lawn and don't have to throw aways bags of clippings. 

 

Sand is good to use too on areas of poor drainage or very compacted hard clay areas.  

Edited January 7, 2023 by jak2002003

[cnx1204]

We have bought potting soil, filler soil, etc., at several nurseries around Chiangmai.  And shredded coconut fiber, etc., and have had no problem planting anything as long we act as gardners and do routine gardening, fertilizing, etc.

 

Can you be more specific on the problems you are having?

[drtreelove]

20 hours ago, jak2002003 said:

I mix coconut fibre, rice husks and dry leaves from my garden plants into the soil.  Well actually I just chuck it on top, as before the soil was too hard to dig. 

 

It breaks down really quickly during the wet season and the soil is now rich and soft after a couple of years.  

 

I also don't use any chemicals in the garden so lots of worms and insects moved in and they do a good job improving the soil too.  

 

The rice husks and coconut fibre are really cheap and can be found at locally at small garden shops or some pet shops / DIY places. 

 

You can spread the mixture over lawns and the grass grows through it. 

 

Also when you cut the grass, leave the clippings on top of the lawn to decompose back into the soil.  Then you are putting nutrients back into the lawn and don't have to throw aways bags of clippings. 

 

Sand is good to use too on areas of poor drainage or very compacted hard clay areas.  

Good tips!  I also use coconut and rice hulls, as mulch only. Don't incorporate course raw organic matter like this into the soil you will be planting in any time soon.  

 

What kind of volume are you looking for?  A few sacks, or truck loads?  There is sack soil available at Kamtieng Plant Market and at most garden centers, but its almost impossible to know the true contents of what you are buying. The sellers often don't really know. It's best to blend your own. 

 

There is bulk soil available at the many building materials yards around the greater CM area. You can order 6 or 10 wheeler loads, or they will sack it up for you and load your pickup or the trunk of your car with small orders. I'm always on the look out, and each materials-yard changes frequently with soil texture (sand/silt/clay particle size) and organic matter content, depending on their current sourcing. The best dark brown sandy loam I've seen recently was a big pile at a yard on the 1014 between Borsang and Doi Saket. There is usually some decent sandy loam at a yard on the 1001 between RaumChok and MaeJo. If you see an old white guy stopped and digging into a pile, handling, smelling and tasting the soil, thats probably me.

 

Then I buy finished compost from MJU Farm Cannabis operation, or Vermicompost from Best Garden State and mix that with the loamy soil.  I add some sack bat guano/cow manure fertilizer from an ag shop in MaeJo, and OrganicTotto bokashi COF (complete organic fertilizer). For a super rich mix, I add some granular humate ore from Best Garden State, or Agrolig humates online (incorporating humic substances is one of the best things you can do for any plantings). Paramagnetic rock dust, kelp meal and/or Azomite volcanic dust for trace minerals would be a bonus for your mix and high nutrient density plants and food production. I also forage undisturbed forest floor soil with leaf litter and root particles, to inoculate with fungal-dominant beneficial soil biology.  With this and good growing conditions, water management and appropriate sun exposure, along with mid season Takumi hydrolyzed fish fertilizer applications, your landscape plants, fruit trees, veggies, or cannabis can reach the full genetic potential, appearance and quality. Don

 

Edited January 8, 2023 by drtreelove

[drtreelove]

10 minutes ago, drtreelove said:

Good tips!  I also use coconut and rice hulls, as mulch only. Don't incorporate course raw organic matter like this into the soil you will be planting in any time soon.  

 

What kind of volume are you looking for?  A few sacks, or truck loads?  There is sack soil available at Kamtieng Plant Market and at most garden centers, but its almost impossible to know the true contents of what you are buying. The sellers often don't really know. It's best to blend your own. 

 

There is bulk soil available at the many building materials yards around the greater CM area. You can order 6 or 10 wheeler loads, or they will sack it up for you and load your pickup or the trunk of your car with small orders. I'm always on the look out, and each materials-yard changes frequently with soil texture (sand/silt/clay particle size) and organic matter content, depending on their current sourcing. The best dark brown sandy loam I've seen recently was a big pile at a yard on the 1014 between Borsang and Doi Saket. There is usually some decent sandy loam at a yard on the 1001 between RaumChok and MaeJo. If you see an old white guy stopped and digging into a pile, handling, smelling and tasting the soil, thats probably me.

 

Then I buy finished compost from MJU Farm Cannabis operation, or Vermicompost from Best Garden State and mix that with the loamy soil.  I add some sack bat guano/cow manure fertilizer from an ag shop in MaeJo, and OrganicTotto bokashi COF (complete organic fertilizer). For a super rich mix, I add some granular humate ore from Best Garden State, or Agrolig humates online (incorporating humic substances is one of the best things you can do for any plantings). Paramagnetic rock dust, kelp meal and/or Azomite volcanic dust for trace minerals would be a bonus for your mix and high nutrient density plants and food production. I also forage undisturbed forest floor soil with leaf litter and root particles, to inoculate with fungal-dominant beneficial soil biology.  With this and good growing conditions, water management and appropriate sun exposure, along with mid season Takumi hydrolyzed fish fertilizer applications, your landscape plants, fruit trees, veggies, or cannabis can reach the full genetic potential, appearance and quality. Don

 

Takumi Organic Fertilizer - Maruchu Bussan Organic

 

This company has a sack potting soil mix along with their other excellent products. Incl a cannabis starter kit with container, potting soil, organic fertilzer and all. 

But I was there last week and they are in the process of moving from the Sansai location, to MaeRim we were told. 

[KhunLA]

Couple choices, though not sure if applicable to your locations.

 

I needed a few truck for top soil after some back filling.  Simply stopped the trucks going by the house where we lived, a bit rural, and gave the load a good sniff, till I found some good top soil.  I got a 'farmer's nose' for good top soil.  Nice, dark, fragrant.

 

Someone is always digging a pond of leveling off a mound.  When found, told them I only want top soil, and will pay extra.  Bring next 5 or 10 truckloads my way.

 

When that avenue and patience ran dry, simply got the best available, and supplemented that with a layer of cow manure, and if necessary, some cassava.   

 

Advisory using ground cassava (black), go lite, and do during rainy season, as needs to be 'washed' a bit, as too potent to plant on right away.  Try manure before cassava, if not sure what you're doing.

 

Both houses using that method, I got full lawns without seeding or sod, simply from the grass seedling in the soil and or manure.  They were barren to begin with, or turned & leveled.

 

Before & after:

 

 

 

This house just used fill, top soil & manure:

 

 

 

Edited January 8, 2023 by KhunLA

[flare]

With the advent of legal cannabis growing, there are a load of options via the usual suspects like Shopee and Lazada.  There are also a few shops at the Kham Thiang Garden Market that make their own special mixes.

 

Bulk will be an issue, though.

Edited January 8, 2023 by flare

[IvorBiggun2]

Get your soil from the rice fields. I did this and my lawn/grass grew naturally. Keep cutting whatever grows once you've done that and the grass grows and the weeds die back.

[theDukes]

In Mae Jo 081.8849299. Soil man. Truckload 5 q is 4-5,000 depending on drive time. Black dirt mix. Reliable.