On 10/16/2021 11:28 AM, John Robertson wrote:
> I'm not a gardener but I planted some seeds of food eaten from the kitchen
> (pears, apples, lemons, oranges, avocados, watermelon, pomegranate, etc).
>
> I put the soil in typical plastic plant containers but I don't know if I'm
> supposed to pack the results tightly or loosely or mediumly. If I pack them,
> with a mallet I can easily triple the amount of soil and even if I compact
> them with my fist, I could easily double the amount of soil, so compaction
> certainly makes a huge difference in soil volume.
>
> There must be an optimum amount of compaction though, for soil volume and
> for water sponging I would think that the experts already know about.
>
> What's the rule on compaction when you dig the soil out of the ground with a
> shovel and then when you fill a dozen of these quart to half gallon sized
> black plastic planting containers?
>

Actually, you do not want the soil severely compacted. For any
container, I start with a potting mix that is only slightly moist. I
press the mix around the seeds, cuttings, or small plants with the tips
of my fingers. Then I water the container, which further settles the
potting mix.

I do not use garden soil in a container. Instead, I mix my own potting
mix. See my <http://www.rossde.com/garden/garden_potting_mix.html>.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean, see
<http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html>
Gardening diary at <http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary>