Q8tropicalmoe

Hello, I am growing banana in pots. Recently I had few ones die from root rot even though I didnt water them that much. I been growing them in 70% sand 20% peat and 10% compost.
Would you recommend me to try other potting mix ?

Or I should simply cut down on watering even more?

Thanks.

beam2050

funny how my computer says 4:57; must be a glitch in the matrix.
edit; yep.

miracle gro potting mix and 1/3 perlite mix might be your best cheapest mix.

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npk of wood ash 0/1/3 to 0/3/7

npk of banana leaf ash 1.75/0.75/0.5

Q8tropicalmoe

Am afraid they dont sell miracle gro potting mix where I live. So was thinking maybe I would make my own potting mix ?

Kingt82

My guess is your mix is not airy enough. Use something that is chunkier aka bigger pieces. Sand and peat are too small of a particle size. Ok to have some but it shouldn't be the majority of the soil mix. Basically what I'm saying is you need more air in the soil.

blownz281

Any type of potting soil for flowers etc then add perlite. You can also add alittle mulch and sand.

cincinnana

Like the others in previous posts have said that your mix is too heavy for your plants.
Your current mix is holding excessive moisture and probably is not free draining enough which makes it hard for the roots to adequately grow.


There are some great youtube videos on DIY soillesss mixs for tropicals pick and choose a recipe that will give you a light and airy substance to the mix.

There are also even better threads on the subject in this forum.
Go to search and use keywords soilless mix and follow the yellow brick road.

A peat moss based mix ammended with perlite is a good start for your plant.

Your ratio can be 50-60% peat moss and 50-40% perlite, that's it until you get some reliable growth. As you gain experience you may add different amendments to the mix to suite a plants needs.

Start your plants in a smaller pot and work your way up to a larger pot as your plant matures to avoid overwatering. A full pot with roots is better than a larger pot without roots and a lot of wet soil.
Don't forget to do that forum search👀

Here is a link to some photos which will give you some ideas.

https://flic.kr/s/aHskn4Nmrt
https://flic.kr/s/aHskGBGAmw

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Q8tropicalmoe

Thank you guys for the recommendations.