Your garden shed and home probably have plenty of extra potting soil bags if you enjoy gardening.
Rather than letting good dirt go to waste, why not store it? Putting together this short guide will help you store potting soil correctly.
You shouldn’t leave open bags of potting soil lying around.
Keep reading to learn how to seal up your potting soil for future use and prevent insects, moisture, and mold from growing in it!
How To Store Potting Soil
Moisture, snow, sun, insects, and animals can ruin potting soil, resulting in a waste of money.
Keeping potting soil fresh, bug-free, and mold-free is as simple as storing it correctly. During the winter, you can pot plants for your container gardens or redo them in the spring.
What You Need:
- Tape
- Large zip-top plastic bags
- Storage bins with lids (airtight containers are best)
- Disinfecting wipes or cleaning solution
- Mesh strainer or large flat tray
Step 1 – Gather Your Potting Soil
All stray potting soil bags should be collected. It will be necessary to treat both full and partial bags differently when storing them.
You will need to empty thin, torn, or damp bags into new containers after determining which soil can be left in the bag.
Mixes of similar potting soil should be grouped together. Putting potting soil together with fertilizer in a single bin will save you from having to open multiple containers.
Step 2 – Clean Your Storage Containers
If you intend to leave your potting soil in its original bags, make sure you gather enough containers to hold them all.
If you want to prevent mold, fungi, or bacteria from potentially infecting your potting soil, clean both the lid and the inside of the storage container with a disinfectant bleach water solution.
Dry the container by air.
Make sure the bin you plan to use for storing soil is airtight before you dump it inside.
Step 3 – Check The Soil For Contaminants
You can dump the soil mixture into a large mesh strainer or onto a large flat tray if the bag of soil is open.
The soil should be checked for insects, egg sacks, larvae, seeds, plant growth, and mold.
Removing a few of these items and storing the remaining soil is recommended.
To recycle your potting mix for later use in your garden, take it outdoors and dump it into your composter if it appears to have been completely infested with mold or insects.
Step 4 – Dry The Potting Mix
Keeping damp potting soil in a warm environment can cause mold or mildew to grow.
As potting mix bags have air holes across their plastic for ventilation, it is more likely that large bags (unopened) left outdoors are damp inside.
In addition to being unappealing and potentially smelling, mold has the potential to harm future plant growth.
It is important to inspect the soil for dryness before planting. Leave the tops of the bags open and mix up the contents for a day or two so the soil can dry.
Step 5 – Seal And Pack Your Potting Soil
In sturdy potting soil bags, you can leave the mix inside, squeeze out all the air, and seal the bag.
Non-sealable bags can be rolled downward to force out the air, taped shut, and placed inside a larger zip-top plastic bag to prevent dirt spills.
As long as you’re confident that small children or pets won’t mess with the soil, you can place sealed bags of soil inside a larger plastic tote or use a more decorative option such as a plastic-lined wicker basket or stoneware crock.
Alternatively, you can empty the bag into an airtight container with other similar potting soil mixes if you are unable to reuse the bag.
Finally, label your storage containers so you know what’s inside.
Storing Potting Soil Over Winter
Indoor Storage
You may wish to repot plants you receive as gifts around the holidays if you have potting soil on hand.
Potting soil stays in good condition when kept indoors. Using this video, you will learn some good ways to store potting mix indoors that are inexpensive yet attractive.
Smaller totes with lids are better for indoor soil storage, since they are easier to stack or slide into a cabinet.
Cut off the front of the soil bag and tape it to the lid if you do not store soil in the original bag.
Keep bins away from high humidity. Basements with damp walls are better than closets or pantries.
Outside Storage
Keeping potting soil outside over the winter is perfectly safe.
The soil won’t be damaged by cold temperatures, but the bag will be damaged by harsh weather conditions. If the plastic is torn or cracked, insects or water will enter and piles of dirt will be left behind.
The best solution is to move potting soil into a large bin with a lid.
Using duct tape around the bin’s edges will ensure a tight seal against moisture and bugs for several months.
For more protection from humid conditions, place the bins outside or in your garage.
Depending on the amount of soil you have, thick plastic totes can be used. My favorite garbage can is a lidded plastic one with wheels. Stack soil bags inside the can or bin or empty the partially-filled bags into one container after rolling and sealing them.
The garbage can holds a lot of soil, so I like to use it. When the plants die off in the fall, it’s easy to throw in good dirt from outdoor pots for reuse the following spring.
When planting season arrives, I wheel the can from my gardening shed to wherever I need to fill pots. To access the soil at the bottom without having to tip the can, I use a scooper set.
Pros And Cons
Potting soil does not need to be stored. Pour it around your landscaping plants or give it to gardening friends.
The pros of storing potting soil are:
- Saves money over throwing away soil at the end of the season
- Keeps fresh soil on hand for when you need it
- Prevents insects from laying eggs or living in the soil
The cons of storing potting soil are:
- Mold can grow in soil if moisture gets into it
- There may be too much space taken up by containers
- It is possible for bags to tear or bins to spill, causing a mess
In Summary
Potting soil should be stored properly to keep it fresh, pest-free, and convenient for unexpected off-season planting needs. In addition to keeping your floors and shelves clean, proper storage prevents potting mix bags from spilling.
Excess potting soil can be stored in an easy, budget-friendly manner. Keep all your garden supplies neat and tidy by following the steps above on storing potting soil!