My Honest Review of Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants

I picked up some tulip bulbs at Fixe in the fall for winter forcing, and I also grabbed a bag of Azbuka Rosta potting soil because I'd already dug up all my soil at home for my fuchsias. By the end of fall, finding decent potting soil is a real pain – it usually gets delivered in the spring. So, taking it from Fixe was basically my only option, since I was too lazy to drive to a halfway decent garden center and my car was in the shop.

Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5LI'm glad to say that the forcing was a success, and I've formed an opinion about the soil. Now that we're in the thick of planting season, I thought I'd write this review before I forget my thoughts on the soil.

About the Soil

Name: Potting Soil for Flowers and HouseplantsManufacturer: Azbuka RostaCountry: RussiaPrice: 62 rublesVolume: 5 litersWhere to buy: Fix Price, marketplaces, possibly in retail stores too – I haven't checked.Packaging: A transparent polyethylene bag with a colorful illustration of various flowers and plants. Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5LThe bag has holes for the soil to breathe. The packaging has tons of information about the composition and whatnot, but I rarely read it.Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5LAzbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5LAzbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5LBut you've got the photos up close, just in case someone needs them and someone actually knows what they're looking at.Composition:Peat, complex fertilizer, limestone powder...

From the manufacturer:Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants stands out for its balanced nutrient content. It stimulates flowering. Please read the instructions and safety precautions on the packaging before use.

My Impressions

I've got to say, the peat-based soil is more like a soil mix than actual soil.

Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L It's a good idea to mix this soil with something denser to make it more like actual soil. I usually add Terra Vita for flowering plants, and it's perfect – it's got a bit more substance to it, not too light or powdery. The downside of powdery soil is that it doesn't hold water well, so you have to keep an eye on it to make sure it's not drying out. This soil isn't too powdery, but it's not the worst I've seen either. So, it's somewhere in between in terms of density.Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L For seedlings and propagation, it's fine – the soil holds moisture well, so you don't have to check on it all the time.Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L To be honest, there's a bit of debris in here – sticks, roots, and compacted peat. I'm not a fan of coconut coir, but I think it's a great addition to soil, especially for plants like African violets. There aren't enough beneficial inclusions in this soil, in my opinion, but it's fine for seedlings and propagation. For repotting indoor plants, I'd add some nutrient-rich stuff or just use a different soil altogether. This is more of a soil mix than actual soil – you'll need to add something to make it last and give the plant something to feed on.I've got my propagation going on – you know, when spring bulbs force flowers to bloom indoors in the middle of winter. I planted the bulbs in pots in November, after they'd been in the fridge for a bit over two months.

Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L Below that's drainage, and I've got river rocks left over from drilling a well, then a layer of soil, a bulb, and I covered it all with soil. Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L I watered it so the whole soil clump was saturated, waited for the excess to drain, and then moved the pots to a cooler spot (around +12/+15°C) to chill. Normally, I'd need to water again in about 3-4 weeks, but this time it was 21 days and I needed to water again. Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L All in all, it's within normal limits – the soil holds moisture really well. After that, I needed to water every 5-7 days, considering these are narcissus, which typically need more frequent watering due to their robust roots. During the forcing process, there was a light mold growth on the soil, but it was super minor, and you can see it in the photo above. Compared to Terra Vita, there was much less mold. For forcing, this is normal due to the high humidity and cool temperature, as long as it doesn't rot.

Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L Both varieties of narcissus bloomed on time and impressed me with their beautiful and fragrant flowers. Check out how plump they got, and the foliage is thriving too.

Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L Honestly, I would've chosen bigger pots for them next time because I thought it was a bit short on nutrients, and the last few blooms just didn't have the energy. On the other hand, for forcing multi-colored daffodils, that's pretty typical, and it's possible the warmth at home was the issue. For seedlings, this soil would be perfect – it retains moisture, and the nutrients will last a month or two. There's no sign of rot – not a single bulb started to rot during the whole period. No pests in the soil, not even a single aphid. The soil doesn't compress too much, but it does compress, so yeah, I would've added some perlite, maybe a bit of coconut coir – it wouldn't have hurt.

Azbuka Rosta Potting Soil for Flowers and Houseplants – 5L I'd definitely recommend this soil – it's affordable, and it'll work great for seedlings. For indoor plants, it's okay, but you'll need to add something to it, like perlite and some other soil, because this one is mostly peat.

Thanks for reading, and happy shopping to all!