It’s much easier to mix this if the garden soil you use is dry. If soil is damp, remove it from the garden and spread it out on newspaper in your home to dry overnight before mixing with the other ingredients.

An alternative to using garden soil is to use a cheap bag of all-purpose potting soil. This soil is usually just as good as or better than garden soil. Just add the peat and perlite for aeration.

For cactus plants or succulents, you may wish to add a little sand to this potting mix.