How to Make Your Own Acidic Soil for Camellias and Gardenias to Prevent Yellow Leaves and Get Dozens of Blooms

My recent posts have kept recommending which flowers are suitable for growing in summer, or which flowers are suitable for summer cuttings. I almost overlooked the most important point: to grow flowers well, besides the right care techniques, soil is also very important. Today, Grandpa Flower is going to teach everyone how to make acidic soil at home. Taking advantage of the summer heat, homemade acidic soil will ferment faster, and it will be ready to use when repotting flowers in autumn.

Simple method for making acidic soil at home:

1. Collect some dried broad leaves or pine needles and the like. You can pick them up in parks, or gather some while escaping the heat in the mountains during summer.

2. Prepare a container for fermentation. First spread a layer of garden soil on the bottom, then a layer of fallen leaves, and repeat this several times until the top of the container is covered with soil and pressed firm.

Note: To avoid gas expansion during fermentation, do not fill it too full; leave some space at the top of the container.

3. Collect some rice-washing water and use it to soak the entire container thoroughly. If you do not have rice-washing water, you can also mix ferrous sulfate with clean water and pour it through to soak everything thoroughly.

4. After soaking, press it firm again, seal it with plastic wrap, and move it to a sunny spot to bake and ferment.

Given the current weather, fermentation will be complete in about 3 months. When using it, it is best to bake it in the sun once more to sterilize it, and then it can be used for planting flowers.

Homemade acidic soil is especially suitable for growing all kinds of acid-loving flowers, such as: gardenias, jasmine, camellias, azaleas, Aglaia odorata, and so on. It can prevent yellow leaves caused by unsuitable soil acidity in these flowers and help them produce more blooms.

Flower-loving gardeners can give it a try. Taking advantage of the summer heat, fermentation will be faster. Use it when repotting flowers in autumn, and it can make our plants grow more luxuriantly.