Potting soil!

Does anyone know of any resources that talk about DIY potting soil?

Not, "purchase large bags of unsustainable materials created through energy intensive processes and shipped long distances, then mix them in X proportions" DIY potting soil. Which is the ONLY kind I seem to be able to find now that searching is borked.

I mean, are there recipes, methods of composting, techniques to PRODUCE stuff with the proper characteristics?

At the community garden we've been sifting what's small enough out of the compost heap and just kinda using that, but comparing the results to what's happening at the school farm greenhouse with fresh bags of commercial stuff is a pretty stark example of how important it is to have a proper potting mix, if you want cuttings to successfully take, or for seedlings to germinate well.

Peat moss is NOT sustainable yet everyone still seems to be using it, even people who really should know better. Almost all the online tutorials list it first thing. The alternatives most commonly mentioned are coco coir and rice hulls, which are better but if a person doesn't have access to supplies of that type, what's the solution? What do we grow and how do we break it down to the consistency we want?

Then there's the ubiquity of perlite and vermiculite (both of which have to be mined and then baked in industrial ovens, and both of which are not renewable resources). Perlite crumbles to sand so darned fast, too. And you don't want to breathe the powder kicked up when you dig in it.

There's got to be other ways to do this.

#compost
#pottingSoil
#pottingMix
#sustainable
#renewable
#DIY
#gardening