Instructions on Using Potting Soil in the Ground

Seeding a Lawn

• If your yard's poor soil is due to too much clay, sand, a nutrient imbalance or high salt content, use potting soil to start grass seedlings. The soil gives your grass a hospitable place to grow. Till the soil until the entire growing area is broken up and soft. Apply a layer of potting soil 2 to 4 inches deep on top of your tilled soil. Do not mix it into your ground's soil if you have soil with heavy clay, which can compact grass seeds into the ground. Mix the potting soil into the top 6 inches of the ground soil only if it blows away easily due to weather conditions or if you have soft soil. Spread the grass seed in the late summer or early fall for warm soil without harsh, hot conditions. Spread one-fourth of the seed at a time for best cover. Rake the sown seeds to push them just under the topsoil. Water well to establish growth.

Raised Beds

• Raised beds allow you to grow plants or crops in limited space or in a yard with poor soil. Enclosing the bed and using potting soil warms up the soil so you can sow seeds earlier in the season. It also drastically reduces weed and disease infestation. Weed and till the area where your bed will sit. Use any nontreated material to create a raised bed box. Shelving, old dresser drawers, corrugated steel and even piles of large rocks work well. Stabilize the bed by compacting soil around the side panels. Fill the bed with 2 to 4 inches of potting soil, then plant per care instructions, depending on your plants.

Vegetables

• You don't have to build raised beds for your vegetable garden. Simply find a suitable area in your yard that gets at least six hours of sun a day. Dig a hole twice as wide as the area you want the crops to grow in. Mix the ground soil with potting soil, and layer the hole with 2 inches of the mixture, then top it with three parts potting soil and one part organic compost. Grading the soil with a mixture, then with pure potting soil, allows the vegetables to root beyond the potting soil. Plant the seeds per care instructions, watering afterward.

Potting Soil Elements

• Quality potting soil provides plants with good drainage, adequate air circulation, support and storage for water and nutrients. Most potting soils have a mix of organic and inorganic materials, including dirt, peat moss, bark, sand, compost and vermiculite. The soil may be heated beforehand to kill weed seeds and microorganisms, and contain further ingredients designed to nourish a particular plant -- African violets, for instance. Though the soil has fertilizer in it, you need to apply more nutrients for your plants sometime after the initial application. Homemade compost works well, especially for edibles, because it doesn't contain harsh chemicals that can harm the soil, ground water, plants, animals and humans.