check my math/HOW much soil??

I apologize in advance if this has already been answered. I couldn't find it in the FAQ and a search didn't readily uncover much.

I'm trying to work up my budget for next year's grow (my first) and since soil is going to be one of the first things I will need to buy, I'm working on that first. (already ordered seeds)

I will be growing outside, guerrilla, but the soil here is awful, so I was planning on digging 2x2' holes and refilling with organic soil. But the numbers just seem out of whack and I was wondering if somebody could check my work and see if/where I went wrong.

Right now I am planning on 15 plants.
V=pi(r2)h gives me a volume of 6.28 f3 per hole x 15 holes = 94 cubic feet of soil.
I was hoping to go with Roots Organic soil based on recommendations from other threads. Given an approximate price of $30 for a 1.5 ft3 bag, this gives me a total cost of almost $1900!

Do you guys really spend this much on soil? I mean, I understand the importance of starting with a quality grow medium but holy crap! That's over $125 per plant for DIRT. Did I go wrong somewhere or do I need to seriously rethink this?

Thanks in advance, gents.

Holy hell, that dirt better have gold in it.

Your math is right. That is a lot of money, but look at it this way, each one of those plants should yield at least a pound if you use Roots paying for itself over 14 times if all 15 harvest. If thats still too much to invest, perhaps you should consider scaling you plans down to fit your budget.

Your math looks good.

I grow veggies outside and usually make several trips in the spring to get soil.
I would instead order 4 cu yds of a promix from a local supplier. It would be around $150 delivered here. Or drive a truck up there and get a yard at a time until you have enough.
Then I would amend it myself with whatever I want. (manure, bone meal, lime etc) Can't see myself paying that much for soil.
If you just gotta have it though, I'm sure you could find a pallet price somewhere.

I agree. You can amend the soil yourself with worm casting, guano, alfafa meal, kelp, green sand, crushed oyster shell, etc. and have the same mix. Do it in advance and let the ingredients break down and do their thing.

thanks for the help. haha i was really hoping you guys would just be like, "no dumbass, you forgot to carry the 6" or something.
could i get by with some generic stuff like this:
http://www.homedepot.com/Outdoors-Garden-Center-Landscape-Supplies-Soil-Soil-Amendments-Soils/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbx76/R-202033808/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
by amending it myself? Being my first go at this, I'm probably going to make enough mistakes that I guess don't really need the Ferrari of potting soils, but I don't want to go so cheap that it becomes a hindrance, either. The soil here is a mix of sand and clay, so almost anything would be an improvement I guess.

SdY183 said:

thanks for the help. haha i was really hoping you guys would just be like, "no dumbass, you forgot to carry the 6" or something.
could i get by with some generic stuff like this:
http://www.homedepot.com/Outdoors-Garden-Center-Landscape-Supplies-Soil-Soil-Amendments-Soils/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbx76/R-202033808/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
by amending it myself? Being my first go at this, I'm probably going to make enough mistakes that I guess don't really need the Ferrari of potting soils, but I don't want to go so cheap that it becomes a hindrance, either. The soil here is a mix of sand and clay, so almost anything would be an improvement I guess.

Click to expand...

Hey brother. Spend twenty three bucks and get Jorge's Bible. There is loads of info there on indoor, outdoor growing.

I have it. Guess I'll have to go back through it again.

EDIT: reread the chapter on soil. more confused than ever. he says to use good potting soil, but not how to tell which ones are good, and that it may have to be amended, but not how to tell with what or by how much. I know a lot of this comes with experience. I'm just trying to figure out a simple and cost effective way to get my foot in the door. The more I learn about this, the more I begin to understand how much about gardening I still don't know and it's getting a bit overwhelming. I hate feeling like an idiot.

Don't take this the wrong way, though. I really appreciate all the help The people on this site have been amazing with putting up with my stupid noob questions and getting me up to speed on this great art.