my flowers are growing in what I’ve noticed is very compact soil. i’ve grown violas, benjamin blue buttons, and calendulas for a few months in there. Is it bad that the soil is very compact in their planters? They’re doing fine so I don’t want to fix it if it isn’t broken, but just trying to be proactive in case it does become a problem or they could do better.
Definite maybe.
I mean the real question is what are the issues with compacted soil, which basically makes it hard to water them specially in containers. But if how you are doing your watering is working well that’s that, you personality don’t have an issue.
It can’t be rock hard, is not like you use your pots as stepping stones, right? But it would seem to indicate low organic content which keeps it fluffy and able to retain more nutrients. Then again if you fertilize on a regular basis the soil doesn’t need to hold that much.
Moving forward next time use better soil.
This is the soil, is it good or bad?
What can be said for certain is that it is expensive 
It is basically potting soil with a smidge of Miracle-Gro fertilizer (usually mixed 1 teaspoon to a gallon of water so that should tell you how much) with probably vermiculite for that minty fresh ‘water conserve’ claim.
It would certainly work. I have a visceral dislike to premixed potting soils because dirt is the beginning of planting; people should know dirt like they know everything else there is to know about their plants. Making a ‘potting mix’ is not hard and you get to have a close and personal relationship with the medium that will host your plant.
You start with dirt. It could be clay, it could be sand, it could be something in between. Good old dirt is the basis for your soil. It comes with some starter organisms that creates the soil ecosystem, because you need to think of it as a host for life, plant and everything else in there. Then you add a ton of organic material, ideally in the form of well composted stuff. If you don’t have compost (shame on you) you can use coconut coir or if not bothered by the moral implications peat moss. It will stay fluffy, it will drain well, it will hold water, it will host organisms, and it will hold onto the fertilizer you apply here and there. How much? Heck go crazy, at least 50%. To that I like adding vermiculite, it retains water which is more crucial for a potted plant. You could throw some perlite (noting gives you ‘the look’ of potting soil like perlite) but if you did 50% organic material, you won’t need anything to help drainage.
To summarize; 50% dirt, 50% organic for drainage/water retention/fertilizer retention/critters/fluffy factor. Then read about the difference between vermiculite and perlite (spoiler; one holds onto water, one helps drain water, both enhance the environment for living organisms in the soil).
Where did the planter soil come from originally?
Was it in-ground soil placed in the planter?
What are the dimensions of the planter(s)?
Did the “soil” shrink?
most potting mixes are peat based. And depending on the quality/grade if peat dries out, it shrinks/ gets hard. That’s not ideal for plants.
If you have a peat based medium. You usually want to keep it at least moist. Never let it fully dry.
You can also mix it together with other things. I personally prefer perlite for potted plants. i mix roughly 50% perlite and 50% potting soil/compost. If you have enough perlite (and the larger grain ~6mm) it’s almost impossible to overwater. Since it aerates the growing medium, and provides excellent drainage. So this makes it easier to keep the peat moist, and never let it dry out.
The perlite itself does little for keeping nutrients and water. So i usually go up a pot size when using the mix.
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