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by Carl Anderson
Updated on Jul 9, 2023
Looking for the best soil for your money trees? We've streamlined your search by rigorously testing the finest soil mixes designed for these plants. Our team embarked on a detailed evaluation, focusing on bag weight, ingredient quality, soil texture, and effectiveness in promoting money tree health and growth. We subjected various soils to intensive testing, observing their impact on the trees' vitality. Our analysis, condensed into several weeks, revealed which soils provide optimal growth conditions, identifying top-performing blends that boost the health of money trees significantly. These standout soils not only excelled in our tests but also outperformed standard mixes, ensuring vigorous growth.
Looking for other gardening supplies? Be sure to check out our best fertilizer lists for different trees. In addition, we've tested the best drip irrigation supplies, water sprinklers, and we ranked some of the best chainsaws for cutting trees. We also investigated some of mini chainsaws more suitable to tree trimming jobs around the house.
Editor's Note: We updated our money tree soil review on March 3, 2024, to include alternative options for great soil.
The Rio Hamza Trading Money Tree Soil is perfect for planting and repotting money trees into your favorite containers. The 4-quart bag is enough for one or two medium-sized money trees but it comes in larger sizes if needed.
Gardenera Money tree soil is a family-made soil right in the heart of the USA. It's formulated to give the money tree leaves a nice shine to them, and to promote root growth so you can have a money tree indoors quickly and healthy.
The professional Money Tree Soil from Leaves and Soul is a smooth blend of peat moss, coco coir, perlite, and dolomite to give your Money Tree's needed nutrients and drainage. We like that it was formulated for optimum drainage to prevent overwatering.
The Birch Tree Money potting mix is another good pick for Money Tree soil, and it's one of the best-draining formulations out there. It's made of high-quality, all-natural horticultural ingredients a Money Tree needs to grow successfully in a pot.
This light and fluffy blend of pH-balanced soil from Jessi Mae is another great option for Money Tree soil. It's unique in that is hand mixed soil in smaller batches to combat things like root rot.
Happy Frog is by far and away one of the most beloved potting soils in the game. You can use it for a variety of different plants. Even though it's not specifically formulated for money trees, we believe this is a good option for your money tree.
Rio Hamza Trading Money Tree Soil - The best soil for money trees hands down. The formulation is designed to give your money tree healthy roots. Check it out here.
Things to Consider Before Buying
Drainage
Money tree normally grows in tropical, humid areas. They are happy with moist roots but not soaked roots. If the roots are too wet, they will begin to rot. What does that mean? It means you need to have good drainage. Think loose soils. Something that is sandy or made of pleat. The soil needs to retain moisture but not be overly wet. Not only that but your potting plant will need a good drainage hole on the bottom.
pH/Nutrients
As we said above, the ideal pH for money tree soil is slightly acidic. That comes in at about 6 to 7.5 pH, just below neutral. Money trees thrive in slightly acidic pH. Their roots absorb nutrients far easier at this level.
When it comes to nutrients, you need to be cautious of the NPK ratio. Typically, we cover this in our fertilizer posts, but N is nitrogen, P is phosphorous, and K is potassium.
Ingredients
Potting trees requires potting soil that drains well. And that goes double for money trees. You want a well-draining soil. Typical ingredients include things like horticultural charcoal, perlite, pebbles and sand. On top of that, you want the soil mix to be slightly acidic. Moss ingredients tend to make soils more acidic. If you aren't fan of moss, consider using something more sustainable like coconut fiber.
Cost
Cost is a factor for some people. However, most potting soil is relatively inexpensive. The majority of people should be able to accomplish their money tree goals with the list below however, we do have listed one of the best soil for money trees on a budget.
Specifications
The Rio Hamza Trading Money Tree Soil is perfect for planting and repotting money trees into your favorite containers. The 4-quart bag is enough for one or two medium-sized money trees but it comes in larger sizes if needed.
Some of the ingredients include perlite, peat, and bark nuggets which are great for getting that well-draining soil that is slightly acidic. The ingredients even include worm castings for added nutrients to enrich the soil and money tree health. The bag is not resealable but with a simple clip from the local store, you should be able to close the bag easily to keep it fresh for future money plants.
Specifications
Gardenera Money tree soil is a family-made soil right in the heart of the USA. It's formulated to give the money tree leaves a nice shine to them, and to promote root growth so you can have a money tree indoors quickly and healthy. It's designed to be a well-draining soil so that you don't have to worry about any rot.
Specifications
The professional Money Tree Soil from Leaves and Soul is a smooth blend of peat moss, coco coir, perlite, and dolomite to give your Money Tree's needed nutrients and drainage. We like that it was formulated for optimum drainage to prevent overwatering. Meets the watering needs without overdoing it. It maximizes nutrient absorption for Money Trees and Malabar Chestnut, Guiana Chestnut, Saba Nut or any Pachira Aquaticasplant.
Specifications
The Birch Tree Money potting mix is another good pick for Money Tree soil and it's one of the best draining formulations out there. It's made of high-quality, all-natural horticultural ingredients a Money Tree needs to grow successfully in a pot. We like it because its a peat based mixture that allows for great drainage which combined with drainage holes is perfect for preventing root rot of your money tree.
Specifications
This light and fluffy blend of pH-balanced soil from Jessi Mae is another great option for Money Tree soil. It's unique in that is hand mixed soil in smaller batches to combat things like root rot. It's also unique in that in comes in a slick black bag. It is 100% chemical free according to Jessi Mae which makes it excellent for root development and for growing a healthy money tree.
Specifications
Bag Weight: 12 Quarts
Ingredients: Forest humus, sphagnum peat moss, perlite, earthworm castings, bat guano, humic acid oyster shell, and dolomite lime
Happy Frog is by far and away one of the most beloved potting soils in the game. You can use it for a variety of different plants. Even though it's not specifically formulated for money trees, we do believe this is a good option for your money tree. The nutrient-rich ingredient list is ideal for your plants.
The NPK ratio for Happy Frog is 0.3, 0.3, and 0.5. This is good for both indoor and outdoor plants. The microbes and mycorrhizal fungi are excellent for both root development and the prevention of mold in the soil that could rot out your roots.
Given everything above, our favorite pick is actually Happy Frog. Happy Frog potting soil is a reputable brand with years of success for all different types of indoor plants. It may not be the best overall, but it is a bit more well-rounded than the best overall with a larger bag at a lower cost. This potting mix is one of the highest-rated and most-bought soils on the market because it comes from a reputable brand and has repeatable success. If you are looking for a potting soil with wide variety and range of use, then you want Happy Frog's potting mix.
Picking the wrong soil mix for your money tree plants can harm the money tree's health. Money plants thrive in well-draining soil without too much moisture. When it comes to acidic and alkaline soils, you want to go for a slightly acidic soil mix. Look out for those tips and you are well on your way to getting a happy and healthy money tree plant.
Remember, the four most important things to consider are:
You need soil that is well-drained with a slightly acidic pH. You need soil with ingredients that contribute to the money tree's nutrition while ensuring it is well-drained. It's not easy to get all these into one potting mix formula, but it is possible. Of course, cost is also a factor when it comes to anything. You don't want to break the bank on your money plants.
Epsom salt for money trees? Coffee grounds?! Some of these have nutrients a money tree could use but we recommend you stick to a soil that has everything your money tree needs. Otherwise you are just piecing together random ingredients.
We have never used coffee grounds on money trees so we don't know that answer!
Miracle-Gro soil is good for money trees. We didn't cover it here because we wanted to cover money tree soil that was specifically formulated for money trees.
Yes, you can use a cactus soil mix for a money tree. Be sure it adheres to what we outlined above, and your money tree should be fine.
That's all there is to say about that! Picking out the right soil is only the first step in tree care. There is other things you need to consider as well. If you have a garden outdoors, consider some drip irrigation for trees. Then you can water your tree or garden with relative ease.
Money Trees are one of the easiest indoor house trees to grow. If you are looking for something more challenging, consider planting a mandarin tree outdoors, or may even a pluot tree.
Carl Anderson is the main author of Sweet New Earth. He is an avid outdoors enthusiast who loves gardening. He spends his time reading, hiking and learning about new ways to optimize his garden. You can learn more about him here.
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