---
title: "Anyone have a solve for incredibly hydrophobic soil? I got a bag of…"
description: "Anyone have a solve for incredibly hydrophobic soil? I got a bag of tropical soil that is so hydrophobic and feels light as dust. Should I saturate it before…"
url: "https://getplanta.com/community/fQipaoQNS2SCTJGI4q9l9w/65b1de6cf3857c012cc6b203"
community: "Equipment & Materials"
author: "Rain"
published: "2024-01-25T04:07:08.66Z"
language: "en"
image: "https://images.getplanta.com/v2/cloudinary/global_data/communities/equipmentAndMaterials.jpg"
---

[Community](https://getplanta.com/community.md) / [Equipment \& Materials](https://getplanta.com/community/fQipaoQNS2SCTJGI4q9l9w.md)

# Anyone have a solve for incredibly hydrophobic soil? I got a bag of…

_Posted by Rain on 2024-01-25_

Anyone have a solve for incredibly hydrophobic soil? I got a bag of tropical soil that is so hydrophobic and feels light as dust. Should I saturate it before mixing into my main substrate or keep it dry until I use it?

## 6 comments

### exitJiraffe commented on 2024-01-25

Add some dish soap to the water when you water it, it helps re-bind the water to the soil.

#### Plant Father replied on 2024-01-25

please don’t use dish soap for plants! most brands are much too harsh. castile soap is a safer option

### Mullein commented on 2024-01-25

Sounds like peat moss lol. I usually keep my soil mixes dry until I use them, but that does require reconstituting them before potting

#### Mullein replied on 2024-01-25

I put the dry soil in a bucket with water to rehydrate before I get the rest of my potting supplies ready. It can be a bit of a balancing act to get it fully moistened without making it over-saturated. I don’t particularly like peat moss as a soil mix ingredient because it’s a pain to deal with hydrophobic soil after it’s potted in with a plant

#### Dave\_opuntiaface replied on 2024-02-04

WORD.

### Plant Father commented on 2024-01-25

is it peat based? if so, simply soaking the soil first should work, then mix with chunky amendments like coarse perlite, pumice, and orchid bark

---

_Source: the Planta community (https://getplanta.com). Reading is open to everyone. To post, comment and like, get the Planta app: https://getplanta.com/download_