Sunshine® Advanced Growing Mix #4 – How It’s Made

Beginning with carefully selected ingredients and formulated by a team of professional horticulturists, the Sunshine Advanced #4 Growing Mix is made from high quality raw materials and provides an ideal growing mix for your indoor and outdoor growing needs.

The foundation of the growing mix is Canadian Sphagnum peat moss, sustainably harvested from carefully managed bogs in rural Canada. The peat moss is screened to remove large clumps and sticks and is blended with horticultural grade perlite and coir (a by-product of the coconut industry). Peat moss reduces the leaching of nutrients from the growing mix allowing them to release slowly over time. Perlite keeps air spaces open while coir combined with peat allows good water retention. This provides a balance of air and water that results in good root growth and the foundation for good stem and flower growth. Dolomitic lime, a starter organic fertilizer, mycorrhizae and an organic wetting agent are added to complete the mix. Lime adjusts the pH for optimum fertilizer availability; the starter organic fertilizer helps transplants establish; mycorrhizae assists in fertilizer uptake and the organic wetting agent helps peat moss absorb water better.The mix is created using state of the art production equipment. Peat is moved into the production plant using large front end loaders. Perlite ore is ‘popped’ at 1600o F (870o C) at many of our sites and compressed coir is expanded or ‘fluffed’ by adding water on site.

All of the raw materials are placed into dosing hoppers and, via computer control, are dispensed onto a conveyor belt per the specified formulation. The conveyor belt loads the mix into an angled blending drum and then out to another conveyor belt which moves the finished product to the packaging area. Using automatic packaging equipment, the mix is loaded into bags and compressed at an approximate 2:1 ratio. The bags are then placed on a pallet and stretch wrapped. Compressed mixes are popular since they are an efficient use of volume while still retaining all the beneficial attributes of the growing mix. Sunshine Advanced Mix #4 is available in 1 cf, 2.2 cf and 3.0 cf packages.

Quality control is an important part of what allows growers to achieve success with Sunshine Advanced #4. We check each raw material prior to use and we also check the finished growing mix. The science of growing good plants requires that the plants are grown in a mix that has the correct pH, EC as well as good air and water capacities.

Once Sunshine #4 Advanced is packaged, it is shipped to a store near you. Sun Gro takes pride in the entire development process of our products, and this ensures that our mixes will work well for you. In fact, if you purchase Sunshine Advanced and you are not completely satisfied, we will refund your money.

Sustainability is considered during all phases of the production process to ensure raw materials are used wisely and will remain available for future generations. For more information on Sun Gro’s commitment to sustainably, go to www.sungro.com.