Question
Hello. My butterwort (Pinguicula moranensis) has grown pretty large the past two years and I plan on repotting them into a larger pot with fresh soil. I read the butterworts are odd because they prefer alkaline soil over acidic soil. I made together a mix of 1 part peat moss, 1 part perlite, and 1 part sand. However, as you probably know, the peat moss makes the soil acidic and it is not alkaline by any means. I've read online for ways to alkalize soil and all that it coming up is lime. However, my local garden center does not carry lime and the hardware stores around me only have big bags of it and I think it's a bit ridiculous to by such a big bag of lime and use only a tiny bit of it in for just a single pot. Are there any safe alternatives to lime that I could use to alkalize the soil for my butterworts? Thanks

Answer
Hi Victor,

Unfortunately, because of how lime is used in gardening, those 40 lb. sacks are about the only way it is sold.  We may start selling small quantities for Mexican Pings, but I don't know of any other safe alternatives to increasing the pH of the soil.  The good news is the stuff is cheap, you'll just have quite a bit.  Here's a smaller quantity I found online:  http://www.amazon.com/Grow-More-14120-Discontinued-Manufacturer/dp/B000KH2LDM

Good Growing!

Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.growcarnivorousplants.com