Profile Products says the plant on the left was grown in a mix of 50 percent Profile Lawn & Landscape Porous Ceramic Soil Conditioner and 50 percent potting soil, while the plant on the right was grown in 100 percent potting soil.Photo: Profile Products
When Profile Products’ brand manager, Jeff Langner, talks about the company’s latest offering – Profile Lawn & Landscape Porous Ceramic Soil Conditioner – he’s well prepared to cite a long list of its advantages over organic competitors. In the end, though, Langner says, the best way to judge the product is to see it work.
After all, it’s not difficult to stage such a test using plants in containers. Use Profile Lawn & Landscape in one container and don’t use it in the other, and then see which plant does better.
“With the Lawn & Landscape product,” Langner said, “we’re focused on what is taking place down in the soil.”
The ceramic conditioner ensures that whether the soil is sandy or mostly clay, its ability to make the most of water and oxygen will be improved significantly and, if not permanently, for years on end with the addition of Profile Lawn & Landscape.
That longevity is one major difference between the Profile product and organic amendments, Langner says, adding: “Something like peat breaks down over time, and as it does, it clogs up the pore space.”
Examine a single bead of the ceramic material from Profile Products and nearly three-quarters of it will be comprised of internal pore space, he said. While those pores ensure that soil conditions allow for oxygen and water to circulate, the material itself acts as a tiny sponge to hold water, releasing it as the surrounding soil becomes drier.
Profile Products says the material holds its weight in water.
“You’re creating that balance of air and moisture in the root-zone mix on a permanent basis,” Langner said.
Most soil amendments focus on moisture management, he said, but a process that may begin well with organic conditioners is going to end badly. “Once they break down,” he said of the organic variety, “things are going to clog up.”
With Profile Lawn & Landscape, the breakdown never happens. Moreover, Langner said, the porous ceramic soil conditioner doesn’t just help retain moisture; it also aids drainage of saturated soils, lessening the chance of root rot.
The company sells Profile Lawn & Landscape in 50-pound bags and by the truckload.
