Miracle-Gro Organic™ Faces the Competition

Organic growing reaps plenty of rewards. That said, it often feels like hard work, especially if the organic gardening products you’re using aren’t doing much, if anything, for your plants. 

At Miracle-Gro, we believe gardeners deserve better, so we crafted our own organic soils and plant foods for successful organic growing at an attainable price point. After meeting our own rigorous standards, our plant scientists in Research & Development put our new organic products up against the competition to see how we measure up. What did we learn? Miracle-Gro Organic™ delivers amazing results that will make a big difference in your garden.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves (hint: we are REALLY excited about these results!). Let us walk you through our journey to proving how incredible growing with Miracle-Gro Organic™ is.

Getting into the Science of Growing

Determining how we measured up to the competition required some serious science. We’re giving you a behind-the-scenes look into our trial methods, all so you can have confidence that we gave ourselves and our competitors a fair chance. 

To find our top competitors, our Research & Development Team used market share data to determine the leaders in four categories: organic in-ground soil, organic raised bed soil, organic liquid plant food, and organic granular plant food. They put our Miracle-Gro Organic™ Raised Bed & Garden Soil up against the two top competitors in each organic soil category, and our Miracle-Gro Organic™ Plant Food (liquid concentrate) and Miracle-Gro Organic™ All Purpose Plant Food (granules) against the top three competitors in their respective categories.

Once our plant scientists had products for testing, they got to growing. Over a 10-week period, our team studied over 600 plants spanning 103 raised beds, 252 containers, and 6 in-ground rows.

Setting Up for Success

The R&D Team had the big task of making sure that the test was conducted in a way that generated fair and accurate results. This included making sure that all the plants had the same growing environment, as well as limiting factors that might impact plant or product performance. Here’s a few of the steps they took during the trial:

• Following label directions — Our plant scientists took the advice we always give gardeners: follow the directions. For each product, both ours and our competitors’, the team followed the instructions provided on the label for planting or use.
• Sourcing product from multiple locations or lots — To account for variability that can happen in products (by region, for example), the team sourced multiples of each product from different locations or manufacturing lots.
• Maintaining consistent environmental conditions — All the plants for each trial were maintained outdoors and grown in the same light and weather conditions.
• Watering the plants — The team employed proper irrigation techniques to give plants in each category the same amount of water.
• Keeping bugs away — The team applied pest control products as needed across all plants to keep insects from eating our test subjects and affecting results

In-Ground Trial

Our Product: Miracle-Gro Organic™ Raised Bed & Garden Soil

Plants used: Petunia “Pretty Grand Rose” and Jalapeno Pepper “Jalafuego”

The set-up: At our facility, the R&D Team created a level outdoor garden area with 4 x 100 ft. plant rows, each separated by turf grasses. They then amended the native soil by mixing fresh organic soil according to label directions before planting. The plant rows received full sun and no shade cover. To prevent weeds, the team installed weed fabric and covered it with a thin layer of mulch. For each 4 x 6 ft. planting area, they transplanted two petunia plants and two jalapeno pepper plants.

During the trial: Our team let the plants grow without adding any fertilizer to the plants (aside from what’s already native to the soils). To judge performance, the team took regular measurements including plant growth, foliar tone (how green the plants were), and pepper yields.

Raised Bed Trial

Our Product: Miracle-Gro Organic™ Raised Bed & Garden Soil

Plants used: Petunia “Pretty Grand Rose” and Pepper “Lunchbox”

The set-up: Our plant scientists constructed 2 x 2 x 1 ft. raised bed boxes in an outdoor garden area atop a black ground cloth. For consistent conditions, the entire garden received full sun and no shade cover. Each box contained one petunia plant and one pepper plant.

During the trial: The team watched the plants grow. Like in the in-ground trial, no additional fertilizers were added to the beds to focus the test on the soil. Our plant scientists studied performance using measurements including plant growth, foliar tone (how green the plants were), and pepper yields throughout the trial.

Container Trials

Our Products: Miracle-Gro Organic™ Plant Food (liquid concentrate), Miracle-Gro Organic™ All Purpose Plant Food (granules)

Plants used: Jalapeno Pepper “Jalafuego” and Basil “Bonnie Sweet Basil”

The set-up: Both liquid concentrate and granular plant food trials followed the same set-up and procedures. The team set up an outdoor garden with a black ground cloth covering the soil. Plastic plant pots sat on top of the cloth with full sun and minimal shade protection in the morning. Each pot contained one basil plant or one pepper plant.

During the trial: Our plant scientists followed label directions for each product, applying the amount of product required at the frequency instructed. They took regular measurements including plant growth, foliar tone (how green the plants were), pepper yields, and fresh basil harvest weight.

Wins for Miracle-Gro Organics™

Research is hard work! It’s also pretty rewarding. Our amazing plant scientists in Research & Development did a lot of growing and collected a lot of data. That data was clear: Miracle-Gro Organic™ delivered amazing results in every category.

Our Champion of Garden Soil

Miracle-Gro Organic™ Raised Bed & Garden Soil blew the competition away. Our soil grew bigger, greener plants with more blooms and veggies than both the two in-ground and two raised bed competitors*. But don’t take our word for it. See the results for yourself:

How did our soil achieve such incredible results? High quality ingredients, of course! Historical research conducted here at Miracle-Gro shows the importance of appropriately aged ingredients in organic products. Insufficiently aged ingredients can actually steal nutrients in the soil! Our plant scientists worked hard when building the formula to ensure that the natural fertilizer in Miracle-Gro Organic™ Raised Bed & Garden Soil goes to your plants.

A Bountiful Harvest in Liquid Plant Food

In the liquid plant food category, Miracle-Gro Organic™ Plant Food also outclassed the competition. Plants fed with our organic liquid plant food produced more peppers and more basil harvest vs. two of the top competitors* in its category. Made with 94% plant-based fertilizer ingredients, our liquid plant food is great for both indoor and outdoor gardens. 

With plant food, it’s all about having the proper amount of nutrients applied at the correct frequency. The nutrient rate in Miracle-Gro Organic™ Plant Food ensures your plants get the right amount of nutrients—just remember to follow label directions!

Big Results for Granular Plant Food

Our granular plant food, Miracle-Gro Organic™ All Purpose Plant Food, sealed our victory, yielding bigger and greener pepper plants vs. two leading competitors*. Not surprising, as our plant food feeds for up to 3 months, and contains nutrients to help build strong roots.

Reaping the Rewards

Our Research & Development Team was pretty amazed: these results were incredible! With all this impressive data, we can confidently say that Miracle-Gro Organic™ is a great choice for your garden. 

So, whether you’re just starting your organic garden or you’ve tried other products that didn’t work, give Miracle-Gro Organic™ a try. You’ll see just how stunning your plants can be.

*Market share data from Yipit [Fall/Spring] 2024/4