Those Sansevueria are known to grow in anything, but if you love it and are a good mother I would give it a different mix, with pumice, so you can get air into its soil mix. Top soil, has a lot of nurtrition, but doesn't let air into it. It will pack down, You can use volcanic gravels, some coarse sand that has been washed, perlite, perhaps small river/stream rock but no peat moss, no childrens sand. Be very careful of watering when it is cold, I just stop. These plants have long life, and multiply rapidly and need room for the offsets. They don't die after flowering, but only flower on new growth. Mother plants continue to live to reproduce the young. Norma

Hi Eekim,
The reason the bag of top soil says not to use in containers is because it does not drain well enough for many potted plants. Sansevierias, too, like well-drained soils although they are more forgiving than most plants in this regard.

It is hard to know what you purchased as "organic potting soil". I would suggest you read the label to see if it gives you hints about what it designed to be used for. You could also ask the nursery what they recommend for Sansevieria.

I see you live in zone 10. Do you have pumice available there? We do not where I live and I find that peat works very well for me but it has to be mixed with about 1/3 perlite. Norma and I have a friendly disagreement about the use of peat, but we live in very different climates and I respect her opinion on the matter for her location. Again, ask your friendly nursery what they recommend. In zone 10, Sansevierias would likely live outside year around. Finally, I would take your bag of top soil and dump it in a low spot.

This is the soil I purchased for repotting a peace lily after I saw the bag said not for containers. I already used this for the sanseviera several weeks earlier before I realized it said that.

Will this work for my sanseviera? The sansevieria is currently in the soil that I purchased it with and the top soil is at the sides and bottom of the container where I repotted it. Can I just invert the pot and slide it out carefully and then replace the top soil with the soil depicted above?

Although I'm in zone 10, I'm intend to keep the plant indoors. I mainly purchased it, and later the peace lily, for their air purification qualities and because they are, supposedly, easy to maintain -- probably more so the sanseviera than the peace lily.

Man! Those ingredients read like some powerful stuff! I am amused at their "organic potting soil" label, and then they go on to say "not for containers". Duh. I think what they mean here is do not use a container that has no holes in the bottom - use a "flower pot" instead. I also noticed the label reads that it "provides for good drainage and resistance to compaction". That's good to hear! I think I also see "volcanic pumice stone, so that's good too. Tell you what, I would certainly try this stuff; make sure your pot has a hole, or holes, in the bottom. Water as you would other tropical plants in zone 10. You sound overly careful about the roots. I would just dump the old pot, and hose off all the surrounding soil to bare root and replant in your new soil and pot. Water sparingly and report back here in 3-4 months with your results. I hope you have a nice light spot in the house for best results.

There is a bit of confusion here. The soil above is what I purchased last weekend to repot my peace lily. I bought this specifically for repotting indoor plants.

The top soil that says not for containers is Miracle Grow of some sort that the previous tenant left in the yard. That is what my sansevieria is in right now.

Perhaps I am not "repotting" as I should. When I repot the plants I buy from the nursery, I take them out of the plastic pot and put them into a clay pot that is either bigger or roughly the same size and fill the bottom and sizes with necessary soil so that the top of the soil isn't halfway down.

I wasn't aware that I could remove the soil and expose all the roots. I was under the impression I would kill it if I did that.

If you decide to repot a plant you get from a nursery, there is little value in repotting with a pot the same size unless you don't like the original pot. Sansevieria rhizomes are very tough; you won't hurt them.

When you take the sans out of the pot it's in to replace the soil see if you can gently remove the top soil you added. If it's too compact, then run it under water to loosen it. The plant will be fine. Then add your organic potting soil to replant it.

Top soil is meant to be used outside. I use it to fill in holes in the yard and it dries like concrete! But it also allows grass to grow in it too. It's always good to have a bag of top soil on hand.