Soil & potting mix
Best soil for Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow (Brunfelsia pauciflora)
Also called Yesterday-today-and-tomorrow, Morning-noon-and-night, Kiss-me-quick, Lady-of-the-night, Franciscan rain tree.
More about yesterday-today-and-tomorrow
About Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow
Brunfelsia pauciflora · also called Yesterday-today-and-tomorrow, Morning-noon-and-night · flowering
Yesterday-today-and-tomorrow (Brunfelsia pauciflora) is an evergreen tropical shrub whose fragrant flowers fade from purple to lavender to white over three days. Give it bright, slightly filtered light, consistently moist acidic soil, warmth and high humidity. The ASPCA lists it as toxic to dogs, cats and horses, so keep it away from pets.
Preferred mix: Rich, well-draining, moisture-retentive acidic mix
Watch for — Yellowing leaves (iron chlorosis): Caused by soil that is too alkaline or hard tap water. Acidify the mix with peat, bark or pine needles and apply chelated iron; switch to rainwater or filtered water.
Why yesterday-today-and-tomorrow needs this mix
Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow is a Mediterranean dry-hillside plant — it wants a lean, sharply drained, slightly alkaline mix, and rots fast in rich, water-holding soil.
- Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow evolved on stony, sun-baked slopes — its roots expect to dry out hard and quickly between rains, so the mix must drain almost as fast as you pour.
- A lean, low-nutrient mix keeps growth firm and aromatic; a rich one gives soft, sappy, flavourless growth that flops and rots.
- It tolerates and often prefers a slightly alkaline soil, the opposite of most houseplants.
For the full picture on what makes up a good mix, see our guide to the main types of soil and potting media — it explains why each ingredient above behaves the way it does.
What goes wrong with the wrong mix
The wrong soil is one of the most common reasons yesterday-today-and-tomorrow struggles, and the damage often shows up weeks later as a watering problem. For this species specifically:
- Rich, moisture-holding compost is the classic killer of yesterday-today-and-tomorrow — especially over a cold, wet winter, when the base of the plant simply rots.
- A peaty, acidic potting mix is doubly wrong: too wet and the wrong pH direction.
- No grit means the rootball stays damp for days, which a dry-climate root system never copes with.
Growing yesterday-today-and-tomorrow in ordinary rich, moisture-retentive compost. Lean it out with at least a third grit, and never let it sit wet over winter.
pH — does it matter for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow?
Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow likes neutral to slightly alkaline soil, roughly pH 6.5-7.5. If your soil or compost is acidic, a little garden lime or extra grit nudges it the right way — the one common plant where you may add lime.
If you want to check or adjust it, the soil pH guide walks through testing and the safe ways to nudge a mix more acidic or more alkaline.
DIY mix vs a bagged one
Bagged "herb" or "Mediterranean" mixes are usually fine for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow, but most standard composts need cutting hard with grit. The DIY ratio above is cheap and exactly right.
Drainage and the pot
Sharp drainage is everything: a terracotta pot with a big hole, gritty mix and never a saucer left full. Raised beds suit these herbs outdoors for the same reason.
A gritty mix barely breaks down, so yesterday-today-and-tomorrow needs little repotting — refresh the top layer and the grit every couple of years rather than potting on aggressively. When the time comes, our repotting guide for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow covers the timing and technique step by step.
Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow soil — frequently asked questions
What is the best soil mix for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow?
2 parts standard peat-free compost or loam : 1 part coarse horticultural grit : 1 part perlite or coarse sand. Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow evolved on stony, sun-baked slopes — its roots expect to dry out hard and quickly between rains, so the mix must drain almost as fast as you pour.
Can I use normal potting soil for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow?
Rich, moisture-holding compost is the classic killer of yesterday-today-and-tomorrow — especially over a cold, wet winter, when the base of the plant simply rots. Bagged "herb" or "Mediterranean" mixes are usually fine for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow, but most standard composts need cutting hard with grit. The DIY ratio above is cheap and exactly right.
Does yesterday-today-and-tomorrow need a special pH?
Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow likes neutral to slightly alkaline soil, roughly pH 6.5-7.5. If your soil or compost is acidic, a little garden lime or extra grit nudges it the right way — the one common plant where you may add lime.
Should I buy a bagged mix or make my own for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow?
Bagged "herb" or "Mediterranean" mixes are usually fine for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow, but most standard composts need cutting hard with grit. The DIY ratio above is cheap and exactly right.
How often should I refresh the soil for yesterday-today-and-tomorrow?
A gritty mix barely breaks down, so yesterday-today-and-tomorrow needs little repotting — refresh the top layer and the grit every couple of years rather than potting on aggressively. Sharp drainage is everything: a terracotta pot with a big hole, gritty mix and never a saucer left full. Raised beds suit these herbs outdoors for the same reason.
Keep reading
- Yesterday-Today-and-Tomorrow care — the full brief (light, water, humidity, problems, pet safety)
- How often to water yesterday-today-and-tomorrow — the schedule the mix feeds into
- Repotting yesterday-today-and-tomorrow — when and how to refresh the mix
- Soil pH guide — test it and adjust it safely
- Overwatered plant — signs and recovery
- Root rot — how the wrong soil starts it, and how to save the plant
- Should I water my plant? The simple check first
- Best soil for peace lily
- Best soil for bird of paradise
- Best soil for hoya
- All 609 soil and potting-mix guides in the Growli library