If you're talking about Cypress mulch then those little bugs are springtails. Those are great for organic matter breakdown. I agree with soil having natural enzymes to break things down. I would be more on the side where starting from a neutral soil (coco coir, eco earth) and adding only what you want would be a good way to go about it. Not sure what you mean by not having good experiences with eco earth. It's basically as sterile and devoid of nutrition for plants to begin with.

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