Jump to content

perlite alternatives


Recommended Posts

what can I use instead of that blasted white rubbish? I hate perlite, it gets everywhere washes out of substrates after a while and is a general pain in the posterior to use :ireful2:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Horticultural charcoal ? I'm going to try some of this stuff on a few test plants. Has anyone else tried this ?

 

I've added charcoal to Cephalotus mixes in the past - though I have no experience with that particular brand. Coincidentally, I ordered some orchid mix from them a couple of days ago. I see that they use rice husks as an alternative to perlite in some of their mixes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Coincidentally, I ordered some orchid mix from them a couple of days ago. I see that they use rice husks as an alternative to perlite in some of their mixes.

 

You've just jogged my memory ! I've recognised the seller now and i ordered a small bag of their Nepenthes mix to test last year, and 3 of my Neps are sitting in it doing great. It contains cocopeat, coconut husk charcoal, and rice husks, but i added my own sphagnum into it as i found it a little on the fine side by itself due to the rice husks. I already buy individual supplies of sphagnum, orchid bark, and perlite for making my own mixes, so i think i'm definately going to drop the perlite in favour of charcoal from now on. No more breathing perlite dust for me :smile:

So yeah Sam, i'd recommend it.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have also added charcoal to Ceph mixes in the past as they are naturally exposed to periodic burning of overhead shrubs and lower vegetation such as sedges. I suspect that it naturally forms part of the soil that they grow in.

Cheers,

Steve

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You've just jogged my memory ! I've recognised the seller now and i ordered a small bag of their Nepenthes mix to test last year, and 3 of my Neps are sitting in it doing great. It contains cocopeat, coconut husk charcoal, and rice husks, but i added my own sphagnum into it as i found it a little on the fine side by itself due to the rice husks. I already buy individual supplies of sphagnum, orchid bark, and perlite for making my own mixes, so i think i'm definately going to drop the perlite in favour of charcoal from now on. No more breathing perlite dust for me :smile:

So yeah Sam, i'd recommend it.

well, looks like charcoal and rice husk will be making an appearance in my mixes shortly then :D I really hate perlite- it's just so horrible to work with

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just make sure it's the horticultural grade stuff not the quick lighting stuff soaked in paraffin. CPs wouldn't like that at all. I'm now going to seek out bulkier bags of hort charcoal as I had bought small boxes before and there must be a seller out there on the interweb!

Cheers,

Stebe

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's the same product I was looking at on Amazon and similar prices too. I am guessing that will be a 20-40 litre sack (having googled the density at 240-480kg/m3).

Is there any risk of salt in coco-based charcoal as has been mentioned with the coir threads before?

Cheers,

Steve

Link to comment
Share on other sites

well, looks like charcoal and rice husk will be making an appearance in my mixes shortly then :D I really hate perlite- it's just so horrible to work with

This was the stuff i bought Sam if you want to give it a go.... http://stores.ebay.co.uk/E-Coco-Products-UK/_i.html?_nkw=nepenthes&submit=Search&_sid=1073460950

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Is there any risk of salt in coco-based charcoal as has been mentioned with the coir threads before?

Aparently not. This blurb is taken from their Nep mix......

"Our cocopeat has been matured for two years before processing. The first step is to remove excess fibres and then to wash it with FRESH WATER to reduce salt levels to below commercially accepted levels. Ours has an EC of <0.5 mS/cm which will stand any professional scrutiny. pH range is 5.8 to 6.5."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This was the stuff i bought Sam if you want to give it a go.... http://stores.ebay.co.uk/E-Coco-Products-UK/_i.html?_nkw=nepenthes&submit=Search&_sid=1073460950

brill, ta :l_sunny:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...