ham Posted December 20, 2017 Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 (edited) I only grow my dionaeas in dried sphagnum moss, i have not grown them in a peat mix yet. Just wondering which medium does the dionaea like more? Edit : Which mix does the dionaea grows faster in? I know they grow in peat mixes and sphagnum. I wonder which medium does the dionaea grows faster... Edited December 24, 2017 by ham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted December 20, 2017 Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 Most people grow them in a mix of peat and perlite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linuxman Posted December 20, 2017 Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 I've read where Dionaea like a mix of peat and sand. I've used this in the past but it is a very heavy and dense medium. Never had much luck with vfts either, maybe there's a connection? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werds Posted December 20, 2017 Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 I tried many different mixs, i find a mix of equal parts (peat+perlite+silica sand) a good choice. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted December 20, 2017 Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 They grow in quite sandy soils in the wild but it doesn’t work very well in our cold winters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ham Posted December 20, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 I am aware people grow dionaeas in peat mixes but i wonder if there is anyone here who experimented 2 dionaeas under same conditon but one with peat and another sphagnum moss. Could one dionaea grow faster? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ham Posted December 20, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 (edited) 1 hour ago, linuxman said: I've read where Dionaea like a mix of peat and sand. I've used this in the past but it is a very heavy and dense medium. Never had much luck with vfts either, maybe there's a connection? Yes it does seem like a really dense, perhaps it crushed your dionaea? Thats why i like using perlite as its very airy and even outs the heavy peat Edited December 20, 2017 by ham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ham Posted December 20, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 35 minutes ago, Alexis said: They grow in quite sandy soils in the wild but it doesn’t work very well in our cold winters Why do you say that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
werds Posted December 20, 2017 Report Share Posted December 20, 2017 48 minutes ago, ham said: I am aware people grow dionaeas in peat mixes but i wonder if there is anyone here who experimented 2 dionaeas under same conditon but one with peat and another sphagnum moss. Could one dionaea grow faster? Just peat it will compact Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsty Posted December 21, 2017 Report Share Posted December 21, 2017 I read a very interesting pictorial article from someone who visited the VFT habitat. He said they grew on sand with a layer of organic matter on top. So I emulated this, I used Kelkay RHS Grit sand (There's a thread here about this sand producing bubbles with acid, not a good sign! - ) with a 1 inch layer of moss peat on top. Here are the results after several months with Big Mouth and Red Dragon growing together... https://photos.app.goo.gl/gokZnU0IYI2dKAcl1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted December 21, 2017 Report Share Posted December 21, 2017 15 hours ago, ham said: Why do you say that? It supposedly compresses and creates a laggy cold environment they don't like. Or so I've heard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsty Posted December 21, 2017 Report Share Posted December 21, 2017 In general terms, sandy soil is one of the warmest. I'm pretty sure sand only compresses over geological time periods! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ham Posted December 21, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2017 5 hours ago, Alexis said: It supposedly compresses and creates a laggy cold environment they don't like. Or so I've heard I see, but i find it rather peculiar that many are still growing dionaeas in pieat mixes rather than sphagnum. I myself have a lot success growing them in just dried sphagnum though i cant really comment much in growing them from peat. However i have a friend who tried growing them in peat/sand mixes and it did not end will for her 1 hour ago, Karsty said: In general terms, sandy soil is one of the warmest. I'm pretty sure sand only compresses over geological time periods! i think the sandy soil will only compress much easily if it is always left dry, with constant overhead water im sure it wouldnt compress Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsty Posted December 21, 2017 Report Share Posted December 21, 2017 Ok folks, these are the facts about sand... 1) Sand does not compress 2) Sand is added to mixtures to open them up, and by and large it does. 3) Certain sands have a high content of very fine matter. When dry, it sets and forms a matrix. This is quickly softened again when it absorbs water. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali Baba Posted December 21, 2017 Report Share Posted December 21, 2017 I grow my Dionaeas in a 50/50 mix of peat and silver sand , and have done for about 20 years. They grow just fine Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted December 22, 2017 Report Share Posted December 22, 2017 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ada Posted December 22, 2017 Report Share Posted December 22, 2017 this old question again? we are in England, not America where they grow naturally. We grow them in a different set up,learn from many peoples years of experience, i don't want to be the one that says "told you so" in a year or two. ada 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ham Posted December 22, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 22, 2017 (edited) Sorry maybe because english is not my mother tongue, i was curious which medium the dionaea grows faster and likes i dont really get all replies above Also, i live in the tropics so my growing condition is totally different from countries who experience the 4 seasons. I do not give my plants dormancy and if they decide to go dormant, i leave them as it is and they return after a few months in temperatures of 25-33 degree celcius Edited December 24, 2017 by ham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsty Posted December 22, 2017 Report Share Posted December 22, 2017 8 hours ago, Alexis said: Hi Folks, In all fairness, these are the subjective experiences of sand, partly true, but maybe not 100% technically true. The thing about pots is that once you take a mix, and put it into a pot, the fact that it is now bounded by close physical boundaries makes it behave very, very differently to how it does in the ground. The first and main difference is the drainage becomes much worse, that's why we go to so much effort to counteract this and use things like perlite in abundance. You also get this thing called a perched water table, which is, in absolute terms, the zone above the water table, or the bottom of your pot, which is fully saturated but also contains air. The ground out in nature will have a continuous capillary and drainage effect all the way down to any distinctly different layer, whether it is a sudden change in substance, bedrock, or a water table. But in a pot all this happens right there at the edge of the soil ball, at the pot itself. You can help to prevent this by installing a good wick in the bottom of the pot to mimic extra depth of soil. The sand doesn't really actually compress, but the finer particles get washed down into the bottom of the pot, giving this "claggy" effect. I suppose these fine particles in the ground would get washed much further down into the soil profile so not cause a problem. But they stick together and may impede drainage and air exchange. I saw some amazing videos on YouTube showing how drainage either works or is impeded in soil/compost profiles. If you like I can dig them up? Karsty. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pirks Posted December 23, 2017 Report Share Posted December 23, 2017 6 hours ago, Karsty said: Hi Folks, In all fairness, these are the subjective experiences of sand, partly true, but maybe not 100% technically true. The thing about pots is that once you take a mix, and put it into a pot, the fact that it is now bounded by close physical boundaries makes it behave very, very differently to how it does in the ground. The first and main difference is the drainage becomes much worse, that's why we go to so much effort to counteract this and use things like perlite in abundance. You also get this thing called a perched water table, which is, in absolute terms, the zone above the water table, or the bottom of your pot, which is fully saturated but also contains air. The ground out in nature will have a continuous capillary and drainage effect all the way down to any distinctly different layer, whether it is a sudden change in substance, bedrock, or a water table. But in a pot all this happens right there at the edge of the soil ball, at the pot itself. You can help to prevent this by installing a good wick in the bottom of the pot to mimic extra depth of soil. The sand doesn't really actually compress, but the finer particles get washed down into the bottom of the pot, giving this "claggy" effect. I suppose these fine particles in the ground would get washed much further down into the soil profile so not cause a problem. But they stick together and may impede drainage and air exchange. I saw some amazing videos on YouTube showing how drainage either works or is impeded in soil/compost profiles. If you like I can dig them up? Karsty. If you wouldn't mind yes that'd be cool and interesting thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsty Posted December 23, 2017 Report Share Posted December 23, 2017 (edited) Here you go... Here's a more technical one... Edited December 23, 2017 by Karsty 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pirks Posted December 23, 2017 Report Share Posted December 23, 2017 Cheers for those two, interesting watching. You learn something new every day Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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