It’s easy to get rid of perlite dust if you put slits in the bottom of the bag and run a hose through it outside. Let it drain and that’s it. I actually prefer if it’s still slightly moist when I mix it with my ‘soilless’ mix. I can’t recommend rinsing any of the solid substrates in a sink. I worry they could cause clogs by depositing in pipes
What I did is go to forest. Find dead oak. Take bunch of oak bark and turn it into small pieces with axe or cleaver. Add it into soil mix similar to yours. I think aroids like to have some woody/bark pieces to grab onto.
Thanks for sharing your aroid substrate recipe with us! It turns out to be almost exactly the same mix I'm using. Although I'd like to add a few thoughts: one easy and convenient way to get matured bark, charcoal, coco coir and (some) perlite is to buy pre-made orchid substrate along with extra perlite and coco coir to rebalance the ratio to your liking. I'm new to aroids and this saved me quite a bit of money instead of buying whole bags of each and every ingredient (especially since I already had the coco and perlite). I also think you should look into making your own vermicompost since you seem to have a lot of success using it and have so many plants that benefit from it. Maintaining my bin is something that uses less than 5-10 minutes per week, it quickly recycles some of my food scraps and it's been a game changer in my gardening.
I'm doing something similar. I found a supplier of soilless cactus mix which is heavy in pumice, like half of the mix is pumice and the the other half are fine particles (coco peat, worm castings, carbonized rice hull). Then I add chunkiness by using coco cubes (substitute for orchid bark). End result is equal parts of fines, chunks, and pumice.
Yes, after some considerations from a cost/need perspective, decided to acquire some of the ingredients from pre-mixed bags. For instance, I found a good orchid mix that has charcoal included, with nice chunky bark pieces I like to use for my Aroids. Another standard mix from the same brand includes lime, mycorrhizae, slow-release fert, and so I just add xta perlite, maybe LECA balls if I have any. Another brand has a nice finer textured orchid mix, with slow release fert, which is perfect for some custom mixes I do up for certain plants, like Peperomia. I also keep a small compost in my wee woodland garden out my door that I have used in my mixes. It's actually one of my favourite things about the hobby, creating these bespoke mediums for each plant, and then watch it grow. 😊
Just found your channel and subd. Great content and enjoy the plant diversity. This video in particular is very timely as we just ventured into anthurium. Looking forward to viewing your library
Thank you for mentioning the fungus stuff because I was believing that all fungus is evil bad and was happily dumping fungicide on many of my plants (had issues with succulents dying for no apparent reasons and they were not overwatered it was clearly a fungus issue). Watching you from Tokyo, keep up the good work, your videos are very concise and to the point and very informative!! thank you.
Ahhhh amazing glad I could help and also thanks for the kind words it means a lot truly. So nice to know I have viewers in Japan, it is one of the places on the top of my visit lists. I have even done Japanese languages lessons for a couple of years, but now it's a bit rusty
@@Houseplantygoodness yes the variegation virus is (still) viral even here, two weeks ago a variegated tetrasperma seedling with just three palm-sized leaves on it was sold online @Yahoo auction for 10,000 sterling (1,590,000 yen) and a Var. Philodendron Ilsemanii adult plant for 1,453,998 yen. however I find Asplenium Fimbriata Variegata more beautiful than that. You should definitely come see Japan, maybe after the other virus is over, the government will offer discounts and campaigns to promote tourism again like they did last year when most of the hotel prices were 30%-50% off and you would even get $10 coupons to spend at the local stores (if you need help at that time please say something). Can't wait to get back to traveling either, the only big difference is that now instead of just 2 in total, I got 77 plant pots indoors and 65 pots outdoors and mastering their watering schedule, pests and light necessities is a nightmare, probably I can say goodbye to traveling abroad for 5-6 weeks at a time...
I also got that little "scoop" lately and I'm so in love with it and its really handy when I repot. Thx for your video, very interresting, I use also the same kind of chunky mix.
What type of fertilizer do you give your plants? The little colored pellets? The fner sand-type kind mixed into water? Or liquid maybe? After watching several of your videos and seeing how big, beautiful and lush your plants are, I would love to know the type and brand of fertilizer you use and how often you apply it. Thank you!
Hi. First, thanks for such full of information yet quite "simple" videos, definitely less is more!! Yours are ones of the few I can watch without my attention going somewhere else half way through! One question regarding the mix: how much (roughly) of each would you use? I use coir (6parts), perlite (2 parts), bark (2 parts) and worm castings (2 parts) as a base formula... Plants seem to like it so far (have reduced the coir from 7 to 6 parts though as felt it became too dense). Though sometimes I do take some amount of the castings and/or coir and add a bit more of perlite and/or bark if I feel that plant needs more aeration. Thanks again ☺ oh, climate is different by the way, talking about seaside North of Portugal, warmer temperatures than the UK on average. (Not the Algarve, which is quite warm)
Thank you so much for sharing the materials in your “soil” mix. If I use worm casting for indoor plants (aroids), would there be worms in the substrate at some point?
You can get the occasional worm egg. Had a baby worm wriggle out of one of my plants recently and can only have come from castings. Was quite a surprise!
@@mollusc3125 Thank for sharing your experience. I kind of suspected that it would happen 🙂 I love the result that worm castings gave to many of my plants, but I would quiver if that actually happens to me 😂
How easy/difficult to tell how moist this mix is? I find my moisture meter seems to really struggle with chunky mixes. It says stuff is dry even if I’ve just watered it. I’ve ended up overwatering things as a result.
I have the same question. I also drill a few small holes (maybe 1/6 of an inch) in various places in the sides of each of my pots to allow more oxygen to reach the roots. (None of my plants like to have "wet feet" for very long at all. I use plastic pots because terra cotta pots are a bit too heavy for the wire shelves in my greenhouse. The combination of using a chunky, airy potting mix plus the additional oxygen holes in the pots seems to confuse my moisture meter and I will get wildly different readings in different areas of the same pot, then when I re-check the same area moments later the reading doesn't match the reading I got just a few seconds before. Do you have any tips on how to get a reliable moisture reading in a Chunky aroid mix?
Hi , Thanks for sharing this formula , can I use this potting mix for developing root system from the cutting with aerial root of Philodendron or you would suggest using Sphagnum moss? Thanks Jeff
You could absolutely use this mix for succulents. All plants desire an aerated and well-draining substrate. This mix will take care of that. I use a very similar mix, but I reduce my coco peat slightly to 25% of the mix instead of 30%. That’s just my personal preference. Be aware if you reduce moisture-retentive ingredients like coco peat, you will need to water more often. The percentage of ingredients you use all depends on what kind of plant parent you are. I would say you are safe to use a mixture of 50/50 coco peat and perlite if you want to do a simple and basic mix. :)
I'm sorry but what is the ratio of all of these when mixed together? I actually use this same combo pretty much but there are so many different variables as far as the actual ratio to use
No worries, never usually done it with ratios I usually eyeball it, but if I had to put ratios to it. 30% coco coir, 30%perlite 30% orchid bark and the other 10% is made with the rest of the soil amendments. Hope that helps
I usually use perlite as well in my mix, but others I know swear by pumice because it’s more dense & doesn’t gather to the top like perlite does. More difficult to find & more expensive, but worth a look into.
@@Houseplantygoodness thats expensive 😳 well I guess its because we are in a tropical country. So my potting mix is more on coconut chips and some aged bark trees. Coconut is really cheap here so can br an alternative to the orchid barks 😅 its so interesting how potting mix and prices differs from around the world depending on resources available in each region. Althought just a question because some of my friends actually produce their own worm castings, is it also possible to do it from where you are or they have to be imported?
@@skyscraper7664 I think mine were imported via amazon from Germany 🤔🤔 But yeah always so different what the cost is in different countries. I am from Greece originally and there we use pumice stone a lot as it is so cheap. Here (in the uk) it is not
@@Houseplantygoodness yesss I also watch a video from USA about potting mix and talking about Pumice is more expensive than Perlites but here in Philippines perlites are like 4x the price of Pumice ahhh benefits of being in the Ring of Fire 😅
@@skyscraper7664 yep I get that too, we might not be in the ring if fire, but we still have a lot of volcanic rock, so it's cheap here too. Kumusta to the Philippines 🇵🇭 👋
A 50/50 mix of coco peat and perlite will suffice for most plants. :) You can add more perlite if you want, but be aware the more perlite you add, the quicker the substrate will dry out.
It’s easy to get rid of perlite dust if you put slits in the bottom of the bag and run a hose through it outside. Let it drain and that’s it. I actually prefer if it’s still slightly moist when I mix it with my ‘soilless’ mix. I can’t recommend rinsing any of the solid substrates in a sink. I worry they could cause clogs by depositing in pipes
I like you, you don't start with Wazzap like everyone else, and there's no hype. Nice and natural.
Ahhhhh thank you so much 😊 🙏🏻
What I did is go to forest. Find dead oak. Take bunch of oak bark and turn it into small pieces with axe or cleaver. Add it into soil mix similar to yours. I think aroids like to have some woody/bark pieces to grab onto.
Helpful video as I’m quite new to houseplants. The little scoop can be bought in sets of three and are usually sold as bonsai soil scoops.
I appreciate the emphasis you do that some ingredients have an environmental cost because they aren't renewable
I agree, it is important for people to know the environmental impacts that certain growing media have
Thanks for sharing your aroid substrate recipe with us! It turns out to be almost exactly the same mix I'm using. Although I'd like to add a few thoughts: one easy and convenient way to get matured bark, charcoal, coco coir and (some) perlite is to buy pre-made orchid substrate along with extra perlite and coco coir to rebalance the ratio to your liking. I'm new to aroids and this saved me quite a bit of money instead of buying whole bags of each and every ingredient (especially since I already had the coco and perlite).
I also think you should look into making your own vermicompost since you seem to have a lot of success using it and have so many plants that benefit from it. Maintaining my bin is something that uses less than 5-10 minutes per week, it quickly recycles some of my food scraps and it's been a game changer in my gardening.
I'm doing something similar. I found a supplier of soilless cactus mix which is heavy in pumice, like half of the mix is pumice and the the other half are fine particles (coco peat, worm castings, carbonized rice hull). Then I add chunkiness by using coco cubes (substitute for orchid bark).
End result is equal parts of fines, chunks, and pumice.
Yes, after some considerations from a cost/need perspective, decided to acquire some of the ingredients from pre-mixed bags. For instance, I found a good orchid mix that has charcoal included, with nice chunky bark pieces I like to use for my Aroids. Another standard mix from the same brand includes lime, mycorrhizae, slow-release fert, and so I just add xta perlite, maybe LECA balls if I have any. Another brand has a nice finer textured orchid mix, with slow release fert, which is perfect for some custom mixes I do up for certain plants, like Peperomia.
I also keep a small compost in my wee woodland garden out my door that I have used in my mixes.
It's actually one of my favourite things about the hobby, creating these bespoke mediums for each plant, and then watch it grow.
😊
Can you link the premade mix you use?
@@ginonymous can you put the link of the combined mix you use please?
@@FredTheFicusAndFriends can you put the link of your mix please?
Just found your channel and subd. Great content and enjoy the plant diversity. This video in particular is very timely as we just ventured into anthurium. Looking forward to viewing your library
Thank you for mentioning the fungus stuff because I was believing that all fungus is evil bad and was happily dumping fungicide on many of my plants (had issues with succulents dying for no apparent reasons and they were not overwatered it was clearly a fungus issue). Watching you from Tokyo, keep up the good work, your videos are very concise and to the point and very informative!! thank you.
Ahhhh amazing glad I could help and also thanks for the kind words it means a lot truly.
So nice to know I have viewers in Japan, it is one of the places on the top of my visit lists. I have even done Japanese languages lessons for a couple of years, but now it's a bit rusty
@@Houseplantygoodness yes the variegation virus is (still) viral even here, two weeks ago a variegated tetrasperma seedling with just three palm-sized leaves on it was sold online @Yahoo auction for 10,000 sterling (1,590,000 yen) and a Var. Philodendron Ilsemanii adult plant for 1,453,998 yen. however I find Asplenium Fimbriata Variegata more beautiful than that. You should definitely come see Japan, maybe after the other virus is over, the government will offer discounts and campaigns to promote tourism again like they did last year when most of the hotel prices were 30%-50% off and you would even get $10 coupons to spend at the local stores (if you need help at that time please say something). Can't wait to get back to traveling either, the only big difference is that now instead of just 2 in total, I got 77 plant pots indoors and 65 pots outdoors and mastering their watering schedule, pests and light necessities is a nightmare, probably I can say goodbye to traveling abroad for 5-6 weeks at a time...
I also got that little "scoop" lately and I'm so in love with it and its really handy when I repot.
Thx for your video, very interresting, I use also the same kind of chunky mix.
I love your channel. I’m a nouveau plant mom and you’ve helped me on my plant journey a lot!
I have so e antbruim phild an monsteras an the soil mix great for it coconut peatneed to wash they have salt in rhem
This was great. Should do more of these types of vids or something similar
Great video, can i ask if you are still using the same mix? Or have you changed your aroid mix in any way?
Love your videos. 😊
So helpful! Thank you so much
What type of fertilizer do you give your plants? The little colored pellets? The fner sand-type kind mixed into water? Or liquid maybe? After watching several of your videos and seeing how big, beautiful and lush your plants are, I would love to know the type and brand of fertilizer you use and how often you apply it. Thank you!
Hi. First, thanks for such full of information yet quite "simple" videos, definitely less is more!! Yours are ones of the few I can watch without my attention going somewhere else half way through!
One question regarding the mix: how much (roughly) of each would you use? I use coir (6parts), perlite (2 parts), bark (2 parts) and worm castings (2 parts) as a base formula... Plants seem to like it so far (have reduced the coir from 7 to 6 parts though as felt it became too dense). Though sometimes I do take some amount of the castings and/or coir and add a bit more of perlite and/or bark if I feel that plant needs more aeration. Thanks again ☺ oh, climate is different by the way, talking about seaside North of Portugal, warmer temperatures than the UK on average. (Not the Algarve, which is quite warm)
Thank you so much for sharing the materials in your “soil” mix. If I use worm casting for indoor plants (aroids), would there be worms in the substrate at some point?
No there isn't worms in it.. i add a bit to my soil..its a fertalzer
You can get the occasional worm egg. Had a baby worm wriggle out of one of my plants recently and can only have come from castings. Was quite a surprise!
@@mollusc3125 Thank for sharing your experience. I kind of suspected that it would happen 🙂 I love the result that worm castings gave to many of my plants, but I would quiver if that actually happens to me 😂
How easy/difficult to tell how moist this mix is? I find my moisture meter seems to really struggle with chunky mixes. It says stuff is dry even if I’ve just watered it. I’ve ended up overwatering things as a result.
I have the same question. I also drill a few small holes (maybe 1/6 of an inch) in various places in the sides of each of my pots to allow more oxygen to reach the roots. (None of my plants like to have "wet feet" for very long at all. I use plastic pots because terra cotta pots are a bit too heavy for the wire shelves in my greenhouse. The combination of using a chunky, airy potting mix plus the additional oxygen holes in the pots seems to confuse my moisture meter and I will get wildly different readings in different areas of the same pot, then when I re-check the same area moments later the reading doesn't match the reading I got just a few seconds before. Do you have any tips on how to get a reliable moisture reading in a Chunky aroid mix?
Hi , Thanks for sharing this formula , can I use this potting mix for developing root system from the cutting with aerial root of Philodendron or you would suggest using Sphagnum moss? Thanks Jeff
Yes, absolutely
Interesting video thank you. Think you would call it a soil scoop.
Isn't perlite volcanic glass and Pumice is volcanic rock?
I live in the tropics 99% humidity and 18 celsius dg to 28 Celsius dg. Should I use a different mix?
In my area we have no Coco coir but Coco Peat is available. Is it the same?
yep this is the same :)
Do you still use this same mixer?
Can I use this mix for succulent?
Regards
You could absolutely use this mix for succulents. All plants desire an aerated and well-draining substrate. This mix will take care of that. I use a very similar mix, but I reduce my coco peat slightly to 25% of the mix instead of 30%. That’s just my personal preference. Be aware if you reduce moisture-retentive ingredients like coco peat, you will need to water more often. The percentage of ingredients you use all depends on what kind of plant parent you are. I would say you are safe to use a mixture of 50/50 coco peat and perlite if you want to do a simple and basic mix. :)
Hi memo, i didn’t see you add regular potting mix? How do you compensate the lack of regular soil so that the plant gets nutrients?
I don't add regular soil, I add all the nutrients in via lgl fertiliser as it is easier to control.
Hi instead of worm castings can i give liquid fertilizer?
YEs that is completely fine too, just feed as normal for the plants needs and it will do well 😊
Hi what the name of the fungus mix?
Mycorrhizal Funghi :)
I'm sorry but what is the ratio of all of these when mixed together? I actually use this same combo pretty much but there are so many different variables as far as the actual ratio to use
No worries, never usually done it with ratios I usually eyeball it, but if I had to put ratios to it. 30% coco coir, 30%perlite 30% orchid bark and the other 10% is made with the rest of the soil amendments. Hope that helps
@@Houseplantygoodness got it thank you very much appreciate that!
I usually use perlite as well in my mix, but others I know swear by pumice because it’s more dense & doesn’t gather to the top like perlite does. More difficult to find & more expensive, but worth a look into.
I wonder how expensive worn casting is fron where you are. Worm casting is only 3dollars for 5kg from where I am
Wow that is super affordable. I think 1kg here was like 10 GBP 😱😬
@@Houseplantygoodness thats expensive 😳 well I guess its because we are in a tropical country. So my potting mix is more on coconut chips and some aged bark trees. Coconut is really cheap here so can br an alternative to the orchid barks 😅 its so interesting how potting mix and prices differs from around the world depending on resources available in each region.
Althought just a question because some of my friends actually produce their own worm castings, is it also possible to do it from where you are or they have to be imported?
@@skyscraper7664 I think mine were imported via amazon from Germany 🤔🤔
But yeah always so different what the cost is in different countries. I am from Greece originally and there we use pumice stone a lot as it is so cheap. Here (in the uk) it is not
@@Houseplantygoodness yesss I also watch a video from USA about potting mix and talking about Pumice is more expensive than Perlites but here in Philippines perlites are like 4x the price of Pumice ahhh benefits of being in the Ring of Fire 😅
@@skyscraper7664 yep I get that too, we might not be in the ring if fire, but we still have a lot of volcanic rock, so it's cheap here too. Kumusta to the Philippines 🇵🇭 👋
If I go for Coco peat and perlite
How much should I mix ?
A 50/50 mix of coco peat and perlite will suffice for most plants. :) You can add more perlite if you want, but be aware the more perlite you add, the quicker the substrate will dry out.
P