---
title: "I’ve just started getting a more “rare” collection and was wondering…"
description: "I’ve just started getting a more “rare” collection and was wondering what everyone’s thoughts on leca was? Is it worth it or should I just spend the money on a…"
url: "https://getplanta.com/community/lZ7uAE3pQ86jnFGxrCwLrg/64e36ac27a2aec9a94baddcf"
community: "Anything about plants"
author: "Rachael Young"
published: "2023-08-21T13:46:42.627Z"
language: "en"
image: "https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/jWoXA6Tc3h2Z8hJwqiFDTYJVNiOLAssYiPF9A2GbEQ0/90c1f0ebc76c458ea77375654421f2d2.webp?size=large"
---

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# I’ve just started getting a more “rare” collection and was wondering…

_Posted by Rachael Young on 2023-08-21_

I’ve just started getting a more “rare” collection and was wondering what everyone’s thoughts on leca was? Is it worth it or should I just spend the money on a good mixture of soils for all of them? Thanks in advance for your input!

![Attachment 1 of 1](https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/jWoXA6Tc3h2Z8hJwqiFDTYJVNiOLAssYiPF9A2GbEQ0/90c1f0ebc76c458ea77375654421f2d2.webp?size=large)

## 4 comments

### Mullein commented on 2023-08-21

I personally prefer soil mixes, but I know some people swear by leca. The part I didn’t like was the leca getting gunked up with algae and plant debris. I guess you’re supposed to keep the leca clean, but I didn’t want to be rinsing or boiling my plant medium. That’s my take anyway. Hopefully someone pops in with the pros of leca. Good luck on your adventure! ☺️🪴

### MamaJuju commented on 2023-08-21

Leca is great for fast-growing vine plants (such as pothos, tradescantia, etc.) but rare tropicals will get very large and that’s a LOT of leca to buy and BS to deal with the upkeep…and you’d always be tampering with the root structure and stability of the plant. I guess I wouldn’t recommend it…

#### Rachael Young replied on 2023-08-21

Thank you, yes Im on a philodendron kick rn and I was wanting to move to alocasias but I struggle with the latter

### Mia commented on 2023-08-21

Lechuza pon is easier to deal with than Leca IMO, but like others have mentioned, it gets expensive for a larger collection of plants. It also gets very heavy for plants in larger pots which is impractical if you need to move them for waterings or other reasons.

You can DIY pon, which would probably make it quite a bit cheaper. The benefits there is that it can be reused, lasts a long time, and discourages pests that live off soil, like fungus gnats.

In short, any medium will have its upsides and downsides.

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