I am further investigating different types of SOIL MEDIUMS, and Iām noticing that peat does not seem to be a desirable additive; is that correct? Iām discovering that Fox Farms and Sol Soils seem to be popular mediums. Should I be looking for soils that have no peat in them? What soils do you highly recommend for your tropical plants? TIA!
It depends on what you are using it for! For my tropical plants, I like to use either Mollyās aroid mix on Amazon if Iām being lazy, or make my own using a mixture of coco coir, coco chips, worm castings, horticulture charcoal, perlite, and I feel like Iām missing something! Sydney plant guy has a lot of awesome videos on his aroid mix and thatās essentially what I use. I highly recommend it.
3 Likes I have made my own soil mixes in the past, but I donāt feel 100% comfortable they are better than something I could purchase. Just to reiterate, would you use Mollyās Aroid Mix on ALL of your tropical plants? i.e. caltheas, ferns, pothosā¦etc. TIA!
0 Likes PS. And thanks for your postā¦ I really appreciated it!
1 Like It really depends on how good you are at watering! With a mix like this, you will need to water constantly for some plants. Ferns and calatheas donāt really like to dry out. If you keep the soil watered enough to make up for it it would be fine, but Iād recommend a mix with more coir or spagnuhm (spelt that way wrongš¤£) moss
1 Like Of course and if you make it yourself , you can adjust it based on the plant! I donāt know everything about every plant so I do a quick google or use Planta recommendations and mix the parts together in what equals the best soil for your plant! Sydney plant guy really is my plant bible
1 Like
another thing about peat is that its not very good for the environment - a google search could give you more in depth info, but i think its the marshes or bogs its found in contains a lot of carbon dioxide from all the decomposing happening. harvesting the peat releases this CO2 into the environment, and i think on large scales, if its being mass produced, than its releasing more CO2 into the air than it would naturally. alternatives to peat that retain moisture would be coir and sphagnum like Plantgirly said, as well as straight soil or compost, coco coir, and coco chips hold moisture while providing aeration!
1 Like I was just beginning to notice environmental problems using peat, but Iām still not quite up on it yet. Itās definitely worth further investigation, so TXS for that info! Iāll have to Google it myself, and learn more!
1 Like good luck!!
1 Like
The fox farms do use peat. But it's a small portion of the mix. Vs like the miracle gro or a few others that are mainly peat.
You can just go full garden soil and just ammend it yourself. Sol Soils i belive are or mostly are peat free. I just got some more of their succulent gritty mix. I like their blends, but it's to pricey for my tropicals collection. Which is why I mix my own
1 Like