Well-drained growing media (was Oh No! A Boophonedisaster!)
Eugene Zielinski (Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:48:45 PDT)
Another option is to check around for "sponge rock". This is large sized
perlite that some orchid growers use in their growing media.
Eugene Zielinski
Augusta, GA
USA
[Original Message]
To: Pacific Bulb Society <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org>
Date: 10/6/2009 8:26:18 PM
Subject: Re: [pbs] Well-drained growing media (was Oh No! A
Boophonedisaster!)
On 5 Oct 2009, at 18:02, Leo A. Martin wrote:
I have wanted to try some of the larger-particle perlite, often used for
insulation, but I have been warned much of this is very high in
fluoride
and toxic to plants.
Change that "is" to "may be". If you feel you must use insulation grade
perlite
in spite of these warnings, you can mitigate the risk by adding lime to
the mix
as calcium fluoride and magnesium fluoride are very insoluble and thus
the
presence of Ca++ and Mg++ ions in the soil will tend to soak up any F-
released
by the perlite.
--
Rodger Whitlock
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