In addition, over time vermiculite collapses into a denser, almost greasy medium. I have used it in the past for bulb chips and starting seeds like clivia, but no longer use it. Jim Shields At 10:10 PM 7/12/2012 +0100, Peter wrote: >Vermiculite makes a very moisture retentive mix, I find that perlite does >the same job but there is more air in a perlite mix than in a vermiculite >one, I use these for stratification, forced germination and rooting of >moisture loving plants. I get more fungal problems with vermiculite. > >....... ************************************************* Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 P.O. Box 92 WWW: http://www.shieldsgardens.com/ Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA Lat. 40° 02.8' N, Long. 086° 06.6' W