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Sand and moss and questions...oh my!

As a result of an earlier inquiry, I have received many different answers to "what kind of sand to mix with peat for a standard CP mix?"

I have been told: play sand, quartz sand, pool filter sand, sandblasting sand, etc.

I ended up buying a bag of sandblasting sand from an auto parts store, which was pricey. The salesman said it was silica sand used for sandblasting cars. It is pretty fine.

I took it home, and being the airhead I am wont to be, in my excitement mixed it with peat moss and distilled water to pot up all my new acquisitions. Fortunately, I received a note from the indispensable Lauraz5 just before potting up my plants - warning me to rinse the sand, which I had not done. I also took her suggestion to do the “vinegar test” on the sand, which was negative…no foaming/bubbling. For the next batch, I rinsed the sand, which was surprisingly very clean…the water ran essentially clear even with the first rinse. I’m wondering if perhaps they wash this type of sand (for using to sandblast cars) before they bag it up. My question is…do you think it is safe to use the original batch that I had mixed without rinsing the sand?

One more question regarding LFS vs. live sphagnum: Is there any difference between bags of dried LFS off the store shelf and live sphagnum from our bog…other than one is dried and the other living? Can the two mosses be used interchangeably?

OK, I promise not to ask any more questions...at least for tonight!

John
 
As far as sand goes, I hardly ever remember to rinse mine. I usually get down to potting things up, find that I have no sand, shout a few curses, run to the store, and use the sand straight out of the bag. I use quartz sand sold for reptile cages. The only problem I have encountered is that the pots with unwashed sand sometimes drain more slowly, or leave silt in their water trays for the first few waterings. Of course, I'm still kind of new to CPs, so some of the veterans out there may have a compelling reason to be careful about rinsing.
As for the moss, I think that live sphagnum is OK in the place of the dried stuff, but again, I'm not 100% sure. Using live strands could introduce unwanted species into your pots, but I can't think of much else that could cause trouble. Rinsing it clean with some CP-safe water a few times might not be a bad idea; if it came from a bog with the wrong pH conditions, that could stress your plants, but I'm not too familiar with the ecology of sphagnum and I don't know that it even grows where the pH is outside of the range of CPs.
So I guess I'm no help at all on this one! Oh well, c'est la vie.
~Joe
 
LOL ask all the questions you want John
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I'm also very new to CP's and have also forgotten to wash the sand.BTW I use silica sand as well and I heard it's one of the best.But you have to make sure it's WHITE silica sand.I'm not sure what other colors they come in but some forum members here were quite helpful when it came to sand and all said that it really should be white.As for the LFS I have no clue sorry,but I just wanted to tell you that I also use silica and I forgot to wash it once or twice and it's been fine but try to remember from now on cause it is better if you do
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Good luck and have fun
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~Niki~(Trapper7)
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Ha, "indispensable Lauraz5"? Is there another LauraZ5 here somewhere? These people bailed my rear out! Anything from me pertaining to CPs came from somebody else here. Sorry to disappoint you John, I would be deemed low man totem pole from both an experience and knowledge standpoint. Fooled you- tee he.  Seriously, I do take pretty good notes though and I do share my notes.

Here's my compelling reason why there may be situations in which it probably isn't the greatest idea to substitute live Sphagnum Moss for the bagged dry LFS, little seedlings don't need the competition.  When they begin to germinate, good luck spotting the new green growth in and amongst the green live Sphagnum Moss.

Now, there are many reasons why you might not want to substitute LFS for bailed Canadian sphagnum peat moss. I'll leave that to the people who taught me to explain to you though.

Boy oh boy, I gotta come over here to general conversations more often.
 
cant answer your sand question but on the moss, if your planting seeds, the dried stuff is generally better(though i plant 99% of seeds into peat not LFS) just because of the compitition thing. if your transplanting decent sized plants, the live stuff is fine. just wash it in R/O or distilled water to remove bugs and such if it is from an outdoor bog and your pots are going to be inside. if your pots are going to be outside, the extra bugs wont matter as they will wind up in there anyways.
 
Where do you buy white silica sand from?
 
I get my white silica sand from a pool dealer that is used in pool filters. It was like $8.00 for a bag of 50 LBS.

I usually do not rinse my sand. The first time I add water to the pots soil mixture I use close to half a gallon of water to wash out anything.
 
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Hortman @ June 19 2005,10:59)]I have been told: play sand,quartz sand, pool filter sand, sandblasting sand, etc.

As long as you can verify it is silica sand, it is all good.

[b said:
Quote[/b] (Hortman @ June 19 2005,10:59)]I rinsed the sand,which was surprisingly very clean…the water ran essentially clear even with the first rinse. (snip) …do you think it is safe to use the original batch that I had mixed without rinsing the sand

Yes, if the sand was clean to start with.

[b said:
Quote[/b] (Hortman @ June 19 2005,10:59)]Is there any difference between bags of dried LFS off the store shelf and live sphagnum from our bog

The dried LFS is generally, I believe, from New Zealand.  It has spores in it that can sprout into live sphagnum.  It also has a lot of grass seed in it, so you'll be picking out sprouting grass.

Don't use live sphagnum for germinating seed and for smaller plants... it will overwhelm them.  I use live sphagnum to top-dress Sarracenia pots, Nepenthes, large sundews, Darlingtonia.

For germinating seeds, I use 100% peat.  I find that LFS seems to be more resistant to non-sphagnous moss growing on it, so sometimes I chop wet LFS in a food processor and use that to germinate seeds, or pot plants with delicate root systems.  Sarracenia I pot in straight LFS.
 
Dewy:I bought my white silica sand at Home Hardware and it was $10 Canadian for 80 pounds!! *Niki*
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  • #10
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]The dried LFS is generally, I believe, from New Zealand.

personally i cant find any of the New Zealand variety, ive got a ton of LFS from Chile though. good stuff but also full of reed seeds. not as attractive when its alive as the North American varieties.
 
  • #11
The first bag of sand I bought was sandblasting silica sand from an auto parts store, which was pricey...$20. It is finely textured and the grains are uniform in size.

Yesterday I purchased a bag of pool filter sand (which some people here had suggested) for $7 and I like the coarser texture and the uneven grains much better.

In regard to LFS, is there any difference between dried LFS off the store shelf and drying live LFS from my property?

Thanks,

John
 
  • #12
I don't think so, except for what kind of stuff you'll find in it. Your own sphagnum will probably have more viable seeds and other little taggers-along in it, but that would depend a lot on the quality of the store-bought stuff to which you compare it.
~Joe
 
  • #13
i'm partial to large grains too.

i buy those big 50 lb bags of playsand from homedepot. it's cheap but i forgot how much it it.
 
  • #14
I'm guessing that what is sold as playsand differs according to locale and/or company selling it. I purchased a bag of playsand that is finely textured and uniform in grain size.

I am much more satisfied with the less expensive bag of pool filter sand that consists of larger grains and even comes pre-washed!
 
  • #15
That's what I use. I have no problems with it. It just looked a little funny to a couple people whem I posted pics, with grains that were on the surface. I only paid $4 for a 50 lb bag.
 
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