Soil?

[Travis]

Of course I have vfts but the only reason I have them is because since I have owned them I have not changed the soil. This is going on 3 years without me changing the soil. To this day any cp that is not a nep that I have changed the soil on has died. From vfts to sarrs to sundews *even the capensis* have clicked their heels at me.

I hate peat and need some other soil substitute that I can get at a local Wal-Mart or something. Please help by offering soil combo's? Thanks a Bunch!

Traivs

 

[scottychaos]

why would you "hate" peat?
whats wrong with it?

well, if you really do hate peat, the best alternative would be pure LFS.
(long fiber spagnum)
thats the dried ropey stuff..usually readily available at Home Depot type places and garden centers..
its not "dirty" like pure peat.
when rain falls directly on it, it doesent spatter around like peat or regular dirt does.
everything grows fine in that!

Scot

 

[Travis]

I did not know I could use that for vfts and sundews. Can LFS be sitting in water or is it going to rot after awhile? That is what I use for neps. Thanks.

 

[peter]

I don't think it is the peat that is causing all your plants to die... are you sure it's 'good' peat moss? It is Sphagnum peat moss to be more specific?
Your plants especially the capensis really shouldn't die at all during repotting.
I'm guessing you have some type of nutrient rich peat, or in my case a bad bag which killed a share of my plants too. Mine turned out to have bad sand that killed the roots of my plants, scotts brand in particular.
What brand of Peat are you using?
I don't think that LFS will do any better when it comes to VFTs. I've tried lfs for VFT's and they don't grow any better, most of the time worse then peat since I believe that VFT's need a good secure ancore to the soil or it won't grow very well, and LFS is a little less compact (Awesome for neps though).
Plus, potting all your plants in LFS can cost alot after awhile!
I have to admitt that LFS lasts a looong time w/o rotting though.

 

[jimscott]

I have pretty good success by mixing peat & sand and topdressing it with LFS.

 

[Travis]

I will have to check what kind of peat and peat brand it is. It strikes me odd that D. Capensis die since they are a very hardy plant. I use perlite instead of sand.

 

[jimscott]

I use the Nirom brand of Canadian peat from Home Depot. I wash it thoroughly. The sand is from a pool place.

 

[pond boy]

"dirty elbows club"

 

[elgecko]

You killed the weed D. capensis!? Some people might like to know how you killed it. I have treated some of mine so bad I could not believe it did not die.

Must be something in the soil.

 

[Travis]

Quote[/b] (elgecko @ Dec. 02 2004,6:42)]You killed the weed D. capensis!? Some people might like to know how you killed it. I have treated some of mine so bad I could not believe it did not die.

Must be something in the soil.

Let me ship some of my soil to you!  

I do feel like I am a part of the "dirty elbow club". At this point I am throwing this soil away.

I have that Scotts Sphagnum peat moss.

 

[peter]

My quote

Quote[/b] ]I'm guessing you have some type of nutrient rich peat, or in my case a bad bag which killed a share of my plants too. Mine turned out to have bad sand that killed the roots of my plants, scotts brand in particular.

Travis's quote

Quote[/b] ] Let me ship some of my soil to you! I do feel like I am a part of the "dirty elbow club". At this point I am throwing this soil away.

I have that Scotts Sphagnum peat moss.

Ha! I told you all to stay away from Scotts peat moss! I wasn't lying after all

I would email them like I did, As you notice their new product should be of better quality But I still wouldn't buy it since they killed some of my plants last year.

Travis, does the peat moss have any sand in it while you wash it? That I think is the main cause of the plants dying. I got quite alot of sand in mine!

 

[pond boy]

Quote[/b] (Travis @ Dec. 02 2004,7:03)]

Quote[/b] (elgecko @ Dec. 02 2004,6:42)]You killed the weed D. capensis!? Some people might like to know how you killed it. I have treated some of mine so bad I could not believe it did not die.

Must be something in the soil.

Let me ship some of my soil to you!  

I do feel like I am a part of the "dirty elbow club". At this point I am throwing this soil away.

I have that Scotts Sphagnum peat moss.

You rigorously wash your peat?

 

[Travis]

Gosh you hit that on the head with peat.

I do not see any sand mixed in with the peat, I am guessing it is pure peat. What type of sand is good for cps? Thanks for the help.

 

[Travis]

Quote[/b] (pond boy @ Dec. 02 2004,8:39)]You rigorously wash your peat?

Depends what you mean by rigorously washing? Putting the peat in a big pot with distilled water. Then wash for about 3 to 5 minutes. I call that a good wash...

 

[scottychaos]

I dont think washing pure peat is really necessary..
if its "good peat" in the first place, washing will gain you nothing, since it just "pure peat" and there is nothing bad to "wash out"!

and if its "bad peat", the kind with fertilizer added, no amount of washing is going to remove all the "bad stuff" anyway..
so basically, good is always good, bad is always bad, washing is redundant either way..
just my opinion..
of course washing wont hurt either! so if it makes you feel better, it wont hurt anything to do it..

and, my VFT's do MUCH better in LFS than pure peat!
go figure..
Scot

 

[Travis]

Quote[/b] (scottychaos @ Dec. 03 2004,10:45)]and if its "bad peat", the kind with fertilizer added, no amount of washing is going to remove all the "bad stuff" anyway..

and, my VFT's do MUCH better in LFS than pure peat!
go figure..

How do you know if peat has fertilizer? No where on the bag it says it has fertilizer...Although it shows pictures of pink flowers.

Well since I do have 2 pots of vfts. I will try one with a new bag of peat and one with LFs.

 

[Vertigo]

From what i've seen with the scott's brands and a few other brands of peat is that they tend to put wetting agents into the mix. Scott's processes a lot of fertilizer in there facilities, so just like a nut ending up in a plain chocolate bar, it's only safe to assume that the same could happen with fertilizer.

Fertilized and wetting agents are both pretty bad for cp's.

 

[pond boy]

Quote[/b] (Travis @ Dec. 02 2004,7:52)]

Quote[/b] (pond boy @ Dec. 02 2004,8:39)]You rigorously wash your peat?

Depends what you mean by rigorously washing? Putting the peat in a big pot with distilled water. Then wash for about 3 to 5 minutes. I call that a good wash...

I leave it for a week in pure water then I ring it out and repeat,then it goes into my hanging baskets for the rain to leach out minerals So I`d say you`re a partial member of "the dirty elbows club"

 

[peter]

For VFT's I don't' think it's really needed to wash it as long as it comes from a good source.  But for other genres of cp's like the harder drosera's, as Tamlin says "Wash your Peat!"
Yeah, my old bag of scotts peat moss has the exact same picture and the bag is brownish in color.
So far I would Avoid any of the smaller specialty bags, but I have to admit that Schultz peat moss is a VERY good brand to get.  The peat is of superior quality better then any other I've seen.
But to be near 100% sure that the bag is good peat, I always go for the big blocks of compressed peat for 7.00.  It's alot cheaper and it's a pretty good texture but some are better then others.  The one I'm using is from a canadian  source and has some French/English writing and works very well for me.  Most of the time those don't come with fertilizer unless mentioned, which I know miricle grow peat moss does have some type of fertilizer. Peat and LFS is good for VFT's, but IME peat does better.  Maybe because it has the little nutrients that VFT's need to grow superior.  But again that is from my experience. I rarely see any wild VFT's growing in pure LFS since they grow on a more elevated ground draining water which most of the time offers only springy lfs growth here and there. That's why it is advised that VFTs should not be sitting on water... and only top watered when needed.

Any play sand that is pure white is good.  Avoid that ones that crumble easily or doesn't look like quartz/salt grains.  Those are Non silica types which I'm unsure about.

 

[Travis]

Quote[/b] (peter @ Dec. 03 2004,3:15)]For VFT's I don't' think it's really needed to wash it as long as it comes from a good source.  But for other genres of cp's like the harder drosera's, as Tamlin says "Wash your Peat!"
Yeah, my old bag of scotts peat moss has the exact same picture and the bag is brownish in color.
So far I would Avoid any of the smaller specialty bags, but I have to admit that Schultz peat moss is a VERY good brand to get.  The peat is of superior quality better then any other I've seen.
But to be near 100% sure that the bag is good peat, I always go for the big blocks of compressed peat for 7.00.  It's alot cheaper and it's a pretty good texture but some are better then others.  

Any play sand that is pure white is good.  Avoid that ones that crumble easily or doesn't look like quartz/salt grains.  Those are Non silica types which I'm unsure about.

Great! Well get the Schultz peat moss and if possible find some play sand. I know it may not need to be washed but just to be safe. I will pick some up this weekend, then have it ready by spring. Thanks

Quote[/b] ]I leave it for a week in pure water then I ring it out and repeat,then it goes into my hanging baskets for the rain to leach out minerals So I`d say you`re a partial member of "the dirty elbows club"

You are not kidding you are part of the "Dirty Elbow Club"! Holly Cow that is a process!

I will give it a much through washing come spring.