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What soil do you recommend?

B

Bradley556

I already have two traps that are growing in mostly peat. The bottom of the container is lined with long fibered spaghnum, filled with peat and topped with long fibered spaghnum. They seem to be growing well. I was just wondering if there was a better soil mixture to use.

Also, I live in the delta, if that helps any. Thanks.
 
Most people mix something with the peat, usually 1:1 ratio.
The LFS on the top and bottom is common.

Most commonly used is perlite or sand.

If you get perlite, be sure to rinse it good (with distilled/rain water).
Also, make sure it's 100% perlite and doesn't contain any fertilizers.

For sand, a coarse sand is best. There's a lot of debate of whether sandbox sand is bad - might depend on whether you wash it or not. To be on the safe side, I just use pool filter sand (found at pool supply stores). It's a lot whiter looking than a bag of play sand - I've been using it without rinsing and having had any problems yet (best price I've found around me is $8 a 50lb bag though).
 
You'll get a variety of opinions and approaches, but I like to mix sand and peat and have a layer of LFS on top.
 
Half peat, half perlite. As mentioned, no fertilizer. The perlite helps with drainage and aeration.

xvart.
 
half peat and half perlite here also
 
Pure peat is fine. But there are so many options...pure LFS, peat/sand, peat/perlite, etc. I'd say if your plants are doing well (and they should be), don't worry about it. I normally use peat/sand with some perlite in it, although I hate perlite.
 
Perlite is nice because it's really light, but that's also why it floats. Fired ceramic chips can take the place of perlite - they help with aeration and water retention, without floating. Sand is also an option, but very heavy; I wouldn't use a significant portion of sand for anything larger than a three-gallon pot. If you have a big pot, perlite will fill a big space without adding a ton of weight to the pot.
Peat and LFS are good starting places for most CPs, but they can get to rotting after a while if you don't regularly topwater and allow your pots to drain. You should be fine for the rest of the season, but once your plants go dormant this winter, you might consider repotting them into something like peat and perlite. You can keep the perlite from floating to the top of the mix by filling the bulk of the pot with your peat/perlite mixture, then top the last few inches with pure peat. If you like the look of LFS on top, use a final layer of LFS (a little peat in with the LFS helps it lie down flat in my experience.)
Watch out for marauding birds with that LFS, though - it seems that jays just love to make their nests out of it.
~Joe
 
Indeed. Perlite floats. But I use it in all my pots, for my Ceph, peat/perlite. ALL my plants and Neps get the peat/perlite treatment. I don't have anything else.
 
  • #10
I don't like peat for nepenthes except for N. globosa, and only because I was told to.

I think my ceph is in uh.... 2/1 perlite/peat or maybe it's 3/1 perlite peat. Probably 2/1.


Schultz's profile is a heavier yet still light and doesn't float. I like it. It must be washed heavily first.
 
  • #11
Peat and perlite here! I LOVE perlite!


Tom
 
  • #12
I don't wash my perlite.
 
  • #13
50% peat.....and guess.....50% perlite. For VFTs at least....
 
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