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Perlite/sand question

C

Cryix

Guest
I jus got back from my local Home Depot. I picked up a bag of Scott's Sphagnum Peat Moss,a bag of Scott's Perlite, and a bag of dried long fiber Sphaghnum moss. I saw something that was called "Play Sand" in the grass seed section of the store. I didnt puchase it because I was not sure if it would be good for VFT's. The sand looked like sand from the beach. The bag said can be used to condition soil. They also had another sand but it was a orange color and it had large pebbles in it. I was thinking that the said might be orange because it has clay in it which isnt good for VFT's. Should I do back and purchase the "Play Sand"? Can I use Perlite instead of sand? Please let me know.
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Yes you can use perlite. I believe play sand is ok to use as long as it is not from the beach or river. However, I think i would use horticulture grade silica sand just to be safe.

Personally, i use a mix of peat, perlite and sand. You can also use a mix peat and sand or your mix of peat and perlite. Any of the three mixes work as long as you mix the ingredients 1 to 1. Just make sure you rinse the perlite or sand with distilled or RO water. This helps rid them of trace salts and minerals.


-buckeye
 
Cryix, I've bought the "playsand" stuff from both Home Depot and Lowe's and in both cases, the PH was very alkaline at over 8.5, which is no good for growing cp's. Rinsing it in pure water helps, but I still don't trust it.
Like Buckeye said, horticultural silica sand or silica filter sand from a swimming pool supply store will have a neutral PH, and that of course is what you want, then when you add the peat and/or sphagnum, the PH will go down into the acidic range due to the tannic acid in them.
 
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