Potential New Potting Medium

[Ray]

I have been a discount reseller of Hydrofarm products for years, and even though I don't do a lot of that any more, I still get their product release emails. Most are focused more on pot growers that anything else, but I got this today, and it looks like it might be a decent medium.



It has a suggested retail of $75.95 for a 70#, 3.8 cubic feet compressed bale, and ought to expand greatly, so if it's any good, it ought to be pretty economical.

I am not in a position to purchase and try it any longer, but if anyone wishes to experiment, and doesn't have a Hydrofarm account (they only sell wholesale to distributors), I'd be happy to arrange a drop-shipment.

[greenpassion]

Ray, do they sell smaller quantities? Do you think this could be better than bark?

[katrina]

It does look interesting and might be a good alternative to the shredded redwood I use for some orchids. It would be cheaper than the redwood, for sure!

My only concern would be the salt issue w/coir/coco. I stopped using coco products several years ago because I hated the soaking/rinsing process. I didn't see anything on the website...is there any info you can find out about whether they've rinsed it? Or, do you think the rinsing would be something the buyer would have to do?

[Ray]

GP - Hydrofarm is a wholesale distributor only; that 70# bale is the only size package.

I would guess it would need to be cleaned by the user prior to use, Katrina, but being finer than the chips I'm used to dealing with, it's surface-to-volume ratio would be much greater, so it ought to clean more easily, and stay that way better.

I have asked my salesman to see if he can get me a sample, but I'm not holding my breath...

[katrina]

Too bad they don't sell smaller sizes! I'd be hesitant to buy such a large amount without testing it out first.

Maybe my local hydro store will buy a big lot and then sell smaller bags. ?? Will check with them but if you hear anything on samples, let me know. I'd pay for a sample lot...maybe a gallon sizes bag of the un-hydrated product. Enough to test it out on a few plants...it could be excellent for my lycaste and ctsm.

[greenpassion]

Originally Posted by katrina

Too bad they don't sell smaller sizes! I'd be hesitant to buy such a large amount without testing it out first.

Maybe my local hydro store will buy a big lot and then sell smaller bags. ?? Will check with them but if you hear anything on samples, let me know. I'd pay for a sample lot...maybe a gallon sizes bag of the un-hydrated product. Enough to test it out on a few plants...it could be excellent for my lycaste and ctsm.

Same here Katrina.

[Ray]

Well, they are going to send me a sample, so we'll keep you posted when I get it.

[greenpassion]

Alright! Thank you Ray!

[estación seca]

My local hydroponics shop sells coir fiber blends, but not straight fiber. Coir (or coco fiber or coconut fiber for the search engines) is used by some succulent growers in very small proportions with pumice (5% coir : 95% pumice.) Much more than 5% in a succulent mix leads to the medium staying far too wet.

From time to time various gardening groups here bring in somebody to talk about coir. I have bought a couple of large blocks of pressed fiber this way over the years. I soak it before use.

I haven't tried it with orchids. I have been thinking about using it with LECA balls at the 5%:95% ratio for orchids whose growth habits doesn't permit practical S/H cultivation. Maybe I should use it for some of the terrestrials I want to grow, like Phaius and Spahtiglottis, that I can't seem to keep moist enough.

[Evendozen]

It looks like a great product. I wonder if the PH is similar to peat ? My rex begonias would like this as well as the orchids. I'll have to wait for smaller quantities to be available unless others would like to divide a bale.