Transcript:
Hi, guys, welcome to another episode of lets. Talk dirt and today. I’m gonna talk about two ingredients That are I feel like most commonly used for one of the most important things in our soil, and that is drainage. We need, you know, no matter the plant or the soil. You need good drainage in aeration, and I feel like these are two of the most utilized ingredients to create that in our soils, and that is humus and perlite, and I’m also gonna talk about charcoal in today’s episode and it ties in to the pumice. So that’s why I chose to do it in today’s episode as well and it also helps with aeration and drainage too. So, um, first here’s a lot of questions about which of these you prefer or which one’s better and honestly from all the research. I’ve done prior to even researching for this series just for my own pots and soil mixtures. Um, it really seems like it boils down to availability and preference, so they both do similar or almost exactly the same thing they improve aeration in your soil. They help with drainage and they help wick away the water and hold it in, um, to the ingredient itself, not the dirt so that it doesn’t suffocate the roots because your plant roots need aeration and oxygen to breathe or else they get rotten all kinds of other problems so and that’s why. I say no matter what plant. What soil, you know, everything. They need. Good drainage across the board. So and these. I are two things that I’ll mix into every single medium that I make. Now the difference between them like I said, is a lot of its preference. Um, perlite is cheaper, generally and more easily available. Pomace can be more difficult to get a hold of and can be more costly for me where I’m at here. It’s not, it’s very easy for me to get hold up, and it’s worth the cost difference for a few reasons of why. I prefer it first. I’ll talk about what exactly they are, so they are both an organic ingredient. The difference is that para light is volcanic salacious rock that they take, and they heat it to 1600 degrees Fahrenheit until it kind of pops like popcorn almost and it becomes 13 times its original size, which results in this very fluffy almost. Styrofoam ball like that really is what it reminds me of and this is what you’ll generally find in almost every pre-made. Mix the little white chunky flakes. It really is used a lot in everything. So that’s what that is and then pumice this is when air gets trapped in lava and then it cools before the air can escape. It creates naturally very light, porous air filled. Rock and the only thing that has done to this. The only manufacturing is that they sort it for size. So that’s the difference where this one it is technically an organic ingredient, but they process it by heating it and stuff like that where this is just they might not sort it, and that’s what it is. Um, so with that, para light is sterile. It’s completely sterile. Pumice can contain microbes and microorganisms. But those are not always bad. Um, there’s a chance there could be, but generally they’re not a bad thing, but they are present, so I have noticed like soil mites and some of my pumice, but again those are not a harmful thing. They are more annoying than anything, and I’ve noticed that all I really had to do was cut back on the watering a little bit. They kind of just disappeared, so it you know from what? I’ve researched soil mites Don’t harm the plants at all, and they’re just natural decomposers, but I have found that they have come in a couple bags. My pumice don’t let that scare you away. If you look at manufacturers, you can always rinse and clean the pumice if that worries you. I’m not bothered by beneficial bags. I like spring towels for the same reason. So don’t let that frighten you. It’s just again, saying that it isn’t completely sterile. Well, or perlite is sterile. Um, another big difference is that pumice will never decompose like it is what it is. It’s gonna stay mixed in to your medium, where perlite will eventually float to the top top sorry and can decompose as well, so it’s not fast, probably never in the lifetime of the plant in that soil makes sure before you put it up hopefully, but it will, and I have noticed this in mine. It does float to the top after watering, so it doesn’t stay incorporated, giving you the drainage constantly the way that pumice does, so that’s why. I know the reason. I’ve switched to pumice. I feel like it creates better aeration, because it’s bigger pieces and also just stays incorporated in the mixture as well and so. I never have to worry about it again. Um, – they both, you know? Help wick away water and keep it available for the plant. But without suffocating the roots, cuz that’s a very important thing with drainage. Your roots need to breathe. They need oxygen, so they’re both very good for that really before this series. I did a ton of research or before I even plan the series just when I was doing my own mixtures and then again for this, I researched human deeper and couldn’t really come out with more than it was just personal preference and availability, so both are very good ingredients. Some people use both in their mixtures. You don’t have to be mutually exclusive. One or the other, obviously. I have both it’s really. I feel like preference and this does have. You know, I’m a big environmental person, but I also want to research more into this. Someone had asked and that this has more environmental effects and while I would assume that’s the case because they do process it more than just mining it. I do want to research that more before I put that information out there because I don’t know exactly for sure and my husband is getting his degree in environmental science. So I’m gonna ask, you know his help on that too, and I’ll get into that more and Ill. Let you guys know as soon as I know more information about that, but as far as that goes, that’s kind of it for these two. So what brings charcoal into the play? Is that if you are using pumice you want to use charcoal as well that said, you want to use charcoal anyway. I think is an a very important ingredient to put into your soils. So whether you use either one, I would suggest using charcoal anyway. However, if you do use pumice it can not will, but can throw off the pH of your soil and charcoal is a natural pH regulator for your soils so adding the two negates that, and then you’re fine, so moving on to the other properties of charcoal because it is awesome and like I said, regardless, if you use pumice or perlite, I suggest using charcoal and I use it in all my mixes no matter what I’m planting, and that’s why you know, I kind of. Did they study together too, because they’re big for a drainage generation, and I put them in. Everything doesn’t matter what I’m mixing for. I put these in there. So charcoal is known as nature’s soil conditioner. It’s gonna pull out any, you know, salts any chemicals, and it’s really good at just cleaning your soil of things that shouldn’t be there. It absorbs it absorbs any smells and it can help with any, you know. It helps with water retention again a narration. You thought the thing you need to be sure. Though, is that it’s pure charcoal, not aquarium or barbecue charcoal. There is a difference from what I researched. Those contain other chemicals where horticultural charcoal is charcoal in its purest form. And that’s what you want. You don’t want to add anything else. Any other chemicals into your soil? And it won’t have as much of the benefits as pure charcoal does so and it helps to remove salt and for people who use, you know, tap water that can have a lot of salt and build up in the soil, and that will help remove that it promotes beneficial bacteria and also helps fertilizers Be more absorbable by your plants, So if you’re using. I mean, worm castings are rarely available for plants. And that’s what I used a lot as I talked about last video, But other fertilizers that you’re using, this will make it so your plant can utilize those more efficiently, so it really. I it’s just a really great product. It’s basically it’s organic carbon and just it’s really dirty. So beware of that cooking a minute. Blackshirts. But you know these three ingredients I highly recommend you use in your mixtures in whatever you’re using. I really like them. I have seen nothing, but good results and charcoal is one and for the ones that I hadn’t already put in the mixture, but they weren’t ready to repot so and specifically I fit. Allie fig, my big one. It doesn’t love to be repotted. It didn’t need to be repotted, but I didn’t have charcoal in its mixture, so what you can do is just mix them into the top 1/4 of the soil, and it’s gonna help with all of those things. It’s not something that you, you know can’t utilize in stuff that’s already potted, which I also really like, so hopefully that answered your guyss questions on those three ingredients there, three of my favorites, and I feel like the most important to use in your plants and your potting soil. I’m gonna stop talking, cuz. I’m gettin all Jumbly, But I appreciate you guys watching. This is longer than I expected it to be, but I just talk a lot. Can’t help it, so there’s a lot of information. I want you guys to have it all. So, um, if you have any questions, let me know. I’d be happy to either. You know, research it more or look into it. Yeah, happy planting and we’ll see you guys next time. Thanks.