Date: Wed, 2 Aug 2000 10:45:30 EDT From: MCATALANI@aol.com To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg2324$foo@default> Subject: Re: Sand For Soil
<< I have about 50 lb.'s of this and I thought that I could use it as a
substitute for silica sand. Is this OK for use with all plants? Thank you.
>>
I always like to urge caution when growers want to use sand in their medium
to grow the North American CP. If the sand is not the correct type then it
will slowly (or sometimes quickly) kill your plants. The sand should be
slightly acidic, and not contain salt. It doesn't make a lot of sense to be
concerned that your tap water is too hard to water your plants, but
haphazardly throw the wrong type of sand in your medium. Sand has an
advantage in an outdoor bog in that it keeps soil splatter to a minimum
during a hard rain. It has a disadvantage in that the soil loses moisture
much more quickly, so you will be in for more waterings unless your rainfalls
are regular. Here in Memphis, rain has not been timely enough in the summer,
and my bog which contains a 1/2 mix of sand and peat moss must be watered by
hand several times a month, whereas my bogs which contain only sphagnum peat
moss have only been manually watered twice this year. As far as sand as a
medium for North American CP, I can tell no difference between the plants
that have been growing in the sand/peat mix or the peat mix alone. Therefore
it has never really been worth the trouble of washing and mixing in the sand
with the peat moss.
Michael Catalani
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