What type of soil is best for succulents
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What kind of soil is best for succulents is definitely a topic worth studying for beginners. It's not that the question is complicated, but there may be multiple choices, and each choice has its own characteristics. Flower enthusiasts can choose the suitable soil based on the following text and their own actual conditions.
The simplest and safest way to determine what kind of soil is best for succulents is to use Akadama soil exclusively. This is not a soil formula only for idiots or beginners, but a solution that many experts fully agree with. Buy a bag of Akadama soil, sieve out the powdery material that easily cakes with a 20-mesh sieve, and then plant directly. Almost any variety of succulents can use it.
Why is Akadama soil so useful, and yet there are so many different soil formulas in the world?
Reason 1: Akadama soil is too expensive, and although it has acceptable hardness, it will still powder over time, becoming something that hinders the breathing of succulents. The loss is too great after potting (for home gardening, the cost of a small black cube of Akadama soil is about 1 yuan).
Reason 2: There are many experienced masters who are very familiar with the local climate and the characteristics of various plants. They believe that Akadama soil is not good enough, so they research their own soil formulas. However, this formula does not have a unified answer. It may not even work well if it leaves his greenhouse or his watering habits. If you get a formula, you should first understand the purpose of the ingredients in the formula and try using it with your own conditions before finally using it completely.
Below, I discuss the usage of various soil ingredients based on several goals of soil mixing, to help everyone understand the characteristics of a obtained soil formula and judge whether it is suitable for themselves.
The purpose of soil for succulents is nothing more than a few points: to fix the roots, store and slowly release water, provide nutrients (a little is enough), provide breathability, and adjust the pH value (the roots of Crassulaceae grow best in slightly acidic soil). Let's look at the main functions of common soil.
I. All-purpose soil (can be used alone)
1) Akadama soil: The all-purpose type must first mention Akadama soil. Akadama soil has high comprehensive indicators, good root-fixing ability, strong water absorption, a small amount of nutrients, and good breathability within 1-2 years. It is slightly acidic. So, just use it directly. Akadama soil does not need to be mixed with other planting materials. The only thing to note is that you must repot within 2 years, otherwise the breathability will drop sharply due to powdering. If you are planting large, old-stemmed succulents that are not easy to repot, Akadama soil is not very suitable.
2)鹿沼土 (Kusaya soil): Kusaya soil is the same as Akadama soil in terms of functionality, but it has lower hardness and powders quickly, so it can be considered for planting, but it is still good for mulching. Other things that can be roughly categorized with it include various things that appeared during the疯狂 speculation on orchids, such as Shiozaki soil,植金石 (stone for planting), etc. These things are similar in price and shape to Akadama soil, some even without nutrients, and can be ignored.
3) Pellet peat: I really like this thing called pellet peat. It is a black, small ball-shaped planting material. It is more nutritious than peat, has high hardness, and is very breathable, and can be reused completely. The disadvantage is that the root-fixing ability is slightly poor (this stuff is always loose), otherwise I would consider using all pellet peat for cultivation (using this to grow stone lotus plants is no problem).
4) Coal slag: Coal slag is also an all-purpose soil. I haven't used it, but it is said to be very good, with high indexes in all aspects. It might be because it can't be sold at a high price when packaged, so merchants do not promote it. If you have the conditions, you can use it.
5) Sphagnum moss: The special feature of sphagnum moss is that it is clean and has good plasticity. It is indispensable in succulent landscaping. Sphagnum moss is very expensive, so its application is limited to this.
II. Water-retaining and breathable soil ingredients
1) Perlite (a negative example): You can understand perlite as foam. It's very light and can be blown away by the wind, so it can't be used to fix roots because it easily powders and therefore cannot be breathable and has no nutrients. To say its advantages, it's very cheap, has a very upscale name, and looks very nice in white. The reason I mentioned this garbage soil is to let everyone know that if any finished soil mix contains perlite, it is a rip-off. Don't buy it.
2) Vermiculite: Vermiculite has good water retention and is somewhat breathable. But its缺点 are also obvious, it's fragile. But even if it's fragile, it doesn't turn into powder. The root-fixing ability is also decent, but once the roots go in, it breaks, so it's not really an advantage. It's basically used to adjust the humidity. Oh, right, vermiculite is golden and very beautiful, so it can easily become a selling point for sellers to cheat you. Be警惕 of this.
3) Small-particle pumice (I recommend this): Pumice has a hard texture, almost no powdering, absorbs water and is breathable, and contains a minimal amount of nutrients. From the perspective of hard texture and breathability, although it absorbs water less than vermiculite, it is the best choice for adjusting the breathability of particle soil, and I even have the urge to use it alone.
4) Coarse sand: You don't need an introduction to know that this stuff doesn't contain nutrients, can't fix roots, and doesn't absorb water. I mention coarse sand because it doesn't cake, is breathable, and is very heavy, which can be used to adjust the soil's specific gravity. Almost all soil ingredients are relatively light, so if you're planting taller plants, adding some coarse sand is still necessary.
5) Potting stones (large-particle pumice): These are too large, so they can only be used as a base. Also, potting stones look like fake mountains and can be used to decorate pots.
6) Ceramsite (preferred for drainage layer): Ceramsite is actually similar to the manufacturing process of bricks. Like pellet peat, this stuff has poor root-fixing ability, so even small-particle ceramsite is rarely added in large amounts to soil mixtures. It is the preferred medium as a substitute for potting stones in the drainage layer.
III. Adding nutrients
1) Peat-based soil ingredients: The advantage of peat is that it has good water retention and root-fixing ability and is relatively cheap. Many people think that peat has high nutrient content because it looks like traditional soil, but in the manufacturing process, peat has lost most of its nutrients, so its nutrient level is not higher than that of Akadama soil. It's because peat looks like traditional soil that it is commonly found in any soil mixture (I'm no exception), but in cases of black rot, the soil mixture had a higher proportion of peat (it's cheap, sellers like it). Peat fibers are very fine and have poor breathability when waterlogged. The peat I add to the soil is always sifted to increase its breathability. My view is that for beginners, it's better not to add peat.
2) Coconut fiber: Some of the criticism of peat is one-sided because, in fact, peat also comes in coarse and fine fibers. Coarse fiber peat has good breathability. However, coarse fiber peat is more expensive than the currently popular coconut fiber, has similar properties, lacks nutrition, and is not as clean, so it has gradually faded from the market. Coconut fiber is the favorite of greenhouse enthusiasts, probably because it's easy to change pots and can be reused.
3) Peanut shells: Peanut shells are worth recommending, as they are more nutritious than peat and coconut fiber, rot into potassium fertilizer, have a high degree of granulation, and have good root-fixing and water absorption abilities. They go well with things like pumice.
4) Rice husk charcoal: Similar to peanut shells, rice husk charcoal is rich in potassium fertilizer, but unfortunately, it is quite alkaline, which ruins the prospects of rice husk charcoal.
In summary, in addition to soil ingredients that can be used alone, one type from each of the above categories is enough for soil mixing. As for the ratio, it's very random, just mix according to your needs. For example, for seedlings, use small particles and water retention. For old stakes, good drainage is needed, a bit poor in fertility is fine, and for other plants, a compromise is made.
Also, soil mixing is not something you think of, it's adjusted. If you find that the potting soil dries out too quickly, add more vermiculite. If you find that the drainage is full and there's too much free water, add pumice. Adjust it and you'll have your own secret soil recipe.
There's nothing mysterious about secret soil recipes, and there's no right or wrong. The principle is, if it suits you, it's fine. The master mentioned earlier who advocates growing succulents in moist soil uses only peat and can prevent black rot, which shows his watering skills. Such a recipe, given to me or you, I would not dare to use.
The core meaning of this article is to warn flower enthusiasts not to believe in soil formulas, and any claim that their formula is the most scientific is the most unscientific.
The content of "What kind of soil is best for succulents" introduced above, hoping it is helpful to green plant enthusiasts!