SOIL-LESS Gardening!?

Every time we think of plants soil is the first thing that hits our mind, but little did we know about growing plants without soil. Well yeah soil is the most abundant naturally available media, but it isn’t the ultimate! We know that we can grow some plants in water, actually we can grow a lot of plants on water, but plants can also be grown in many other media.

As I already mentioned soil maybe the cheapest, most abundant and natural media to grow plants, but when it comes to pot culture field soils fails to meet the satisfactory level since they do not provide the necessary aeration, drainage, water retention and nutrition. These needs can be met by using some or whole proportions of different soil-less media. Did you know some succulents like hens and chicks, pricky pear cactus, mosses and few plants like coral bells, rock cress, candy-tuft can also be grown on rocks. With this article let us know about all different kinds of soil-less media used in gardening.

Basically, there are three types of soil-less media

• Organic: cocopeat, rice husk, sawdust, sphagnum moss
• Inorganic: vermiculite, perlite, sand, gravel stones, pebbles, rock wool
• Synthetic: sponges, foam, water absorbent fibres

But, I will also consider WATER as a kind of soil-less media since it is used to grow a wide range of plants in gardening. So there are four different types of soil-less media. My favourite being cocopeat, vermiculite, perlite, sand and of course water.

COCOPEAT 

is almost every gardener’s favourite media. They hold good amount of moisture, provides good drainage and also makes soil airy. These can hold 20x moisture more and can be compressed 4-5x their voulume. I use this in preparing potting mix (1:3 :: cocopeat:soil) and for propagating my succulents but, they do a great job as mulch (layer applied over surface soil) retaining moisture and not letting the soil get dry. They are also majorly used for seed germination. It’s anti-fungal properties and neutral pH also aids plants. They can be used for amendment of hard soils.

RICE HUSK AND SAWDUST 

can also be used in the same way as cocopeat. Rice husk being rich in silica strengthens plant cell walls and can be used in soil amendments, they aerate and retain moisture. They takes 4-5 years to break down hence, are economical. Sawdust also does great job as a mulch holding moisture.

SPHAGNUM MOSS are widely used in hanging and vertical gardens. You might have seen moss sticks for growing pothos and other trailing plants vertically and moss used as bottom layer in hanging gardens, these are light in weight and hold a lot of moisture hence, are very useful in these areas. There are also great for terrariums, air layering and as mulch. 

 

VERMICULITE and PERLITE increases nutrient retention and absorption, drainage and aeration. They are mostly used in preparation of succulent potting mix since they aids good water drainage and keeps the soil loose and well aerated.

SAND, GRAVELS and PEBBLES increase drainage by loosening the soil because of their greater size. 1/4th portion in good potting mix consists of sand. They are also used in terrariums, succulent pots and in indoor pots to cover the moist soil.

 

ROCK WOOL are used for seed germination and in hydroponics.

SPONGES and FOAM are mainly used for show casing of cut parts of ornamental plants.

WATER: 

Many plants like lucky bamboo, pothos, spider plant, aglaonema, philodendron etc can be successfully grown in water. These plants grow roots and survive in water without getting rotten.

• When water is used as a media make sure to change the water once every week or two to replenish the lost nutrients and make sure to use TAP WATER and not mineral or filtered water. 
• If placed in direct sunlight algal growth on the surface of the container is common so make sure to pick the right spot. 
• Plants grow slower in water than in soil. BE PATIENT and observe them grow. 
• Roots of plants grown in water is much fragile than the ones grown in soil. So be cautious while handling them.

Just as us humans individual plants have their own requirements, which we can easily fulfil unlike humans. All it needs is quite attention and keen observation. Spending time with our plants observing all their responses and some knowledge about different aspects of plant growth is all it takes to be a good gardener.

Take care

Grow plants

XoXo