Lighter Gritty Mix questions?

12 years ago

Love using gritty mix but need to work with lighter ingredients these days. I remember Josh (greenman) was using pumice, perlite and bark, mentioned quartz but not sure if that was always in the mix? Was that in equal amounts? I've also read Al (tapla) suggesting some could try 3 parts bark, 4 parts perlite, and 2 parts turface. Mike (meyermike) at one point spoke about trying 1 part fir bark, 1 part perlite, 1 part turface. Can anyone share their experiences with any of these mixes, or others, before I dive in? Should I still add gypsum at 1TBSP per gallon if I'm already using Foliage Pro?

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Comments (10)

meyermike_1micha
12 years ago
Hello Mandarin:-)

Yes, I have used them all and they all work fantastic.

You would not need gypsum if using a fertilizer that provides both Mg and Ca, like Foliage Pro.

Mike:-)
mandarin1
Original Author
12 years ago
Hi Mike, Thank you for your help with my new adventure! Since this has worked for you, I've decided to go a step further and try putting some non-citrus in the gritty mix as well!
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Hi all, Last year, I made some 511 mix using the gritty mix components. I had the gritty mix ingredients readily available but I didn't think I could water every day, so, I used the 511 ratio with the fir bark, granite, and turface thinking that the 5 parts of bark would retain more water. I may not have accomplished my goal, or I may not have the correct watering/fertilizing schedule. I may have may some other mistake, as well. I would appreciate any comments from those more experienced. Thanks in advance to all who have time from re-potting to answer. I use my modified 511 mix for 2 very young citrus, one Meyer Lemon, and one Mexican Lime. These had nearly died off the first winter due to frost as well as having been in overly large containers (halved wine barrels) in potting soil with very little drainage. They responded well to being in the new mix, I also put them in smaller plastic containers about half the size of the wine barrels but these may have been too big as well as far as watering goes. The mop string was moist at the bottom of the container but the mixture may have been dry where the plant roots actually were. Over the summer, however, the leaves started turning yellow. I had been fertilizing with MG 12-4-8 and occasionally with Epsom salt. At the end of the summer, I added a liquid Bloom product for citrus and the leaves responded but no flowers. This winter they have done better. I kept them from frost and have continued with the same water/fertilizer (once a week) and they are both now producing blooms and fruit. Very mild winter here this year. I'm concerned that with the advent of summer conditions, I may not be watering enough or have the proper fertilizer. The plastic containers the citrus are in have a decorative lip which is breaking off from my moving the containers under cover at night, and I'm starting to lose the soil at the top. I'm wondering if it is too late to re-pot now or would it be better to wait until later in the spring? Also, If I could re-pot now, would it be a good idea to use a smaller size container so as to avoid having the top of the pot dry out and the bottom still be moist? My other container plants are blueberry bushes which seem to be doing well in this mix except for one which went into the mix without removing the original soil. (I don't know what I was thinking!) Again, I wonder if I can re pot this one bush and remove the old soil or is it too late for that? With the mild weather conditions, these have been in bloom almost all of Feb. The blueberries were in smaller containers so I think the amount of water they got over the summer was the correct amount. I also used vinegar with the fert. After reading again the idea to use the wood skewers, I think that may be more helpful than the mop string at the bottom. Thanks for any advice. Ande
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greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
Hello!

You are right! I've used bark, perlite, and pumice, as well as combinations of bark, perlite,
pumice, and quartzite. I've also made true Gritty Mixes with bark, turface, and quartzite.

Perlite holds more moisture than granite, so it's not an exact substitution. When using Perlite,
less Turface is used to help reduce some of the extra water retention. I don't know the exact
ratios because Perlite sizes vary greatly. Coarse Perlite is best for this application, and it will
truly help cut down on the weight of your mixes/containers.

My variegated Lemon is currently in a mix of Perlite, Bark, Turface, and Quartzite,
and it is still remarkably lightweight.

Josh
mandarin1
Original Author
12 years ago
Hi Josh, thank you!

I was considering the pine, perlite and pumice? I thought since pumice holds less water than turface, and perlite holds more water than granite, whether I should stay at 1 part of each?

I happen to have some pumice, although now I see that it weighs slightly more than the turface....40 lbs / cubic foot vs. 35 lbs/ cubic foot. Lol, figures!

Mary
greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
Hello again, Mike and Mary :-)

Mary, you might find that the Pumice/Perlite will hold a lot of moisture in the mix.
But I think you should make a test-batch and see what you think of the texture and aeration,
then tinker with your ratios before committing your plants to the mix.

Are those figures for dry weight Pumice and Turface?
If so, I would expect the Turface to be much heavier when fully saturated with water.

Josh
mandarin1
Original Author
12 years ago
I think I'll use the Turface for my citrus, and since I'm not using the pumice, will try Al's recommendation. Al's reduces the Turface, just as you suggested. However, sounds like a test-batch of pumice/perlite might be just perfect for a Peace Lilly I'm thinking of moving into gritty mix, my first non-citrus plant to take the plunge! Win-win!

Yes, those were dry weights, good point about the difference when they're wet, I'd agree about the Turface. Thanks much!

Mary
gardenscents
12 years ago
I have Turface, chicken grit (granite) and Fafard soil mix which I believe has the bark in it. Also have perlite if needed. What ratio should I use? What should I NOT use?

Thanks - citrus ready for planting after an answer!

RuthAnne

PS Have close to 50 little dime to quarter size lemons on this tree.....:) Will I lose any? It's always either in flower or fruit so I never know when to pot!
mandarin1
Original Author
12 years ago
I'd avoid the soil and use bark if you're trying to make Al's gritty mix? You could also make a modified 5:1:1 mix using the soil and perlite, but again, that would require bark as well. But I'm not sure if that's your goal? Sounds like you need an answer pretty soon, so, if I can suggest? Start a new posting with the same question you are asking here, people may have some ideas for you...
greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
Hi, Gardenscents, which of the Fafard soil mixes do you have?

If it's one of the Heavyweight mixes - 51L, 52, or the Nursery Mix, in particular -
then you can probably just use that by itself this season. Keep an eye out for good
bark if you want to make the Gritty Mix in the future.

Try to time the re-potting between growth flushes of new leaves. This month or next is fine.
After re-potting, place your tree in a location protected from direct sun or wind for two weeks.
This will help limit the leaf-drop and will speed recovery of your tree. After two weeks, you
should also resume fertilization.

Yes, you may lose fruits during the stress of re-potting, but the tree will grow more.

Josh
mandarin1
Original Author
12 years ago
Just a follow up, had decided to try my new Meyer in "Gritty Lite", in 3 parts bark, 2 turface, 4 perlite. Dowel was bone dry and the tree was wilting the next day (yesterday). I thought maybe the terra cotta was absorbing some of the water even though both the mix and the planter were soaked. Watered it, tree perked up.

Today it started wilting again and the dowel was drier than I expected, barely damp. So I removed the tree and added turface and bark, back to 1:1:1, where perlite is substituted for granite. The tree perked up again and we'll see, fingers crossed. If asked my opinion, I'd say the 3:2:4 was wonderfully lightweight, probably too lightweight though, as the major component was perlite and it dried very quickly.

Lighter Gritty Mix questions?

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