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Plants that don't "like" too much perlite?

7 years ago

I've heard it was either spider or snake plants, and I'm looking for anyone who knows for sure. Which plants have a lower tolerance for perlite? Google results are sparse.

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Lauren (Zone 9a)

7 years ago

I mix perlite with a bit of peat for growing plant cuttings or sick plants. Or, for a stable and more superior mix, bark, perlite, and a touch of peat. Perhaps check out Al's gritty mix or the 511?

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Comments (6)

jamilalshaw26
7 years ago
Spider.
D R thanked jamilalshaw26
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
7 years ago
Neither plant likes the fluoride that accompanies perlite and various forms of phosphate supplements, and that makes its way into tap water with the help of municipal water providers. Perlite isn't any sort of giant problem, but if you're making a bark-based medium you could substitute Turface or calcined DE for the perlite and do just fine. Also, using R/O or otherwise deionized water (rain water, snow melt, condensate from dehumidifiers and air conditioners, .... on plants known to be intolerant of fluoride is VERY helpful if avoiding spoiled foliage is your goal.

Also, according to a U of Arizona study I read recently, fluoride almost always gets the blame that more rightly belongs to impaired root function resulting from over-watering or a TDS level (mineral salts in the soil solution) too high. Using a soil that allows regular flushing of the soil and frequent fertilizing at low rates is the best way to relegate fluoride issues to nonissues. If you have the wherewithal to manage pH, keeping it above 6.5 is very helpful in reducing fluoride's solubility and availability.

Keep in mind that fluoride toxicity is accumulative in plant tissues and not reversible. If you have it in older foliage, it will always be an issue. Eliminating the source of fluoride or managing pH so it's unavailable will allow any new growth to be free of toxicity symptoms.

Al
D R thanked tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
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I wouldn't crush cans to use as ballast because water can get into the can and support all sorts of nasty bacteria and fungi that don't mix well with plants. Better would be empty soda bottles with the caps screwed on tight, or anything else that takes up space w/o holding water. Bricks make good ballast. If weight makes bricks a poor choice, think of old Tupperware turned upside down, or kids' plastic building blocks. Even overturned plastic pots are excellent at just taking up space. See figure D below. How much perlite is too much depends on what you're growing (some tendency toward fluoride toxicity in many cases - rinsing thoroughly and screening out the dust [use a mask] helps limit the amount of fluoride in perlite), what other ingredients make up the soil, how coarse it (the perlite) is, and whether or not you screened it. Al
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Lauren (Zone 9a)
7 years ago
Indeed. I have grown spider plants in pure perlite, and they were absolutely lovely. But I did water only with distilled water and flushed them regularly....
D R thanked Lauren (Zone 9a)
aruzinsky
7 years ago
Parboiled rice hulls (PBH) is a substitute for perlite but it visibly decomposes after 2 years, same as peat moss. In Hawaii, there is a crushed black volcanic rock that is widely used instead of perlite, but, I don't know its name or where you can buy it. It looks and feels like black perlite.

Incidentally, there is a kind of white mealy bug that camouflages itself on potted plants by looking like perlite that was splashed onto the plant. I would have never detected them, had I not used PBH instead of perlite.
D R thanked aruzinsky
D R
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks for all the detailed responses. I'm new at this, so I need to learn! At some point, I need to start making my own soil and working on perlite substitutes.

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