Nice! Thank you for sharing.

Hi asaund,
I'm more than happy to share! I hope others will find it useful.

I got a notice this morning that my order will ship today! That was fast!

JoJocolor>

Add that to your collection of friends!

Congrats Jodi!

I know how you feel. That is the way I felt when I finally found the 'uncomposted bark', at the perfect size too..lol

Good of you to share:-)

Mike

Jojo that's great! That's the right size for sifting bark right?

Thanks for sharing the info...

Hi Mike and Nancy!

Mike~ All I need to do now is find the perfect bark to go with the sieve. ;-)

Nancy~
Yes it is for the bark.
If using pine bark, it's good to use 3/8" to 1/8" for the gritty mix, due to the pine being a more flat bark. (If I remember correctly. ;-) )

It can also be used for the 5-1-1.

I've been using a 1/2" for the 5-1-1 and don't like the big chunks! so I was real happy to find this!

I got a small set from a bonsai supply store online of the other sizes of wire, but the 3/8" has been a nightmare to find! lol!

JoJo

Great link, JJ. I bet you'll like that a lot better than the smaller one you've been using. ;-)

Al

Hi Al~
Thanks!
It will make life a little easier. ;-)

I will be helping a friend soon remove rock from an area she wants turned into a garden, so it will come in handy for that too!

It came today! Very heavy! Well made!

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My nosy cat needs to give his approval. lol

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JoJocolor>

Hey Jojo!!! Cute cat!

I have a few questions for teh inquisitive ones.

What is your personal illimination process of unwanted bark sizes?

What will you do with the bark that falls through?

What will you do with the bark that does not fall through?

With the bark that falls through, will you resift it again to get the smaller/fine particles out?

How many times do you sift one batch of bark at a time to get the perfect size for the gritty mix?

Beautiful screens might I add. Great deal and thank you for helping many here to understand the concept of sifting and teh proper way/ or your desired way of doing it!
I have a friend looking into purchasing from them because of this wonderful thread.

Happy Friday!:-)

Mike

Hi Mike!
Thanks, :-) That's Goober. Worlds biggest pain in the butt, spoiled brat, love bug. lol...

My process? I guess you could say I'm a organized mess. lol..

I have been sifting a bag of bark twice to make sure to get all that I can use out of it.

I make different mixes for the different types of plants and where they are. Inside or out..

I'm mainly using pine bark, and because it's more flat in nature, 3/8" to 1/8" is O.K. for the gritty mix, and 3/8" to dust is O.K. for the 5-1-1.
(1/2" to dust can be used for the 5-1-1 too, but I don't like the bigger pieces of bark)

If using fir bark, 1/4" would be used for both mixes.

The left over bark that does NOT go through becomes mulch. As you know, I tired to break it down for use in the mix in my blender, but that did NOT work so well. lol! I have 3 garden beds, and I like to mulch containers too. We do get hot here. ;-) So none goes to waste.

A few pieces have also been thrown in the grill to help get it started, sap wood too ;-). lol.

What DOES go through the 3/8" will be sifted over 1/8" to remove all the smallest particles. That is set aside and used in various ways. It's great for seed cover in the garden beds, or added back to the bark for the 5-1-1 instead of peat.

After the very small has been removed like mentioned above I will have clean bark ready for different needs.

If it's a very small container, like for a succulent, I like to sift it over 1/4"(and use 1/4-1/8")I don't like or want large pieces of bark in a 3" pot, and my plants do fine with it. If it's to be used for the 5-1-1 It will be ready to use, and I would add back in the less than 1/8" pieces, to powder, in place of peat.

O.K. , so does this make sense? I haven't had my coffee yet. ;-)

I'm glad to hear this has been of some help to some of your friends!

JoJocolor>

Make sense?

Not to me, but to my friends, yes!.lol

Yes perfectly said Jojo and thank you so much for sharing your proceedure! I would say one definately has to set time aside to get this done for sure!

No wonder Al starts sifts his turface on nice days through the winter, and I sift on nice days in winter too.
I accumilate all my ingredients into different buckets over the weeks leading up to transplant season, and what an relief to be able to have some gritty mix and the 5.1.1 mix readily available at any time I get a new plant!

Your explanation was so thorough and well appreciated by me as with my friends my friend Jojo!

Love your Goober!;-) too bad you couldn't get him to help, right? It could keep him out of trouble, or just another pile to pee in...lolol

Mike:-)))))))

Happy sifting!:-)

Hi Mike!
The only help I could expect from Goober would be swatting bark around and playing with it. ;-) He does make a good paper weight though. lol..

JoJocolor>