|
| I cannot find any local suppliers of Turface, and shipping costs are ridiculous. Same for clay pellets (Hydroton) and expanded shale.
So is there anything I can use instead? The only thing I could think of is one part of good quality potting soil (e.g. Black Gold) with added pumice, to go along with one part each of fine bark and grit. |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
- Posted by loveplants2 8b Virginia Beach, (My Page) on Wed, Aug 22, 12 at 17:41
| Hi Merlinus, S0me people use Napa Floor Dry part # 8822 for a subsitute for Turface.. I am sure you have a Napa Parts Auto Store somewhere around you? Try this and it might help!! Hope this helps... Laura |
|
| Thanks, Laura! Definitely have a local Napa, and they carry the product in 6-gallon bags. What proportion would I use in the gritty mix, along with bark and grit? |
|
- Posted by loveplants2 8b Virginia Beach, (My Page) on Wed, Aug 22, 12 at 18:29
| You are more than welcome!! I would use it as the same as 1 part Turface or Floor Dry to 1 part Grit to 1 part Fir/Pine bark for the Gritty Mix. Keep it like you normally would for the Gritty Mix 1:1:1 Laura |
|
| Heck, "floor dry" or oil-sorb or whatever is just kitty litter, which is probably cheaper. |
|
- Posted by red_chucks 5 (Chicago) (My Page) on Fri, Aug 24, 12 at 21:34
| Turface and NAPA 8822 are both calcined. That means fired at more than 600 degrees. [It's a word I learned reading Al's posts.] That helps make it stable when getting wet and drying indefinitely, and when freezing and thawing. Kitty litter is not calcined (nor are most cheap spill-cleaneruppers), which is why they turn into mush if you leave them outside. red_chucks |
|
| Aren't clumping litters fired? |
|
- Posted by greentiger87 none (My Page) on Sat, Aug 25, 12 at 10:48
| Clumping litters may be partially fired to give them some stability, but they wouldn't clump properly if they were calcined. There are some non-clumping cat litters that are marketed as "low-dust" or "lightweight" that may be calcined, but this can be difficult to determine without buying and testing (dropping in a cup of water, freeze/thawing to determine stability). There are some examples at the link below. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Cat litter as bonsai media
|
| Good link. Thanks! |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Container Gardening Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.