Coco coir is sterile meaning the only nutrients the plants will have access to is what you add to the coco. It works great though if you liquid feed fertilizer. It also drys out quick. Its used very often in hydroponic setups.
VoraciousTofu
Used to use this stuff for reptile habitats when I was a zookeeper. Person above is correct, it’s sterile. Other than that, it’s good substrate
Outrageous-Echo-2199
Dry amendments are great. Definitely recommend mixing in soil and or castings and perlite. Soil/castings give your medium that healthy biodiversity for your plant to thrive in.
BunnyButtAcres
It’s an essential ingredient in my garden soil since we’re in the high desert and have mostly sand for soil. The coco coir is not only mixed in to help the soil hold moisture but it’s also my “wicking medium” in my self watering planters because it’s got such a good capillary action.
mdgrower
Awesome! Thank you for your helpful comments!
emthewiser
Aside from working well for plants, it’s a great medium for composting toilets.
random_explorist
Anyone know the ph of this stuff? For example, is it a decent substitute for peat (slightly acidic) and planting blueberries?
Bonuscup98
Coconut coir is usually compared to peat. The problem with peat is that it takes thousands of years to accumulate and moments to cut out and put in a garden. Most of the peat used in the US comes from Canada. The problem with coconut coir is that it only comes from places that grow coconuts, mostly Southeast Asia, so tons of bunker fuel burned to ship it around.
As far as planting mediums go they’re both lovely. Lightens soil. Improves moisture holding capacity.
But they’re both environmentally terrible. Just have to decide which version of terrible you want.
Arpey75
If I am not mistaken it is quite high in salts too if it isn’t properly flushed before adding roots into the substrate.
I_only_read_trash
All you need are some bags of uncle bens rice, a few plastic tubs, and then you’re ready to gooooo.
didsomebodysaytrees
You’ll need to supplement calcium and magnesium on day 1 of the initial presoak. Also need to keep the pH below 7 for sure. Hose water won’t cut it for unamended coco. I run hydroponic Canna (the brand) 2-part nutrients in mine, and unless you’re running a drip timer it would be a bad choice for outdoor containers. Things will grow really fast in it initially, but if you’re not watering between pH 5.5-6.5, you will lock out the nutrients, maybe have too much salt buildup, and every other difficulty that requires accurate instruments to figure out.
11 Comments
Coco coir is sterile meaning the only nutrients the plants will have access to is what you add to the coco. It works great though if you liquid feed fertilizer. It also drys out quick. Its used very often in hydroponic setups.
Used to use this stuff for reptile habitats when I was a zookeeper. Person above is correct, it’s sterile. Other than that, it’s good substrate
Dry amendments are great. Definitely recommend mixing in soil and or castings and perlite. Soil/castings give your medium that healthy biodiversity for your plant to thrive in.
It’s an essential ingredient in my garden soil since we’re in the high desert and have mostly sand for soil. The coco coir is not only mixed in to help the soil hold moisture but it’s also my “wicking medium” in my self watering planters because it’s got such a good capillary action.
Awesome! Thank you for your helpful comments!
Aside from working well for plants, it’s a great medium for composting toilets.
Anyone know the ph of this stuff? For example, is it a decent substitute for peat (slightly acidic) and planting blueberries?
Coconut coir is usually compared to peat. The problem with peat is that it takes thousands of years to accumulate and moments to cut out and put in a garden. Most of the peat used in the US comes from Canada. The problem with coconut coir is that it only comes from places that grow coconuts, mostly Southeast Asia, so tons of bunker fuel burned to ship it around.
As far as planting mediums go they’re both lovely. Lightens soil. Improves moisture holding capacity.
But they’re both environmentally terrible. Just have to decide which version of terrible you want.
If I am not mistaken it is quite high in salts too if it isn’t properly flushed before adding roots into the substrate.
All you need are some bags of uncle bens rice, a few plastic tubs, and then you’re ready to gooooo.
You’ll need to supplement calcium and magnesium on day 1 of the initial presoak. Also need to keep the pH below 7 for sure. Hose water won’t cut it for unamended coco. I run hydroponic Canna (the brand) 2-part nutrients in mine, and unless you’re running a drip timer it would be a bad choice for outdoor containers. Things will grow really fast in it initially, but if you’re not watering between pH 5.5-6.5, you will lock out the nutrients, maybe have too much salt buildup, and every other difficulty that requires accurate instruments to figure out.