If indoor plants had a say, coconut soil should not be missing in the potting substrate. Waterlogging, disease and pest infestation lose their terror when coconut fibers show their strengths. Read this guide on how to use coconut hum correctly for your green and blooming room beauties.
Orchids in particular benefit from coconut substrate
Unsuitable as a sole substrate
The term coconut soil is unfortunate because it does not contain soil. In fact, it is only fibers from the coconut shell, pressed into practical and space-saving bricks. Thanks to the following advantages, coconut fiber substrate is on the rise in environmentally conscious plant care:
- Ideal peat substitute for all substrates
- Best water retention ability
- Problem-free rewetting, even after complete drying out
- Thermally sterilized and free from all kinds of pathogens
- Perfect root aeration due to loose structure
The natural product has no nutrients in its luggage, so it is not suitable as the sole substrate for indoor plants. Coconut hum is fertilized and mixed with potting soil so that green and flowering potted plants can enjoy the convincing properties. The following lines reveal how it works.
Natural building block for pot substrates
By enriching conventional potting soil with coconut soil, a premium quality potting medium is created. It is important to supplement missing nutrients and to find the right mixing ratio. How to do it right:
- Unpack the humus bricks and place them in a bucket
- Mix 4 liters of lukewarm water with mineral liquid fertilizer according to the manufacturer's instructions
- Pour over the humus bricks and leave to swell for 20 to 60 minutes
- Knead the swelling coconut soil repeatedly with your hands
- Meanwhile, sterilize moistened potting soil in the oven at 100 degrees for 30 minutes
Mix ready-made coconut soil and cooled potting soil in a ratio of 1:1. Most indoor plants like to stretch out their roots in this mix. Phalaenopsis and other orchids appreciate adding a handful of coconut hum as an organic building block for orchid soil. Furthermore, your indoor bonsai will appreciate it if fertilized coconut fibers provide airy conditions in the tightly dimensioned pot substrate.
tips
Environmentally conscious hobby gardeners prefer coconut soil as a growing substrate for vegetables and tomatoes. Humus bricks consist solely of renewable raw materials that offer ideal growth conditions for seedlings. Airy, loose structure, excellent resistance to mold and the best water storage pave the way from seedling to vital, high-yielding useful plant.