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Post by Devon on Jul 25, 2011 21:57:30 GMT -5
Hello everyone,
I've looked in nurseries, Home Depot, and Lowes and could not find any horticultural pumice. If you have ever found pumice, let me know where!
On the other hand, my mom brought some pumice scrubber things home from the grocery store to see if they are the right stuff. I crushed them up and they seem legitimate. The only thing I'm worried about with these is that they might have chemicals in them of some sort...
I will get pics in a bit, if I find my camera.
Thanks!
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Post by Devon on Jul 25, 2011 22:07:10 GMT -5
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Post by bonfield on Jul 25, 2011 22:11:09 GMT -5
Do you have the manufacturer's contact info?
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Post by Devon on Jul 25, 2011 22:26:09 GMT -5
Do you have the manufacturer's contact info? lol, no. It just says "made in china" like everything else these days. That's what makes me a little more worried... perhaps I should just try it out and see if it kills the plants. One pot without pumice, and one with it.
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Post by H2O on Jul 26, 2011 7:32:35 GMT -5
I really think that you can use other materials that will do the same thing, some people use ingredients because they can get them everywhere or for really cheap. I pot 90% of my orchids is pure LFS every year because I can get it really inexpensive, as where other people will go with a different mix because LFS is expensive where they live.
Have you looks for places that sell stuff like sponge rock?
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Post by lloyd on Jul 26, 2011 13:34:19 GMT -5
Aquarium stores sell "lava" rock that I use.
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Post by dvg on Jul 26, 2011 14:21:07 GMT -5
It might be helpful to try contacting your local Bonsai Society or Bonsai Supplies Dealer.
There's a fellow in Edmonton that sells bonsai potting mix materials and part of his mix materials include one type of lava and two types of pumice.
I use these materials and a few of his others for my mexi-pings and in my Nepenthes composite media mixes.
dvg
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Post by Devon on Jul 27, 2011 13:41:46 GMT -5
Aquarium stores sell "lava" rock that I use. Would this have the same properties as pumice? Thanks for the help everyone, again!
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Post by lloyd on Jul 27, 2011 14:31:53 GMT -5
Lavarock is harder and has bigger cavities than pumice. Pumice will fall apart eventually in wet conditions. I use lavarock for aeration of soils (pings, heli's) and I find that roots like it.
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Post by Devon on Jul 27, 2011 14:41:51 GMT -5
Lavarock is harder and has bigger cavities than pumice. Pumice will fall apart eventually in wet conditions. I use lavarock for aeration of soils (pings, hel's) and I find that roots like it. Sounds good. Maybe I will try lava rock instead, for the Drosophyllum.
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Post by Apoplast on Dec 2, 2012 11:35:37 GMT -5
Good day everyone - Sorry to dredge up such an old thread but I have been searching for horticultural pumice ever since I moved away from the western States. There you could get it cheap, and it is so much better than perlite (because it doesn't break down over time and it holds more water while draining better). Plus, the intense white of perlite I find to be visually distracting in a soil mix. Recently my quest ended when I found a new product " Growstone"; it is man-made pumice! Pumice is just volcanic glass foam, and this stuff is made of recycled glass. They make it on the Albuquerque landfill using the methane from the landfill to fire the kilns. You really can't get more environmental than that. The stuff feels just like pumice, and is a reddish brown color making it look nice in a soil mix too. Okay, so I don't know if it is yet available in Canada, but you can apparently get it in all 50 states, which already makes it more acquirable than pumice. Anyhow, if you are looking for pumice it might be worth checking for this in Canada too. They make a large chunk version for hydroponics, and so stores catering to that hobby are good places to check. I know this was a pretty glowing review, but I assure you I have no association with the company. I am just excited to have an environmentally responsible version of my pumice back to use for growing plants.
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Post by 31drew31 on Dec 2, 2012 12:00:11 GMT -5
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Post by Apoplast on Dec 2, 2012 12:27:28 GMT -5
Hi Drew - Awesome, thanks for posting a link for Canada! I'm glad it's available in Canada too (it would have been a little silly for me to have posted something here about a product that was entirely unavailable in Canada). There seem to be two sizes that are commonly available, a large size for hydroponics - which is probably totally unsuitable for all but the largest CP's, and a smaller size which is slightly larger than the horticultural pumice I used to get - but the smaller size is a pretty good pumice substitute.
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Post by 31drew31 on Dec 2, 2012 12:54:38 GMT -5
All I could find on their website was the larger chunk stuff (link in my previous post) but I bet they have the smaller stuff as well, and if not could order it. The company selling it appears to have a location in Mississauga, ON and Langley, BC.
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Post by canuk1w1 on Mar 30, 2014 22:54:47 GMT -5
Good day everyone - Sorry to dredge up such an old thread but I have been searching for horticultural pumice ... +2 Found some! It'll cost about $CDN130 to get an 80lb bag from a Hess distributor in New England. I reckon I will order some in early summer after I get the veggies in the ground - and I free up some space. If anyone else (orchid geeks?) is interested PM me - Apoplast, this guy is in the US. Contact Hess and they can give you someone close to you. Hess are in Idaho.
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