What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Perlite

So I've been buying shultz perlite from walmart and it's been perfectly fine. Today though I noticed they had a different bag. It said the exact same things on it so I figured they'd just redesigned. Much to my surpise when I opened the bag there was dirt (not a ton but definetly noticable)mixed with the perlite. The bag says "ingredient: perlite" so I don't know why they'd put dirt in it. The only thing I can think of is that they're recyling perlite out of pots of dirt or adding dirt because it's cheaper than perlite. I guess I'll have to get the miracle grow stuff and wash it because i can't use this brand anymore and miracle grows the only other stuff I can find. This is probably just another case of a company trying to decrease production costs without considering the consumer.
 
A company asking for soil with perlite in it back? I don't think that is the case. That cost more in terms of sifting through and removing the perlite the best they can, and getting donations or recycling perlite... I can't imagine that is in the realm of possibility.

I certainly wouldn't buy the miraclegro stuff instead.

xvart.
 
Probably the company screwed up and put cactus mix in the perlite bags. Take note of the batch number on the bag and take it bag. Try to find a bag with a different batch number. If not you'll have to go with sand or pumice for now.

In a pinch you can get perlite from Andrew.
 
If you have any actual garden centers near you I'd suggest getting a big sack of Cottage Home Pro Perlite or some such brand. It's cheaper (per dry quart) and will last you a long time. I usually go through a couple big sacks a year with all my summer garden potting and Datura sales - never had anything but perlite show up in the bags.
 
A company asking for soil with perlite in it back? I don't think that is the case. That cost more in terms of sifting through and removing the perlite the best they can, and getting donations or recycling perlite... I can't imagine that is in the realm of possibility.
I can't really imagine that either but it just doesn't make sense all around. Theres not enough dirt for it to be a catus mix or something. It also doesn't seem like it would save them any money to add so little dirt to the perlite. So short of adding dirt for the fun of it it's the only reason I could think of for shultz to add dirt to their perlite.
I attached a pic of the stuff
 
Have you gotten it wet, will it actually smear like wet dirt or is it just dark solid clumps of some other mineral?
 
When I put some in water the perlite floated on top and sandy dirt and peices of bark like stuff sank to the bottom. There was enough dirt to turn the water light brown. It was kind of like what happens when you wash vegetables like leeks that grow in sandy soil.
 
Yeah, I just got to this, lol, but I was waiting to get to the bottom, as I read, to suggest doing this. All the crap would sink and you can harvest the floating perlite, rinse it to make sure the foreign stuff is gone and use it.

Cheers,

Joe

When I put some in water the perlite floated on top and sandy dirt and peices of bark like stuff sank to the bottom. There was enough dirt to turn the water light brown. It was kind of like what happens when you wash vegetables like leeks that grow in sandy soil.
 
Cool, at least it was salvagable.
 
  • #10
The same exact thing happened to me once, years ago. It was dirt! I contacted the company, explained that I was growing CPs, and they refunded my money.
 
  • #11
I wouldn't use it even after rinsing to remove the other stuff. There's no guarantee that it's free of fertilizer.
 
  • #12
I'd take it back for a refund also.
 
  • #13
So I've been buying shultz perlite from walmart and it's been perfectly fine. Today though I noticed they had a different bag. It said the exact same things on it so I figured they'd just redesigned. Much to my surpise when I opened the bag there was dirt (not a ton but definetly noticable)mixed with the perlite. The bag says "ingredient: perlite" so I don't know why they'd put dirt in it. The only thing I can think of is that they're recyling perlite out of pots of dirt or adding dirt because it's cheaper than perlite. I guess I'll have to get the miracle grow stuff and wash it because i can't use this brand anymore and miracle grows the only other stuff I can find. This is probably just another case of a company trying to decrease production costs without considering the consumer.

You don't have any nurseries around you? Home Depot? Lowes? If none of those are around, you can probably mail order it cheap since it's extremely lightweight, like from the forum owner's shop as previously mentioned.

Personally I don't like the looks of perlite. I think I may switch to some sort of sand like some people use next year for drainage and aeration. It should be more aesthetically pleasing. I still have a bunch left in the first bag I bought though.
 
Back
Top