Questions tagged [vermiculite]

For questions about the usage of Vermiculite, a soil additive that increases water and nutrient retention and aerates the soil.

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Square meter gardening Soil Mix

The Square meter garden soil mix is a third each of compost, peat moss and vermiculite. I have assumed that in the UK since most of our composts are around 50% peat moss I could just do: 2/3 compost and 1/3 Vermiculite. It was recently pointed out…
Morgan
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Can I compost vermiculite?

I've read online that you can compost perlite without a problem, and it actually has some benefits. I couldn't find information online that says that composting vermiculite is okay. I know it is generally added to soil and has many benefits, but I…
Roman
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For square foot gardening: Can I skip vermiculite seed sprouting, and plant straight in Mel's Mix?

In the Square Foot Gardening book, they suggest sprouting seeds in pure vermiculite and then moving those to seed trays w/ Mel's Mix until they're ready to be transplanted outdoors. The vermiculite-seed-sprouting step seems like a lot of hassle, so…
Shpigford
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Perlite and Vermiculite sustainability

Are perlite and vermiculite sustainable? For potting mixes, I have to use quantities of perlite and vermiculite. But I am concerned about their sustainability, and how they are obtained.
Aksh
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Does peat moss negate the effects of perlite?

I am repurposing a fire pit into a raised garden bed. From my readings, it seems like the popular soil mixes for raised garden beds include peat moss, compost, topsoil, and vermiculite. I have the first three ingredients, but I am lacking the…
JoJo
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Factors to consider when choosing between Perlite and Vermiculite for improving drainage in raised beds?

My local community gardening organization gave me plans and instructions for constructing and filling a raised bed. They said to use half top soil and half compost, in layers. I foolishly did not follow the instructions, and instead used a local…
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Can "Attic Insulation" vermiculite be used in the garden?

I'm looking for sources for vermiculite to try out a bit of square foot gardening this season. I found one at menards but it says it's for attic insulation. It also says there's no formaldehyde (which I guess is a little bit of a low bar for…
Peter Turner
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Vermiculate has a bad history of being tainted with asbestos; what about perlite?

I avoid vermiculite because of its horrible history of being tainted with asbestos. Wikipedia states that, nowadays, vermiculite is supposed to be tested for asbestos, but knowing a bit about testing procedures, politics, and greed, I have my…