Saturday, March 12, 2011

No Dirt Needed Here

Did you know that you don't have to grow your houseplants in dirt? Essentially the dirt is just the medium holding the plant up and allowing the roots to pull nutrients through moisture. You can throw out the dirt, and insects and disease along with it! Many houseplants grow very nicely in a simple double pot with a simple water solution, sometimes called passive hydroponics. In hydroculture, special pebbles rather than dirt hold up the plant's stem and roots.

  • Plant or rooted cuttings

  • Clay-fired pebbles

  • Inner pot with slots

  • Water level indicator

  • Outer pot

  • Rinse the clay-fired pebbles to remove dust and minute pebble particles.


  • Transplanting from dirt - remove the plant from its dirt pot. Hold the plant at the base near the dirt and gently wiggle it out, dirt and all. Tapping the pot might help free the plant. Remove the dirt from the plant. Knock off loose dirt clumps. Hold under gently running, room temperature tap water to rinse of the remainder of the dirt. Trim off dead or extra roots
    Plant the plant. Cover the bottom of the inner pot with pebbles, about an inch. Place the plant on the pebbles, and spread out roots. Hold in place with one hand while pouring more pebbles around the plant roots up to the base. Tap the container to settle the pebbles, and then rinse under room temperature running tap water

    Finish and feed the plant. Place the inner container in the outer container, and fill the pot with nutrient solution until the water level indicator shows its full enough.

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