0:00
Employing the right soil for your plant is critical to keep it alive and healthy. Carnivorous
0:06
plants are very unique in which type of media they require to stay healthy. I have been growing
0:12
carnivorous plants for several years and in today's video I'm going to share with you all of what I
0:17
know about carnivorous plant soil, how to make it, where to get it and specific recipes. So let's
0:24
start from the beginning let's talk about rule number one never employ a standard potting media
0:31
standard potting soil such as miracle grow for your carnivorous plants any of these blends contain
0:38
tons of fertilizers tons of minerals that are extremely harmful for carnivorous plants
0:43
if you do employ any of these plants your plant will die very very quickly regardless if it's a
0:49
living in a flytrap, a pitcher plant, a sand dew, it doesn't really matter
0:54
Carnivorous plants need nutritionless soil with no minerals, with no additives, no fertilizers
1:01
For the reason is you must always employ carnivorous plant soil. But what is carnivorous plant soil
1:08
Well its composition might vary throughout manufacturers and through experts to what they recommend but in general it is a mixture of components that are completely pure that do not contain any type
1:21
of additives, any type of minerals, that can retain appropriate moisture and also provide
1:27
some drainage for your plant. Some very common elements in carnivorous plant soil
1:32
it's peat moss, long-fiber spagdom moss, silica sand and pearlite. And actually today I'm going
1:40
to be using three of these elements to make two different blends. You can buy ready-made carnivorous
1:47
plant soil online or you can make your own. I have added a bunch of links in the description of this
1:53
video to make sure that you buy the correct components or the correct soil that will keep
1:58
your plants healthy and if you buy the elements i will give you instructions so you can make your
2:04
own soil a very common practice within the community is to mix one type of moss with one
2:10
type of element for drainage like for example peat moss and perlite or peat moss and silica sand
2:18
the peat moss or just moss in general will keep a lot of moisture and the perlite or the sand will help break up that moss provide some aeration some drainage and also avoid soil compression
2:34
And if you are like me and you tend to overwater plants, it will really help you avoid root rot
2:40
Technically, you can plant almost any carnivorous plant in pure peat or pure long-fiber spagnum moss and that will work
2:49
but employing pure moss doesn't really provide all the benefits and for that I always recommend
2:56
adding some perlite, adding some sand to your moss. So today we're going to be making two blends
3:03
We're going to be mixing the peat moss with perlite and long fiber sphagnum moss with perlite
3:10
The ratio is a 50-50 ratio. This is something that I like to use to provide that
3:16
aeration and that drainage but you do not need to use that much perlite or that much silica sand
3:22
as long as at least 20% of your blend is that perlite or that sand then you will still be
3:29
providing many of those benefits. To combine those elements is actually extremely easy
3:34
just get a large bowl pour those two elements that you want to use and then use your hands to combine it together if you are not planning to use that soil right away i recommend to grab a ziploc bag and just
3:49
seal that soil inside the bag and store it in a dry location but if you're going to use it
3:55
then employ pure water such as distilled water arrow water or rain water to moisten that soil
4:03
and only when it's moist and all throughout then you should consider potting your plant
4:08
the blends that i've made are actually extremely similar and it's really your personal preference
4:14
if you want to employ peat or long fire spagnum moss or perlite or silica sand but also consider
4:20
the availability around your area maybe some elements are very easy to find while some others
4:25
are extremely hard and you might have to ship it from online and it may take several weeks to arrive
4:31
and you need it today. Let me know in the comments which type of carnivorous plant media you prefer
4:37
if you have any tips or maybe even any questions. I'll make sure to answer them. Also, I really
4:42
appreciate if you can like this video. You really help me spread this information to more and more
4:48
people. And if you're interested in carnivorous plant growing, I invite you to subscribe to the
4:53
channel. Thank you so much for watching
