Anyone have a comment?

1/4“ is what I use for perlite for 5-1-1. I sift out the dust, then screen out the smaller pieces & save those to mix in w/ my pine bark pieces that were too small, that I also sifted and saved. So those 2 things I use to make ”small grade 5-11” for my water hogs, such as ferns, pileas, flame violets, etc. (I suppose its not REALLY 5-1-1 at that point 😄) I’ll find the brand name of the new perlite I got this year, though I havent used it yet- refer to your NF Pine post- supply chain issues w/ pine bark, I guess. Being in CA, it might be easier for you to locate pine bark, since it seems pine trees are very proliferous there.

A 1/4" perlite sounds like a great size. So the smaller bark pieces and the smaller pieces of perlite work as a media for your other plants, for example, your ferns in containers?

You would think we in Canada could get bark fines. Nope! I have NEVER found anything close to it! All we have available are larger pieces of pine bark or pine bark mulch which seems to be an assortment of fine and shredded pine bark. There are no nice small bark pieces to be found!

Here is a picture of what I recently found at a nursery. It's not a good picture, but you can see the great variety of sizes and sap wood in this sample. I don't think it is worthwhile for me to go there to check it out. I think the picture speaks for itself.

Good to know you are having success with the 511 (or variation of it) with so many different plants.

I did make a 511 with orchiata bark but am worried that it doesn't hold enough water. It seems that the water just runs out. I hope I am not going to have plants dying of thirst! I've learned that the plants need oxygen, so my new media is going to give them that, but will they get enough water? That is the question.

Many of my plants in 5-1-1 mix are 7-8 yrs old! you just have to water or at least check them for moisture about every 3 days for smaller pots, like 8” or less; bigger plants like my majesty palms & Norfolk pines can usually get by at least a week before needing water again. If 5-1-1 dries out completely, it will need a good siaking or at the very least, run water through it a couple of times to rehydrate.

Yes when I water my plants, quite a bit of water runs out the drain hole. b/c there are no miniscule particles, such as there are in bagged soils, which hinder drainage, but but if you stick a chopstick or your finger way down into the pot, you’ll see that its damp.Damp but not water-logged and soupy.

In late spring/summer, if temps get above 85, I will have to water my smaller pots daily or every other day. The ones in the 8”-12” plastic (medium range) pots can usually get by w/ 3 days. If you worry about not having time to keep up w/ the frequent watering, you can use plastic pots, which should buy you a day or 2.

Rebecca, do you find that you can pot into slightly bigger pots because of the better aeration of the soil?

Yes. but I still try to aim for a few inches bigger at most.