Choosing the correct House Plant Compost
Having the right sort of soil for your houseplants is an essential part of plant health and well being. Get the wrong sort of compost and your plants are going to struggle (slowly) and they'll never flourish into the specimens that you hoped for. So what is the right type and what is the wrong type?
It can be quite confusing. The first thing you need to aware of is when you're buying a plant, the compost that it's been grown in may not be the best soil for it to stay in. Greenhouses are humid and have great air movement and this is in complete contrast to our home environment which is tyically much dryer and no air movement! This means the soil that comes with a houseplant is suited to the greenhouse environment and not your home.
We're lucky now that we have brands that are tayloring house plant compost for different species of plants. We're a big fan of Soil Ninja which sells a range of different types of soils specific for certain plants.
If you have a Calathea - there's a specific soil for that. What about a Monstera? There's one for that. Maybe a Bird of Paradise - you guessed it, there's one for that too. So when it comes to repotting, you're able to choose the exact type of soil needed for a specific plant.
Let's dig deeper...
Maybe you have a Ficus? This Ficus blend from Soil Ninja is a true mix of soil properties.
The sand allows for a loose soil with plenty of drainage, whilst the high Coco coir content and Bark allow for a medium of moisture retention. The mix is incredible versatile in its ingredients and grade size in order to cater towards the variety of sizes of Ficus plant collectors can own.
How about a Monstera & Philodendron Blend? What makes this special or different?
This is blend combines the perfect levels of chunky aeration with medium moisture retention. Our Coarse elements of Bark, Zeolite, Pumice and Perlite mean there are plenty of air chambers in the mix perfectly suited to the medium/thick roots of Monstera and Philodendron. As tropical plants they do prefer medium moisture retention in our homes, meaning the mix will stay lightly moist for about a little over a week, and will slowly dry off to allow your plant time to get used to a short dry period before re-watering.
So you can see how these taylor made soils wil really benefit your houseplant.
Let's keep going...
Alocasia's are all the rage at the moment and rightly so. With their BEAUTIFUL long leaves and stylish colours, to make them really pop and look their best, use the right soil from Soil Ninja.
The Premium Alocasia Blend contains a variety of moisture retaining elements. To balance the soil plenty of aerating components are present in the blend to allow for excellent oxygen supply to the roots. We have added bark to this mixture too to provide organic material for the beneficial microbes, bacteria and mycelium to feed from which in turn creates a healthy underground ecosystem for the plant to root into.
There's 100s of Calathea & maranta species available and some very exotic. Keep them looking their best when you repot them with Soil Ninja Calathea & Maranta Blend and here's what you need to know about their mix and how it differs:
This is a highly aerated, highly moisture-retaining mixture. The blend has gigantic quantities of small air pockets to suit the fine roots of Calathea and Maranta. The extra aeration also aids in allowing new shoots to emerge from the soil as well as creating an extra safety net against root rot. The moisture retaining elements such as Vermiculite, Zeolite and Coco coir mean there is less risk of accidentally under watering and causing these dramatic plants to droop or become crispy.
Whilst their range goes on, let's finish up with one final one, their Fern Blend. Typically Ferns are found at the bottom of tropical forests where there's lots of moisture, nutrients and LOTS of roots. Soil Ninja have a unique mix for this with their Premium Fern Blend:
This is a highly nutritious and well-draining mixture. Given that Fern have very primitive, hair-thin roots, sand is a very important component in creating micro-passages for the roots to crawl through. Alongside this, the doubled amount of worm castings with a high Coco coir portion means this mix is fertile and moisture retentive. The sand creates tiny pockets of air for the roots as well as superior drainage, while the Perlite scatters larger air chambers throughout the pot. The Zeolite present in the mix will also hold a lot of the nutrients when watering, allowing the roots to feed for longer.
Overall, it's essential to give your plants the right soil so that they can flourish in the long run. Most plant parents will only repot every couple of years so it's well worth doing properly and if you do, you'll certainly reep the rewards.
