well, it didn't upload my picture. It did on the preview. so hopefully, here is the picture.

Pretty little babies! And don't worry about them losing their flowers; they will bloom again when they're more mature. And again. And again... :-)

You might want to put your perlite in a baggie and hit it with something flat; it's pretty easy to crush.

That's a good idea. Cleaning the nut grinder was a pain.

If you use the perlite found in Big Box Stores like HD, Lowes and Wal-Mart, you don't need to crush it at all. Put it in a strainer, take it outside and run water through it.

I use extra coarse perlite (no dust) for 2.5"-6" planters and the BBS perlite to wick and in the 1.5" pots-only.

All of my plants that will fit, including tropicals and begonias, are in these planters in 2:1 perlite:MetroMix 366 (you can also use one of the heavy grades of Fafard). I use 1/4 strength Dyna Gro "Grow" formula (7-9-5) each refill. Once every six weeks or so I flush the planters until water runs clear to get rid of salt buildup.

Hope this wasn't TMI. :-)

Linda

Linda,

Where do you find extra coarse perlite?

Linda

Wow, this picture is ancient history. The scenery sure has changed since I took this! I got my perlite from Walmart.