Can you wash the fertilizer off of perlite?

15 years ago

None of the local stores near me sell non fertilized perlite, so I was wandering if there is any way you can wash the fertilizer off the fertilized bags of perlite. The only bags of perlite I can find locally is the miracle gro kind that says it is enhanced with liquid miracle gro with a strength of 0.01-0.06-0.01.

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Comments (7)

tommyr_gw Zone 6
15 years ago
I would use it. Try going a bit further away for normal perlite. I personally HATE when companies add all kind of crap to their potting mixes, etc. Miracle grow makes WAY too many types of potting soils and mixes IMHO....
petiolaris
15 years ago
I would get a spaghetti collander and put the Perlite in. Then rinse the daylights out of it.
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mcantrell
15 years ago
That brings up an odd question I have had. I don't have enough Distilled water to rinse through Perlite like that, is it safe to use standard tap water for the washing and rinsing processes? I would presume it would dry out before use (and thus, the tap water would be a moot point) but I'd hate to poison my plants before I even got them ready.
tommyr_gw Zone 6
15 years ago
I meant to say WOULDN'T use it!
telefotoguy
Original Author
15 years ago
I drove to a different county today and still could not find a store that sold the non-fertilized perlite. So when I got home I decided to check out amazon.com to see if they had some and they did It cost more ordering it off the internet but it will be worth it to have the right kind of perlite. Heres a link to the bag of perlite that I ordered, (I hope it is the right kind.)

Hoffman A H 8QT Horticult Perlite
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BQMKI8
mutant_hybrid
15 years ago
I would not use fertilized perlite nor wash it with tapwater. Either way, there would be something harmful to the plants in it. Even if you washed it with tap water and then let it dry, the minerals in the tap water would adhere to the perlite and you would wind up altering the Ph of your peat with lime and adding magnesium and calcium and all kinds of garbage to your potting mix. You could just go the safe route and buy premixed perlite and peat from an online specialist nursery.
mattmega4
14 years ago
Perelite is not the only way to go...I have heard from experts you can use Pumice or play sand...The only perelite i could find that is not miracle grow costs like 20 bucks and the bag is bigger than me..and id never use it..so i buy pumice which costs like 1.50..and i pour the entire bag into my peatmoss bag..its perfect..ive also added a little play sand into mix..and my CPs are doing great i have a VTF, sundew, and pitcher