Substrates & Growing Media — Plagron

Everyone choosing a substrate looks at structure and almost nobody at what is already in it. Yet that is the question that shapes your first weeks: a pre-fertilised soil feeds the plant for a while on its own, and a light mix does not. Starting to feed on the wrong day is one of the easiest ways to put a cycle out of step.

The soils

Lightmix with perlite is the light end: little pre-fertilisation, so you are steering from early on. Super Mix sits at the other end of that scale. Which suits you depends on how much you want to be at the wheel. Anyone running a complete feeding schedule gets on fine with a light mix, and sometimes benefits more from there being little in it than from a rich soil that brings its own schedule with it.

Coco and clay

Cocos Brix are pressed coco blocks you swell with water, convenient for storage and shipping. Euro Pebbles are clay pebbles for hydro and for the bottom of a pot, and perlite mixes air into a soil that stays too dense.

Two products that look alike and are not

Take care with the sowing products. The Seedbox contains its own booster used at a strong dilution, while Seedbooster Plus is a concentrated product dosed by the drop. The names resemble each other and the dosages are orders of magnitude apart. Applying one product's instructions to the other does not put you slightly out. Read the dosage on the packaging in your hand, even if you think you know it.

Organic amendments

Bat Guano, Mega Worm and Calcium Kick are soil improvers you mix through the medium rather than dissolve in feed water. They work slowly and do not disappear at the first flush, which is an advantage if you want to grow organically and a drawback if you want to correct quickly.

Frequently asked questions

When do I start feeding on Lightmix?
Earlier than on a pre-fertilised soil. Watch the plant rather than the calendar, and take your pot size into account.

How much water does a Cocos Brix need?
That is on the packaging and differs per size. Let it swell fully before planting.

Can perlite be mixed into any soil?
Yes, and it is the simplest correction for a soil that stays wet too long.