Zoo med hydroballs

[Orchitty]

So I have not used Hydroton or leca but have seen the videos and read people's experiences. Was at the local Petco earlier and saw some bags of clay balls called ZooMed HydroBalls. They're supposed to be used as a base layer that can hold underground water to increase humidity for reptile enclosures. Anyone used these for orchids?

[Ray]

If it is a Zoomed product, it'll probably be more expensive than buying LECA from somewhere else...

I haven't looked at it in a long time, but if I remember correctly, it's pretty much spherical, which might make a wobbly base for the plant, which isn't great. Other than that, I can see no reason it wouldn't be acceptable.

[Orchitty]

Originally Posted by Ray

If it is a Zoomed product, it'll probably be more expensive than buying LECA from somewhere else...

I haven't looked at it in a long time, but if I remember correctly, it's pretty much spherical, which might make a wobbly base for the plant, which isn't great. Other than that, I can see no reason it wouldn't be acceptable.

Cool. Not sure how it compares in price. The 2.5 lb Hydroballs bag was $9-$10. Just nice that it's easily accessible.

[reptilegrrl]

That's pretty pricey. These days you can buy leca on Amazon, that's about as accessible as it gets. I bought mine at Ikea though, it was $5.99 for 4.5 pounds.

[Orchitty]

Originally Posted by reptilegrrl

That's pretty pricey. These days you can buy leca on Amazon, that's about as accessible as it gets. I bought mine at Ikea though, it was $5.99 for 4.5 pounds.

Wow. That is better! Well, I'm one of those people that when I think of something, I often want to get it right then and there. Haha... Instant gratification. Good to know though. I'll definitely get the actual stuff if I ever want to change my medium.

[estación seca]

Go to a nearby hydroponics shop. They will have LECA, and you can support a local business. The cost will probably be less. They have all sorts of other things gardeners can use - fertilizer, grow lights, pots, rooting hormones. And they are knowledgeable, so you can learn from them.

[Salixx]

I have used the hydroballs on occassion thinner rooted plants in S/H or as substitutes for pebbles - they are infact LECA, just smaller grade than your average.

Other's have already said you can get LECA cheaper elsewhere - I got a bag that's the size of a 40lb bag of dog food for less than $30 on Amazon. A year later and I am not even half way through it

[Optimist]

I've bought them in a pinch. I started to like a brand I got on Amazon, because I had prime which was more like 5 pounds for 15 dollars. They were larger and had odder shapes so they had more air movement between them. They were made for the hydroponics industry. If you live in one of those bigger cities you can probably get a humongous bag at a hydroponics store. I am in a little town of 30K and no such thing exists around me.