2x? "sifted" media? Treat media before using?

[nogreenthumbs]

Thanks

[ShadePlant]

I dry mine in a brownie pan lined with wax paper. I tend to buy much larger boxes of mix now that I have more orchids though. When I use a mix with lots of dust I just tend to pick through it and take what I want out then I rinse it in a colander. or just soak it in a bowl and grab the mix out. What is left in the bottom of the bowl I throw on my outside plants. They don't seem to mind. If it's raining hard I have also flushed it down the toilet before.

[Mountaineer370]

Originally Posted by nogreenthumbs

OK, I don't have an outside space or gear to sift the dust out. Should I just put what I'll need in a pot and rinse the crap out of it before I use it for potting?

I'm a "put it in a pot and rinse the crap out of it" person. To me, it makes more sense to plant in clean media from the get-go instead of relying on just flushing the pots to rinse that dust out.

Originally Posted by nogreenthumbs

It should be mostly charcoal and perlite dust, I assume, both of which sound like they would not be great to be caked around roots.

FWIW, I don't think it would be great to inhale that stuff, either. Use caution and pour very slowly. Yesterday, I was making a batch of homemade potting mix for African violets, and when I added the perlite, a big white cloud of dust flew up. I stepped far away until it settled. I haven't used charcoal, but I'm guessing it's pretty dusty, too.

[nogreenthumbs]

Originally Posted by Mountaineer370

FWIW, I don't think it would be great to inhale that stuff, either. Use caution and pour very slowly. Yesterday, I was making a batch of homemade potting mix for African violets, and when I added the perlite, a big white cloud of dust flew up. I stepped far away until it settled. I haven't used charcoal, but I'm guessing it's pretty dusty, too.

I agree. Perlite especially, is supposed to be a type of obsidian which is volcanic glass. The make-up of perlite is something like 70% silicon dioxide. I would assume that the perlite dust will be "sharp" which would work it's way into the lung tissue. Also, back when I was doing DIY stuff around the house, anything that had silica as a powdered ingredient (grout, mortar, cement, etc...) always had inhalation warnings for cancer. Just another reason why rinsing the stuff down with water seems like a good idea.

[Orchid Whisperer]

Originally Posted by Egrigby

I have never heard of anyone having to sift Orchiata, it's a premium brand and they don't use fillers as far as I know?


Elaine

Orchiata is bark from a specific kind of tree (Pinus radiata). Orchiata is also treated as a brand name (there are other brands of the same kind of bark; arguably the same stuff). Like all barks, it will come in a variety of sizes after being sorted (seedling size, medium, coarse).

Douglas fir bark is another common bark used for orchids. I grow most of my orchids in Douglas fir bark. It can also be size-sorted, similar to orchiata.

[AnonYMouse]

DO NOT RINSE ORCHIATA!!!

You will be washing away $$$. It is coated with dolomite (I think).

[Orchid Whisperer]

Any mineral dust (dolomite or other) is likely to be washed away rapidly when routinely watering the plant. The solubility of dolomite is quite low, therefore washing it away won't be a great loss from a mineral nutrition viewpoint.

[Mountaineer370]

I should clarify my post above where I said I'm a rinse the heck out of it person. I have thoroughly rinsed Hydroton (expanded clay) pellets, as they come with a lot of orange dust on them. I have rinsed a batch of small fir bark I bought, as it was dusty and had a lot of small particles I didn't want included in my media.

I use Orchiata with nothing mixed in for my Phals, and I do not rinse that. I have found that to be the cleanest stuff I have ever bought. I personally like Orchiata very much. I know others will disagree. It does dry fairly quickly in my growing conditions and, in my experience, requires more frequent watering than some other materials. Since I have a small number of plants and I enjoy watering them, I'm okay with that.

[Dollythehun]

Going back to the OP. There was a lot of dust in the bag. Better safe than sorry. When I use a premium blend, I don't rinse or soak either. When I'm at the mercy of bagged product or I see a problem, as you all would do, I change my methods.

[nogreenthumbs]

Thanks everyone. You've provided me with lots of good information.