sand vs. perlite

[+Vibes]

as the title says... i have about 40% sand in my native soil, do i need to add perlite or is that just a waste of money?

 

[bentom187]

in my experience too much sand isnt good it turns the soil into a crusty type material makes it hard for the roots to grow.and it gets this way espeacially in a dry spell.id throw in the perlite for shiggles.i had it in a pot though.

 

[Xtensity]

I'm not sure you can compare sand to perlite really..... when sand is wet it gets compacted, plus a lot of sand can filter out some nutrients as you are watering, which you don't want. Perlite does the opposite of what sand does(from what I know, correct me If I am wrong). Perlite will increase airation in your soil and increase drainage.

 

[+Vibes]

thanks for the input...

In essence, perlite is a lightweight substitute for sand.

is what i seem to be seeing around the internets,,, and i have a health bit of sand already there
i am also amending the holes i'm digging with a 40# bag of compost, a 10# bag of ewc, and about 10gal of peat moss... just looking for good texture/drainage

 

[stratmandu]

I have fairly sandy soil and never add perlite. Haven't missed it. I add compost, EWC, ferts/minerals, and lime.

 

[.clunk]

I figure that perlite can't hurt; I'm growing in fairly similiar soil and will be amending with 35% peat moss and 15% perlite as well as some lime and perhaps some chicken poop.
Perlite is cheap (cheaper than bales of soil anyways) and weighs next to nothing so carrying it into the site is easy too.
In my observations (digging holes in my native soil) the sand does drain well, but it still get's fairly compact after watering.

 

[microgram]

Sand and perlite do add porosity to the soil, don't forget. It's good to have a combination of both, but is sand ever freaking heavy, holy cramoly.

 

[ISP_SmokeTrain]

Having too much sand (more than 25 %) will work against you in two ways. First sand holds no water. Second sand holds no nutrients. Plants need both of those to survive & grow, so it's time to amend your soil. The addition of 20 % perlite and 20 % sphagnum peat moss, would do wonders for your plants. I also think no soil mix should be without worm castings, 10 % works real well.

 

[+Vibes]

thanks for the advice everyone. i will be digging and mixing tomorrow sans perlite... will evaluate then. if it looks thick and compact, will mix some perlite in. and while perlite is nice and light and relatively cheap, those 4cuft sleeves are huge! major pita hiking a mile through thorny woods with em... maybe i'll scoop some pics

 

[madb]

Having too much sand (more than 25 %) will work against you in two ways. First sand holds no water. Second sand holds no nutrients. Plants need both of those to survive & grow, so it's time to amend your soil. The addition of 20 % perlite and 20 % sphagnum peat moss, would do wonders for your plants. I also think no soil mix should be without worm castings, 10 % works real well.

This is good advice. I would follow along the same path due to sand having no water retention and perlite does.

 

[.clunk]

thanks for the advice everyone. i will be digging and mixing tomorrow sans perlite... will evaluate then. if it looks thick and compact, will mix some perlite in. and while perlite is nice and light and relatively cheap, those 4cuft sleeves are huge! major pita hiking a mile through thorny woods with em... maybe i'll scoop some pics

my little trick with those big bags is to cut a tiny hole at the top and squeeze out all the air you can inside, then seal it back up with tuck tape or duck tape; this makes it into a tight cylinder and it's a bit easier to carry. I usually double or triple bag it in garbage bags, don't want to leave a perlite trail to your patch if it rips open!

 

[hamstring]

All great advice but just to add something not mentioned that I saw. Sand has no water retention value but perlite does. People think it doesn’t retain water but it does have some water retention value. 2 cents.

 

[Freedom Fighter]

i've been growing along a river, the soil IS sand... like 70+%
reading the above posts make alot of sense, in paticular :
"the soil into a crusty type material makes it hard for the roots to grow."
&
"the sand does drain well, but it still get's fairly compact after watering."

both very true.

I have to amend the soil with large amounts of organic matter and nutrients.... this year i will be mulching as well. Rain causes a large amount of splash-up (mud over young plants/on bottoms of plants).
that is a problem for lowryders. a couple years ago i literally smoked as much sand as i did lowryder bud.... it was impossible to get all the sand out.

mulch will be a mix of dried hay/grass & dried leaves, hydrated with a high nitrogen organic fertilizer (so it doesn't suck the nitrogen away from the plants, and decays fast/helps the plants)

 

[D.S. Toker. MD]

I grow in river bottom black sand- Im guessing its 60% sand /40% black silt which equals sandy loam, the natural and ultimate medium for cannabis and the soil that indigenous cannabis seeks out to grow in . Every year i'll have a couple of volunteer plants come up from a seed that dropped from the previous crop. About 3 years ago, i failed to notice a blueberry male in time and the next spring i didnt have to plant a single plant in the patch because so many volunteers came up in the spring. I just thinned them out and waited until july to cull out the males. 10 ft tall pounders and not a single drop of ferts over the season.

 

[Spanishwilly]

Consider bricks of coco to amend that soil. It's airy, but will hold water. Also, it's easy to carry in, and rehydrate at the site. There's water nearby, right?
I like perlite for guerilla shit too by the way.

 

[grapeman]

I've farmed in sand my entire adult life. Sand alone has great drainage, but needs organic compounds or compost to a large degree. I was inoculating virgin sandy soil with myco some 20 years ago, but quickly found that without some life in the soil (compost, peat, manure etc.) it had zero effect. Once you have built your soil, I might use some perlite depending on your visual observations.

But all this really depends on what the other 60% of your native soil is composed of. If it is clay, you should use some perlite. 40% sand may sound like a lot but if the balance is clay or clay loam, that soil will close up quickly and you may have trouble getting O2 to the roots between irrigations. You've only given us 1/2 the information really.

 

[ClosetAdvocate]

I was always told that good soil when damp (not soggy) should be able to "stick" when squeezed in your fist but should crumble fairly easily.

I'd agree with some of the others that suggested amending the soil with more organic material. You might also try digging a 1' diameter hole, filling it and timing how long it takes to drain. It should be around 5 minutes if I remember right. If it's too short then it needs more water holding capability (i.e. organic material) if it's too long then it needs to be lightened (i.e. perlite or sand).

I like the coco coir idea. One 500 gram brick makes almost 5 gallons of the stuff when wet.

Edit: subscribed.

 

[+Vibes]

i'm in the midwest. the other part of the soil is a nice dark loam. maybe 10% clay in places, but nothing i worry about. i also noticed while digging that the higher placed holes had a lot more sand, and the lower ones a bit more clay/loam. sand is heavy!

i have 15 holes planned for the spot and got ten dug out the other day. still no perlite, but i did hike in coco bricks. placed them in a big laundry bag and put them in a nearby stream while i dug (the perfect rinse!). i dug 20-30gal holes and used about 5 gallons/hole of sand/native soil in my mix. i ended up with a nice spongy- on the heavy side, hole. the biggest pain was mixing 3 holes at a time on a tarp with all that sand, it was hard to get even texture. i'll for sure need a pitchfork on my next visit out.

i'll let the rains do their job this weekend and evaluate in the coming days. the last 5 holes i'll be replacing 100% with peat/compost/ewc/coir/perlite for a nice comparison. that is, if the other holes don't look like they need more air.

thanks for all the input, i'll have pics soon!

 

[OrganicMonkey]

Sand drains very well, it does hold in moisture but nothing like what it enjoys draining out fluids. I'd focus on some compost, humus and shredded coconut shells, perlite then nutrients.