I've been asked by PM about the white stuff on top of my soil on some pics (see the thread in my signature for the pics!), what it is and why I am using it. We thought the info might be useful for a few among you, too so I decided to post the txt of my reply here:
The white stuff is bird grit/sand. You know, the stuff you use in bird cages. I always put a "handful" (depending on the pot size) on top for two reasons:
-it keeps mould away, that is especially useful indoors, nobody has ever seen mouldy sand I think
-it makes it impossible for certain parasites/insects to lay their eggs inside your soil. Their babies will eat the roots and very often, you can't tell until the plant is VERY damaged
Aside from that it contains lime so the soil gets a small free dose of it with every watering. Of course, you might as well use any kind of sand, but bird grit is not very expensive, available in small units and it is sterile.
Another benefit of it is that if you use it on top (very thin layer!!!) of your breeding pots, it helps the seedling strip off the seed without damaging the leaves.
The white stuff is bird grit/sand. You know, the stuff you use in bird cages. I always put a "handful" (depending on the pot size) on top for two reasons:
-it keeps mould away, that is especially useful indoors, nobody has ever seen mouldy sand I think
-it makes it impossible for certain parasites/insects to lay their eggs inside your soil. Their babies will eat the roots and very often, you can't tell until the plant is VERY damaged
Aside from that it contains lime so the soil gets a small free dose of it with every watering. Of course, you might as well use any kind of sand, but bird grit is not very expensive, available in small units and it is sterile.
Another benefit of it is that if you use it on top (very thin layer!!!) of your breeding pots, it helps the seedling strip off the seed without damaging the leaves.
