Hi,

Does anyone know a catalog, where I can order charcoal for my indoor plants?

Thanks.

Barbara

Daniel V. Leonowich wrote:
Hi,

Does anyone know a catalog, where I can order charcoal for my indoor
plants?

Thanks.

Barbara


I'm not sure why you want it, but you can buy activated charcoal in the
aquarium aisle at Wal-mart or at any pet shop.

Best regards,
Bob

www.google.com and do a search.


On Sat, 27 Sep 2003 21:35:05 GMT, "Daniel V. Leonowich"
opined:

Hi,

Does anyone know a catalog, where I can order charcoal for my indoor plants?

Thanks.

Barbara

On Sat, 27 Sep 2003 21:35:05 GMT, "Daniel V. Leonowich"
wrote:

Hi,

Does anyone know a catalog, where I can order charcoal for my indoor plants?

Thanks.

Barbara


You could use activated aquarium charcoal.

I buy it by the bag from Carter & Holmes in Newberry SC because I go there
several times a year and don't have to pay shipping that way. Otherwise, any
place dealing in potting mixes (particularly orchid mixes) usually sells the
charcoal in several different sizes from small (to mix in with your mix to
large chunks for use in vanda baskets). Try http://www.orchidmix.com/
http://www.orchidsupplies.com/
http://www.tropicalplantproducts.com/index.html or
http://www.carterandholmes.com/index.html for starters. If all you want is a
very small amount then the above advice for aquarium gravel my be a better
idea.
Gary

"Daniel V. Leonowich" wrote in message
...
Hi,

Does anyone know a catalog, where I can order charcoal for my indoor
plants?

Thanks.

Barbara

"Daniel V. Leonowich" wrote in message ...
Hi,

Does anyone know a catalog, where I can order charcoal for my indoor plants?

Thanks.

Barbara

You could use hardwood charcoal sold for barbecue.
Put it in a feed sack and walk on it to crush it.
Outside of course!
Give it a good rinse too.

In article ,
(Beecrofter) wrote:

"Daniel V. Leonowich" wrote in message
...
Hi,

Does anyone know a catalog, where I can order charcoal for my indoor plants?

Thanks.

Barbara

You could use hardwood charcoal sold for barbecue.
Put it in a feed sack and walk on it to crush it.
Outside of course!
Give it a good rinse too.

Charcoal sold for barbecues has binders that are reportedly sufficiently
toxic to plants that it is not recommended for composts or garden soil
enrichment, so I would presume it would have the same problems in potting
soils. Horticultural charcoal is a cheap grade of charcoal, but no reason
to go for the highest grade "aquarium" charcoal which costs ten times as
much with no added benefit.

Of the more-or-less inert moisture-retaining potting soil ingredients,
perlite, vermiculite, peat moss, grated bark, & charcoal, serve the same
functions. Any of these, or mixtures thereof, can be excellent
addition(s) to potting soils especially for ferns, african violets,
pitcher plants, & others that are particularly sensitive to dryness. The
inert quality makes any of these especially good for pitcher plants or
orchids (than for ferns or african violets which also require a rich
soil). In tried-&-true recipes for "orchid" potting medium, charcoal is
frequently a component, not as a major ingredient however. Certainly
nothing wrong with it in such mixes, only that claims of amazing
additional values beyond that of the bark or peat or perlite are
baseless. Charcoal is sometimes used as a MAJOR component of inert soil
ingredients for orchids & epiphytes generally, but reports are confused,
some hobby growers claiming a great deal of charcoal harmed their plants,
others swearing they had good outcomes.

But any claims that charcoal has some benefit above moisture-retention are
baseless. Its only real value is porosity & if it is used for any other
reason, the purpose should be re-assessed; any claims of value above that
of sphagnum, bark, or perlite are either vendor bullshit or gardener
mythology. It does NOT lower the possibility of odor-causing bacteria;
does NOT "absorb odors" or "improve drainage" when put in the bottom of
pots before adding soil; it does NOT "retain Nitrogen for future use by
your potted plants"; it does NOT purify water by mixing it with soil; it
is NOT a soil enrichment per se & is NOT a good ssource of potasium
(unless first burned, then it loses its porosity value); it does NOT "ward
off plant diseases, parasites, insects, and slugs"; does NOT have a
special purifying quality when layered into non-draining terrariums; as a
surface-spread does NOT inhibit algae growth; it is NOT an anti-fungal
agent equivalent to sulfer or copper. All these claims made for charcoal
without foundation.

"Activated" charcoal sold in aquarium stores has an "activation" lifespan
(in aquaria filters) of about fifteen minutes & is by & large a
"traditional product for rubes!" besides rather expensive to adapt for
potting soils when no "activation" value actually exists. In aquariums the
fifteen minutes of "activation" requires water to be cycled through the
filtering charcoal repeatedly to have even that 15 minutes of value, you
can't just add it to the gravel & expect some benefit, & you can't add it
to potting soils & expect it filter out odors just sitting there. Bacteria
live very happily in a soil mixture with charcoal, & whether it stinks or
not depends on type of bacteria & overall condition & degree of
sterilization of the soil.

During its brief activitation life, water filtered through pure charcoal
can be "softened" toward the acidic side of the pH scale. In hydroponic
systems, it has a short-lived value as a water softener without requiring
chemical softening, which by adding chemical salts to the water can be
harmful to certain sensitive plants & epiphytes. But this usefulness is
not part of its value in soil mixtures; bark & peat are better natural
acidifers in the medium per se.

But bare in mind that horticultural charcoal is not the same as filtering
or "activated" charcoal for hydroponic systems or aquariums. Filtering or
"activated" charcoal is made at very high temperatures, but horticultural
charcoal is made at normal burning temperatures. This makes the claims
that horticultural charcoal has filtering properties all the more
manufacturer- and vendor-generated lie or exaggeration. The "activated"
kind is far more porous & would retain more water but less oxygen. If
water were cycled through it repeatedly for about 15 minutes (completely
separate from a soil mixture), it could indeed absorb accumulative salts
that may have dissolved in recycling water systems from fertilizers or
pesticides; but it has no added effect of this kind mixed right into the
soil, but would have the opposite effect of keeping the salts from washing
through with normal drainage. Recently in the news were studies on air
filters that use activated charcoal, & found that the majority of such air
filters on the market do not filter anything whatsoever from the air! This
is again is because the activation period of charcoal is about fifteen
minutes. Horticultural charcoal wouldn't have even the 15 minutes of
filtering value at in or out of a mixture.

The factor that might place charcoal over other potting soil porosity
conditioners is it is "natural" & even woodland soils are exposed to
charcoal after burn-through; it is "black" & might look nice mixed with
black pea-gravel or with very black loam, whereas some artificial porous
conditioners make soils black & white pokadot; for the few sorts of plants
often transplanted into new soil, coarse charcoal shakes out of the roots
very easily to be completely replaced; & in the future (but not presently)
various grades of charcoal might be manufactured from metropolitan
green-waste, with environmental benefits of green-waste recycling (so far
it this is being done experimentally to produce higher grade filtering
charcoal because the process is so pricy; the majority of charcoals on the
market use so much more energy & generate so much more pollution to
produce than is true of bark particles or ground lava rock that it cannot
be regarded as environmentally friendly as a manufactured product).

In general it should be thought of only as a substitute for perlite with
identical value, not more not less. Like perlite it also functions to
retain oxygen in the soil, so might be marginally better than vermiculite,
which holds more water in the soil but less oxygen than either perlite or
charcoal. As a porous potting soil ingredient charcoal needs to be mixed
in thoroughly, & recommendations to use it as a surface layer or in the
bottom of pots adds no actual benefit.

If one has made the assessments & is pretty certain it'll be useful, do a
google search with the term "horticultural charcoal" & that will bring up
dozens of vendors, or call around to the local garden centers, bigger ones
will have it, or any that also sell orchids or pitcher plants should have
it.

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/

have a look at this link. it also recommends the best two products to use for your plants.
https://growtheherbs.com/where-buy-a...arcoal-plants/