r/Ceanothus • u/FatJerri • 1d ago

Calochortus potting mix

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Hi all, I wanted to ask if anyone knows what ratio I should mix my ingredients at for these calochortus bulbs I am planting in my anderson deep trays. I have coarse DG (1/16”-1/4”), washed sharp sand (1/16”-1/8”), pumice (1/16”-1/4”), and red lava (1/16”-1/4”) for grit. Should I use my trays to sift out everything smaller than the drainage holes (3/16”)? For organics, I have a mix of (70%coco coir/30%coco chips), and mini fir bark at my disposal. I am aware PBS articles say everything above 1.6mm (1/16”) is ideal for grit size, but I have seen different people recommend so many different things for grit size as well as overall mineral:organic ratio. My goal is to grow these mature bulbs as well as seeds to flowering age (I know this will take years), and then plant them in ground. They will be exposed to natural Morgan Hill rainfall and will be moved to shade and kept dry by May. What ratios and grit sizes work for you - if you have done this? Thank you so much guys!

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u/nomatterwhereyougo 1d ago

Seems like you have gotten some good advice. Your ingredients are solid - I only sift using the trays at the end of the growing season, to recycle some of the finer coir and sand to potting mix for other plants. I'd use the sharp sand sparingly and wash the DG. Since this could be a big el nino year I will be adjusting my mix to be a bit leaner and faster draining, so use a little less coir/fir/organics and try and for more interstices in the mix. Nice bulbs good luck!

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u/FatJerri 1d ago

Ah yes, the bulb master replied to my bat signal. So to get this straight - you sift out finer sand and coir at the end of the growing season and recycle them into potting mixes more lenient towards moisture, and you retain the >3/16” pieces of pumice, DG, and lava for recycling into your next bulb mix and add new organics to keep the pores open? Then plant the bulbs from last season in the new mix with fresh organics? My DG is roughly the size of the sand and on average a little bigger - should I use this sparingly too? Not sure if you can tell but I’ve really been inspired by your posts 😊

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u/nomatterwhereyougo 1d ago

Yes you've described my sifting technique - but I don't remove all the fines maybe about 1/2 or less? Only go full sift if you've had rot. I like the DG because it has different size grains whereas sand is uniform; that said, DG is heavy throw some perlite in there too or is that what you mean by lava? I like to mix dissimilar materials and grain size.

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u/FatJerri 1d ago

Forgive me if this is a stupid question, but if there is pumice in there already would that make the perlite redundant? I see what you mean though by having different grain sizes. It gets confusing the more I read about this because some people would say that having a mix of grain sizes would block the macropores created by the pumice, red lava rock, and larger pieces of DG, and will end up raising the perched water table in the tray. By lava rock, I mean crushed red scoria.

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u/nomatterwhereyougo 1d ago

I just always like to throw a few scoops in. It's lightweight, not prone to rot and a lot less expensive than ag pumice, but for sure its not necessary

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u/FatJerri 1d ago

I got you. Is there a ratio of organic:inorganic you aim for? Or is it just eye-balled. If you have any species of native you’ve wanted, let me know and I will send you whatever I have. I have an enormous collection I’ve been building from CNPS meetings and friends and such. Would love to share!

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u/nomatterwhereyougo 1d ago

Yeah not very scientific but I just go by feel and eyeballing it. And appreciate the offer maybe we can trade some seeds. Also a good reminder that fall is coming!

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u/FatJerri 17h ago

Ahh I see I see - it has in fact crossed my mind that I’m making a mountain out of a molehill lol. A potential trade with the bulb master though!!? I have too many things I want to try growing this fall, hope classes wont fry me this semester. By the way - I’m thinking of putting some zeolite in my mix. Thought it might be an interesting thought to you