Varied (perlite, clay...)

This section contains various different elements used to improve your soil or coco coir substrate as well as substrates for hydroponic growing such as perlite, expanded clay and more. Keep reading!

What is Perlite?

Perlite is formed from a mineraloid, an amorphous volcanic glass that is expanded artificially at 800 – 900 °C and it looks like white particles between 1.5 and 6mm in size.

This is an inert product, which means that it doesn’t contain any type of nutrients or does it alter the balance in your substrate. Plus, this also means that it doesn’t contain pathogens or insects.

Why Should I Use Perlite in Cannabis Plants?

Perlite is super handy and cannabis growers all over the world use it for the following reasons:

• Increases substrate aeration without altering water retention.
• Stops the substrate from compacting.
• Is highly recommended for using in indoor grows and improving aeration.

What is Vermiculite?

Expanded clay is a mica mineraloid that is formed by iron and magnesium silicates. When exposed to heat at 900°C it can expand up to 20 times its sixe. This material is used quite a lot when it comes to growing cannabis.

Why Should I Use Vermiculite in Cannabis Plants?

Vermiculite has many properties that are capable of improving your plants’ general health and the growing process:

• It’s light and spongey, and can improve soil aeration.
• It retains water and nutrients in the substrate,
• It increases in size up to 3 or 4 times and releases nutrients and water into the substrate when drying out.
• Perfect for using in substrates where you need to improve water retention to stop it from drying to fast. For example, this can be handy in outdoor grows in the city on terraces or balconies under direct sunlight.
• This inert substrate has a neutral pH and doesn’t contain pathogens or insects.

What is Expanded Clay

In order to make expanded clay, clay is heated to 1200°. It looks like brick-coloured balls 8 – 16 mm in size, and they’re super helpful when it comes to growing cannabis plants.

What is Expanded Clay Used for When Growing Cannabis?

• It’s used to improve aeration.
• Stops the substrate from compacting.
• Placed along the bottom of the flowerpot it can insulate roots from the floor and improve drainage.
• It’s commonly used as the main substrate in hydroponic growing systems with water recirculation.

Before using expanded clay we recommend washing it well to get rid of any dust it may contain. For use in hydroponic grows you’ll need to submerge it in water for about 24/48h in water with a stable pH of 5.5.

What is Hydro Rokz Coco?

Hydro Rokz Coco is an inert substrate designed for hydroponic growing manufactured by Atami. They have a RHP (Regeling Handels Potgronden) certificate which guarantees it as a high quality substrate.

Hydro Rokz Coco combines the benefits of expanded clay and coco coir. It’s designed to improve root growth considerably, which means larger plants and larger overall yields.

If you’re not sure which substrate you should choose for your cannabis plants, you can check in with La Huerta Grow Shop’s team of professionals, always happy to help.