Good Cheap Pond Plant Substrate?

[RipariumGuy]

Does anybody have any good and semi-cheap pond plant substrate ideas? I will be using these (http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.co...fm?pcatid=5519) baskets and plants such as lilys, dwarf cattails, var. water grass, horse rush, and irises. Any help is appreciated!

[chad320]

I use dirt from the yard topped with pea gravel and mine bust pots every year. If you feel the need for ferts then freeze some ozmocote cubes and shove em in.

[majstor76]

+1 for dirt. I use heavy loam from my basement (very clean , last time seen sun in 60s). Cant complain on growth

[chad320]

Sweet tub garden!!!

[majstor76]

Originally Posted by chad320

Sweet tub garden!

Theres video also

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB59MIl1kjw

On the bottom of tub i have just dirt , about 2-3 inches, and lily loves it.

I would call excavator to dig pond but my parents dont allow it so i have to settle for this cup

[chuukus]

Originally Posted by JakeJ

Does anybody have any good and semi-cheap pond plant substrate ideas? I will be using these (http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.co...fm?pcatid=5519) baskets and plants such as lilys, dwarf cattails, var. water grass, horse rush, and irises. Any help is appreciated!

You might try Oil Dry or Thrifty Sorb mixed in with the soil or mix with Peat moss.

I have used both Oil Dry and Thrifty Sorb. They are just a fired clay with excelent CEC. The cost is about $5.00 for 40lbs

[RipariumGuy]

Thanks for the suggestions guys! It is a really nice pond, and I was thinking of using just normal aquarium gravel with some stick fertilizers in it. Would that would do you guys thinkg? If not, Oil Dry would be my next choice. I really just don't want to bust the buget with all those expensive plant soils.
Thanks,
Jake

Also, could I have your guys' opinion on this pond scape idea? The thing is 4' by 13', holds around 400g, and is a foot deep. The small overhang on the edge is a little waterfall. I really need some help here!

[chuukus]

I have some oxegenating plants for your pond it would also make an awesome plant for fish fry to hide in. I use it in my breeding tanks the name slips my memory right now.

Jake I have tons of the stuff if you want some. PM me we can get you as much as you want for free.

[Diana]

Garden soil, Oil Dri and similar materials have fairly high CEC, so they make very good soils for water gardening. Cationic Exchange Capacity (CEC) means the soil will hold the fertilizer in a special way that the plant roots can get it, but it won't escape into the water.
Gravel has no CEC, and if you add fertilizer it can easily end up in the water column. It will not stay in the gravel very well, and is therefore not close to the roots.

The best garden soil for ponds or aquariums will have a blend of soil sizes and not much organic matter in it. A really simple test is to shake some soil in a jar of water and see how fast the particles settle out.
First, dry the soil and break up the clods or chunks. A mortar and pestle is great, but even tapping it with a hammer will work.
Then put it into a straight sided jar and mark on the outside of the jar how much soil there is (Half a jar or so is pretty good). (A piece of masking tape on the side of the jar works for something to write on)
Add water (Close to a full jar)and a drop or two of some sort of liquid soap or detergent. You do not really want a lot of bubbles, so the material that is specially made for dish washers is better than the hand-wash dish soap. Shake well. If you need to add more water, go for it.
Put the jar on a flat surface and be ready to mark on the side. Watch the soil particles settle out.
After 30 seconds mark what level the soil is inside the jar. (This is sand)
After 2 minutes mark what level the soil is inside the jar. (This is silt)
After 30 minutes mark what level the soil is inside the jar. (This is the coarsest clay)
Then compare the marks to the original (dry) soil level.
If the water is still very cloudy then there is a lot more very fine clay. Keep watching the jar for a few hours, and look at it again the next day.
If there is a lot of stuff that is floating this is organic matter. It may absorb water and sink overnight, so get an idea of how much there is in the first few minutes after you set the jar down.

Good soil for these purposes will be roughly 50% -75% sand, 25% or so of silt and no more than about 10% clay. There should not be too much organic matter. It is not difficult to remove it before using the soil in a pond or tank, just takes a bit of work. But if there is a LOT of it, then you will need to collect a lot more soil, and then you will have a lot of waste. (Waste as far as pond or aquarium planting. Organic matter is great stuff for flowers and vegetables)

If the water above the fallen soil in the jar is cloudy, but not very dense, more hazy than really cloudy, and even this is gone in a few hours then the soil is good.
If it is a denser cloudiness (can't see through the jar), or is still there the next day then the soil has too much of a size of clay called colloidal clay. The material will stay suspended in the water, will cloud the pond or the aquarium for a long time and is not very good for that reason.

If you have no access to good soil, then use pure Oil Dry, Turface, Soil Master Select or similar product. The last 2 are sold in the greens (sports field) industry, and are usually available at places like Lesco, John Deere Landscape, Ewing Irrigation and similar stores. (I think Lesco and John Deere merged. Not sure, though)

Gravel on top keeps the soil in the baskets, especially if you have fish that dig.

[chuukus]

That was some awesome info! Im going to try it right now.

[hydrophyte]

I like to use topsoil in my pond containers and I have found it a lot easier to just use regular terra cotta pots with the bottom drain hole plugged. With those pond baskets the topsoil is bound to just wash right out unless you can surround it on all sides with gravel.

Pond baskets are nice if you want to use plants for biological filtration in the pond. The plant roots will enthusiastically grow right out the sides and into the pond water.

[RipariumGuy]

Originally Posted by hydrophyte

I like to use topsoil in my pond containers and I have found it a lot easier to just use regular terra cotta pots with the bottom drain hole plugged. With those pond baskets the topsoil is bound to just wash right out unless you can surround it on all sides with gravel.

Pond baskets are nice if you want to use plants for biological filtration in the pond. The plant roots will enthusiastically grow right out the sides and into the pond water.

What topsoil do you use? From your yard or? I already have the plant baskets, and I can't return them so I will have to work with 'em. The pond is stocked wtih 8, 5"+- goldfish, so I was hoping I could use the plants to help with the bio-filteration. I am going to do some pond work (cleaning and fish overwintering indoors) in a month or two, so I hope I can get some good pictures.

Thanks for all the comments guys and gals!
Jake

[hydrophyte]

I just use regular topsoil from the garden area in our yard. Topsoil with good organic matter (darker) and clay (stickier) content is probably best for use with pond plants.

If you want good biological filtration from the plants then pond baskets are better because the roots can get out into the water. If you want to also feed the plants in the planter substrate you could also try to bury some topsoil in the very center, or use some kind of stake or tablet fertilizer, also buried inside.

[drlower]

I have regular river gravel in my pond (liner pond). I use the baskets, but line them with landscape fabric to keep top soil from washing out. i put pea gravel on top of soil around plants. if you use cheap,thin fabric the roots grow right through.

[RipariumGuy]

Originally Posted by drlower

I have regular river gravel in my pond (liner pond). I use the baskets, but line them with landscape fabric to keep top soil from washing out. i put pea gravel on top of soil around plants. if you use cheap,thin fabric the roots grow right through.

'
Huh. Interesting idea. Thanks!