Anita.S
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Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2016 3:49 am
Location: Muscat

potting substrate stays wet

Hi,

I have planted Okra in a pot and have seen people growing this in pots very easily here. I bought potting substrate and used it directly in the pot by adding seeds. My plant grew well but now suddenly after growing tall its bending and yellowing. However, I feel the issue is my soil.

I have noticed that my (black) soil is always wet irrespective of me watering my plant less or more or even not watering it. It does drain excess water. Have earlier lost cucumber plant because the same thing happened with it :( Don't want to lose my Okra.


Please help!!!!!
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imafan26
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You potting soil contains peat moss but I have no idea what "black peat" is. The potting substate was made in Holland so they may be using different terms. Calcium carbonate would be lime. What I don't see is anything that would help improve drainage so it sounds like a heavy mix almost like planting in pure compost. I looked up black peat and this is what I found.

"Black Peat
This is a very dense fine particle size peat. It is usually blended with other types of peat depending on the crops grown. Mushroom producers, including gesneriad growers, like to blend this type of peat."

It looks like it is very dense and while the instructions on the bag looks like it could be used as is, it is better if it is blended and probably better if it has some drainage material added to it as well.

The other problem could be your pot. If you are using a plastic pot and you don't have a lot of drain holes, the media will stay wet a long time.

If the okra is yellowing the roots may already be rotting, so I would start over. If you are going to use this mix, I would add perlite or vermiculite to improve aeration 40%-50% drainage on the final mix should be about right. If you are going to use the same pot, sterilize it first with bleach to kill any anerobic fungi and bacteria that may be in the pot. Put more holes in the pot. I would prefer a more acidic mix myself and use a coarser peat moss. In this kind of mix I would probably grow lavender, baby's breath, beans, beets, or cabbage in that pot instead once the drainage is fixed.

Anita.S
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Posts: 9
Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2016 3:49 am
Location: Muscat

Thanks u so much for replying.

Sorry, but haven't ever used perlite or vermiculite before. How much and how is it supposed to be used?

And what other options do I have, in case I don't find it here? Can I also consider changing the soil altogether?

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rainbowgardener
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I don't know what the purpose of this "substrate" is; it is a UK usage. But it is almost pure peat moss. Peat is extremely moisture holding as you are discovering. It is usually put in potting mixes to help them retain moisture, but the mix would be no more than one third peat moss. Peat is also very acidic (that's why the lime is in there, to counteract the acidity) and provides no nutrients. A typical potting mix would be one-third peat moss, one-third compost for nutrients, and one-third mineral components, such as the perlite and vermiculite already mentioned for drainage and to keep it from being so moisture holding.

I think your okra will die in the pure peat and you need to start over. I can't imagine what anybody uses this stuff for unless for mixing up their own potting soil.

imafan26
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Perlite and vermiculite would be sold at the garden center separately. I just use a gallon can and mix it proportionately. Basically for a 1:1:1 mix I would put one can peat moss, one can perlite, one can of compost if you are using Rainbows mix. To that, I would add some garden tone if you are oganic, but you still need to feed fish emulsion weekly. You can't really be totally organic in a small pot.

My potting mix is not organic and it is designed to dry fast, mainly because I water almost daily and I mix it to suit my conditions

I use one part peat moss, one part perlite, a handful of vermicast, a tablespoon of osmocote slow release fertilizer (good for about 3 months). Mix it well together in a bucket. I prefer a porous pot so I put a lot of holes in plastic pots on the bottom and I make sure they have side holes as well. For plants that really need to stay dry like succulents, I plant them in pure cinder in terra cotta pots, orchids are in baskets or no media if they are on sprinkler. The ones hanging on the fence usually fare better than the ones on the bench because they can dry out and it approximates their natural habitat better since they are for the most part epiphytes.

Okra likes a pH 6-7. It is good if it is planted in a large pot like a whisky barrel or half of a 55 gallon drum (with good drainage) in full sun. Okra is related to hibiscus and they like well drained soil so I would go 1 part peat moss, 1/2 part compost, 1 part drainage material (perlite, coarse builders sand, or cinders. I don't like vermiculite, it holds a lot of water and is good for rooting cuttings but stays too wet for me in pots. If you want to be organic you will have to feed the okra with fish emulsion weekly and use the garden tone in the pot. Pots need to be big enough and have enough soil microbes present in order to convert organic fertilizer to components that the plant can take up. Small pots cannot do that, so you have to constantly feed the plant. Feeding the plant and not the soil, is not technically "organic".



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