Jill brought up something (under Oh, my gosh) about perlite being added to the soilless mixture that comes in the store bought bags. My perlite and vermiculite was purchased in the big bags you can buy at the local nurseries. Anyway, the bags eventually started getting a hole in them so I just dumped the leftovers into two 5 gallon bucket a year ago. This was before my addiction to AV.
My question is that I know everything should be sterile for leaf propagation. Since these have been exposed how do I correct their contamination from the outside elements. Linda
Perlite and Vermiculite
hmmm.......might be easier to use that for the outside and buy some new?
True Bob
Shucks, I thought you would say, "Soak in bleach water".
Linda
Unless they've gotten full of gunky stuff (mold, algae, etc), you can just mix them up and sterilize your mix... Some people bake their mix in the oven, but I don't like the smell. I put mine in a really big tupperware bowl that barely fits in my microwave. Add a generous amount of water (a cup for every 2 quarts of mix, depending on how dry it is to start with). Set the lid *loosely* on top of the container and microwave for 10 to 15 minutes on high until you see lots of steam (moisture beading up on lid). Close the lid tightly and let the mixture steam 15 minutes or so. This not only sterilizes the mix, but it also helps very dry peat moss loosen up enough to absorb water well.
Adding enough water is important... see my adventures in sterilizing potting mix here, http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/485684/
Jill, I will let you know how I do. Mine just has a little dirt and straw when it fell out of the bag and onto the floor.
I thought about microwaving but I did not want to melt it. Thanks, Linda