Lava Rocks with Soil?

[Pirate138]

does anyone put lava rocks at the bottom of a pot with soil? i heard its some secret to growing great marijuana but wanted to know what board memebers think. thanx

 

[Dr Dog]

I have had clay pellets at the bottom, it is good for drainage, like lava rocks would be, but if you make a nice fluffy soil mix, you would get the same results, without the increased possibility of having air pockets in there

 

[pontiac]

I dont know why it is considered a "secret". Its just a highly available product that growers use for drainage in soil/soil-less mixes and as a hydroponic medium.

 

[Pirate138]

well sorry to use the term secret then, i guess fluffy soil is good enough thanx

 

[Ganico]

I heard volcanic soil is real good, like in Hawaii and apparently Australia too, but not sure about actual chunks of hardened lava

 

[onthatlevel]

ive got a layer of it in the bottom of my rubbermaid tub "beds". but, its my first time trying it and i cant say for sure whether its any better at this point.

im pretty sure "issack" uses it in his grows (do a search for his threads) and his shit looks badass.

 

[floppyfundanglr]

i buy this organic soil mix from the local nursery and it has lava rock mixed in along with perlite. Ive had nothing but good results from it. I think it can be used for more than just the bottom of the pot. Its very light and airy and probably just as well replace perlite in my opinion.

Peace

 

[AriesXX]

Actually, the idea behind this is similar to a 'French Drain', like you might build under your lawn to prevent flooding. The idea is you're creating a space at the bottom where the excess water can freely flow, moreso than just through the holes at the bottom. I also find a lot of roots are quite happily living in there when I check the root-mass during harvest. It is also used a soil-lightener, and I have used it for this before with great results. Now though, I'd say your best bet is to use something like Happy Frog, mixed with Light Warrior (basically soil being lightened with a mix of Coco and Perlite). The 'French Drain' is a concept that I've found very helpful in other applications though