Today we see soilless growing techniques become more popular, but much of these processes have been experimented with for over a century! In 1860 scientists Knop and Sachs were studying nutrient solution alternatives by mixing water with inorganic salts and tested them for plant growth. In the 1960’s rockwool was experimented with as a substitute for soil. These experiments, through trial and error, led to the discovery of many successful alternatives to traditional growing – sparking the popularity of soilless growing mediums.
What is a Soilless Growing Medium
A soilless growing medium is exactly that, it’s an alternative way to grow plants without the use of soil. Gardening and growing crops in soil has been and is still the most popular strategy for growing crops. However, using the traditional seed-in-soil method is not suitable for everyone. Some areas do not have the most suitable soil for growing. Gardeners may not have the adequate land they need to expand their crop. Many people that love growing may not be physically able to do the heavy-lifting that planting and harvesting in soil requires. For these reasons and countless others, we see many in the gardening community exploring others options to continue (or expand) their passion.
Different Types of Growing Mediums
Many soilless growing mediums have been discovered at this point, and there is a great chance that there’s many additional substitutes yet to be discovered. For now, here is a list of some of the most popular alternative mediums used to grow plants:
The Eazy Plug System
Coconut Fiber
Mineral Wool
Expanded Shale
Expanded Clay
Gravel
Perlite
Vermiculite
Polyurethane Foam
Oasis Cubes
Lava Rock
Sawdust
Sand
Pumice
Peat
Pine Bark
Grow Stones
Rice Hull
Different growing mediums vary regarding their advantages and disadvantages, and some growing mediums may be more suited for you depending on the crops you are planting. It is always wise to do a little research to know the specifics of the medium you plan to use. Remember, alternative growing mediums were discovered through experimenting, so feel free to experiment with different growing techniques yourself – you may discover something we can write about in our next blog!
Our Pick
We have studied many different growing mediums practiced all over the world, and we stand by our pick for “best soilless growing medium”. We highly recommend The Eazy Plug System. There are 3 main pieces to the system: Eazy Plug, Eazy Block, and Eazy Pyramid. This three-stage system is incredible; it’s 100% biodegradable and compostable material that provides a near-perfect air to water ratio for you plants. It has many other benefits that we cover in our other blogs, but nonetheless it is a product worth trying. At the very least using the Eazy Plug (stage 1) as a starter medium for your seeds or cuttings will be very beneficial to you, and if you decide to plant it in the soil after it begins rooting you can do that too.
Learn more about the Eazy Plug here – https://usagrowshop.com/blog/benefits-of-using-easy-plugs
Order Eazy Plugs with fast and free shipping!
