What exactly is charcoal like? Let me share my views

Charcoal, especially charcoal that has just been burned not long ago, contains a large amount of activated carbon, has strong adsorption capacity, and has disinfecting, sterilizing, and antibacterial effects. Orchid friends have introduced this many times before, so I will not repeat it here. In the autumn of 2001, when I went to the countryside, I found that a person from elsewhere was using our old apple trees here to burn charcoal. At that time I was suffering fromorchidroot diseases. Influenced by some articles, I found the charcoal burner and had him specially sieve out a sack of charcoal chunks of suitable size for me. Because the season was suitable, after returning home I hurriedly mixed brick chunks, granular soil, and charcoal in equal thirds and repotted more than ten pots. The management was the same as for other orchids. By the autumn of 2002 theseorchidshad no stem or root disease, but the leaves generally had black spot disease, and that year almost none sent up new shoots. When I turned over the pots to check, the old roots had not changed, but for almost a year they had sent out almost no new roots. After thinking it over and consulting materials, I believe there is no need to use charcoal for growing orchids. First, charcoal is all made by burning wood that has not yet rotted. Although after burning its surface becomes porous and loose and it contains a large amount of potassium, it has extremely strong adsorption and will absorb a large amount of fertilizer, affecting the orchid roots' absorption of fertilizer, while it itself is very difficult to rot in a short time to release nutrients. Second, fresh charcoal has the effect of activated charcoal and can sterilize and inhibit pathogens, which inevitably kills a large number of orchid fungi while killing pathogens, and inhibits the reproduction of orchid fungi. Third, charcoal is alkaline, and in northern regions where tap water is weakly alkaline, this further intensifies the alkalinity of the growing medium, which is not conducive to the growth of orchids. This is why myorchidsdid not send out roots for a year. If charcoal is used as a bottom layer, its air permeability is not as good as broken bricks or orchid stone, and it also adsorbs fertilizer. If it is washed with water many times so that it loses its activity and adsorption capacity, then it no longer has a sterilizing effect. Of course, if suitable hard growing medium additives really cannot be found, then to make the growing medium loose and breathable, a small amount of charcoal can be added to the growing medium, but it must be washed with water many times, and the amount used must be small. It is still best not to use it. (Feng Jun)