Using coal cinders to grow flowers, you'll never have to worry about compacted potting soil and root rot again
Yuze's hometown is a city in a central province that is rich in coal. When he was back home, every so often he would drive a tractor with his father to the boiler room at the mine to haul coal cinders back to the nursery. Coal cinders, also called furnace slag, are the waste discharged after coal is burned in a boiler. To flower growers, this waste is a gift from nature.
Furnace slag
The furnace slag discharged from the boiler room, after simple processing, is mixed with some loess and sawdust and piled up; after composting for more than half a year it can be used in pots. Honeycomb briquettes are made from a proportioned mix of anthracite and yellow clay, and the slag left after burning can be crushed, simply processed, and used directly in pots.
Honeycomb briquette
Why can coal cinders be used to grow flowers, and why are they so loved by gardeners? Coal cinders have the characteristics of loosening the soil, allowing air through, draining water, and being sterile. When used to grow flowers, plant roots grow vigorously, no insects appear, and roots do not rot. Besides these, coal cinders have some other advantages that other soils do not have. Let's take a look.
1. Coal cinders contain trace elements
The chemical composition of coal cinders: mainly silicon dioxide and aluminium oxide, plus a small amount of magnesium oxide, calcium oxide, iron oxide, magnesium oxide and other trace elements. These trace elements are beneficial to the healthy growth of plants.
Honeycomb briquette
2. Coal cinders contain no bacteria or insect eggs
Coal cinders are the waste residue discharged after coal is burned at high temperature, and high temperature can kill bacteria and all insect eggs.
3. Coal cinders reduce soil viscosity
After coal cinders are mixed with soil in a certain ratio, they can reduce the viscosity of the soil, which helps the potting soil drain and breathe, and prevents the potting soil from compacting and becoming waterlogged.
Orchid soil containing coal cinders
4. Coal cinders make the soil loose
The soil texture after adding coal cinders is loose, which is very conducive to the growth of plant roots. Only with vigorous roots can there be lush leaves.
Growing succulents with honeycomb briquette cinders
Before using coal cinders, flower lovers should first spray water to settle the dust, then crush the coal cinders, sift and sort them, and use the larger particles at the bottom of the flower pot when planting.