Although zhijinshi is favored by nine out of ten orchid growers, it may not necessarily suit you
Many novice orchid growers, when planting orchids, consider the issue of choosing potting medium and potting soil. How to choose a potting medium is a headache for many new orchid growers. Some orchid growers say that using volcanic rock to grow orchids is good, as it can help retain moisture. Some also say that red mud stone is quite good, very moisture-retentive but easy to crumble. However, more orchid growers choose to use zhijinshi to grow orchids. Nearly nine out of ten orchid growers choose it for growing orchids. Today, the author will talk about growing orchids with zhijinshi.
Growing orchids
First, let's talk about zhijinshi. It is an advanced orchid cultivation stone introduced by Japan. It is a type of volcanic rock. After a volcanic eruption, large amounts of gas and heat are released, and through special temperatures it forms a porous, lightweight stone that can rapidly absorb nutrients and retain moisture. Therefore, it has the characteristics of being lightweight, with excellent drainage, moisture retention, and breathability. It was later introduced from Taiwan, China to the mainland and named zhijinshi, and thus widely used in high-end orchid cultivation.
Growing orchids
Why do so many orchid growers choose zhijinshi for growing orchids? It is mainly due to psychological factors, feeling that cheap potting media are unworthy of high-end orchids. Actually, zhijinshi is just a drainage medium with no nutrients. Its purpose is to give the potting medium a certain permeability. In fact, there are many things that can replace zhijinshi, such as: pumice, sea pumice, perlite, brick granules, volcanic rock, fired soil, weathered stone, diatomaceous earth, etc. These inorganic materials are not indispensable. Pure organic materials can also grow orchids well. Pure bark, pure peanut shells, pure mountain soil can all grow them well.
Growing orchids
An orchid-growing friend of the author used zhijinshi for two or three years, then later switched to diatomaceous earth granules. The reason was that due to untimely watering, last year the orchids grew very poorly, and most of the seedlings did not grow to full size. The main reason was that zhijinshi's water retention capacity is limited.
Recently, after comparing, I feel that the moisture retention capacity of diatomaceous earth granules is about equivalent to twice that of zhijinshi. Specifically, the surface of the potting medium mixed with half zhijinshi turned completely white and dry, while the potting medium mixed with half diatomaceous earth granules was still moist. Among the moist potting media, there were a few pots of whitened, dried-out potting medium mixed in, which was quite unpleasant to look at. So tonight, taking advantage of the moonlight, I picked out all the zhijinshi from one mini pot's potting medium. I replaced it with diatomaceous earth granules that retain water well and have decent breathability, so I can sleep an extra hour or so on summer nights.
Growing orchids
Some orchid growers also use pine needle soil to grow orchids, and the orchid roots grow numerous and thick. Many orchid growers also have controversy about zhijinshi because zhijinshi is alkaline. However, zhijinshi is a type of volcanic rock, relatively lightweight, can rapidly absorb nutrients, and has good water retention, so orchid growers can each have their own opinion. If you don't want to use zhijinshi, you can also use perlite, ceramic, crushed brick granules, etc. If you want to use various hard nut shells, wood shavings, branches and bark, be sure to disinfect and sun-dry them before use.
Growing orchids
Dear orchid growers, have you ever used zhijinshi to grow orchids? If you also like growing orchids, welcome to follow and share, thank you for your comments and likes, thank you!