Akadama Question?

Chadster

Out here in Central Cali due to a mild winter, I'd say that the beginning of potting season is upon us. After some research I have decided to use almost all Akadama, or mostly Akadama. I know that there are varying degrees a quality out there and I know there is low fired (softer granules) and high fired (harder granules) akadama. My question is this... has anyone out there had better success using the low versus the high fired? Are there applications in which one would be better served by using one over the other? Also, does anyone out there have any experience with using "Hollow Creek Nursery" soil? That would be the stuff that's available thru Stone Lantern.

__________________
Psalms-91

Advertisement

Jay

Chadster, Welcome and Hello!!!

I am not from your area, nor am I an expert... that said here goes. I would not use a low fired version if there is one. Most low fired soil amendments break down quickly and clog the soil... a Bad Thing!

The mix from Stone Lantern is excellent but pricey and you have the shipping cost. There are many members of this group from your area that can set you in the direction of Good... Reasonable priced soil......

Enjoy
Jay

__________________
A Bonsai student living with his trees at N 44.37 W 77.49...
Think before you act... then think again... no good comes from rushing

Lesley

As long as we're on this subject, Where do you purchase Akadama and other soil components? Do you have to buy through a catalogue? ( I love Stone Lantern, don't get me wrong- just would like to save time and money ) I did get them from a club member a few times, but is there a more convenient way so I don't have to bother them?

__________________
Ladybug

Rene_Voortwist

The low fires akadama breaks down faster than the high fired but it's ok to use for trees that get repotted regularly (once a year or two years) I don't think you should use it for trees that stay in the pot longer than that because the soil will start clogging. The low fired is cheaper than the high fired. Be sure to fertilize well if you use 100% akadama because there's no food in the soil itself. I normally mix it with grit an cocopeat or potting ground. I'd like to know if there are good alternatives for akadama because I think it's darn expensive !

regards, René

erubeck

In this area we use a fired clay which is sold under the name Hadite. There is another fired clay available in Tulsa, Ok which is about the same thing but red in color and known as 'Lightweight Aggregate'.

The stuff is used in paving roads, making paving stones, a soil conditioner and a meriad of other uses. Check around your area for places that sell large quantities of aggregate but be sure that it is clay and fired to 2000º F. Usually it is sorted into sizes like 0-1/8, 1/8 to 1/4, etc. The stuff in Tulsa sells for about $22 per ton. Take a pick-up truck, fill it up for about $20 and have enough for a year or more.

We mix it with peat and compost in varying proportions depending on the type and size of the tree.

__________________
Regards,

Ed

matsu

I use solf akadama (1/8" and 1/4" in size) in varying quantites in my soil mixes. Whether to use a particular soil component, how much to use and the size of the particles to use is very dependent on your climate, the properties of the component and your watering habits. This isn't unique to akadama; its true with any soil component you use. With akadama, the greater percentage you use in your mix, the greater the moisture retention. The larger the particle, the greater the drainable pore space and quantity of air in the mix. You have to vary both factors (quantity and size) and optimize them to your climate and watering habits. Tree needs vary also so at least 2 mixes are needed; one for deciduous and one for conifers (pine and juniper).

The chief advantage of akadama is it ability to absorb water rather than hold it by cohesion on the exterior of the soil particles. This yields a soil mix that contains/retains more moisture but not at the expense of air filled pore spaces. I also understand that the texture of the particles promotes root differentiation, but can't confirm that one way or the other. What I do know is that my trees do better with some of it in the mix and the root growth is much improved.

I would suggest against the high fired akadama. Nothing is wrong with it but my experience is that it doesn't retain nearly the moisture that soft akadama does. Its not really any better than turface or lava, but 5 times the cost. As noted by others, the soft akadama can and will break down over time. If you live in a cold climate where the soil goes through frequent freeze/thaw cycles, the breakdown will occur much faster. I live on the Texas gulf coast and don't experience the freeze/thaw cycle much. That being the case, I haven't experienced any breakdown problems, even on my Black Pines that are repotted only every 3-5 years.

Although I've heard that some do use 100% akadama, I think the ability to do so is climate related. A mix like this will hold great quantities of water. I've never tried it in my area because I've had dreadful results with 100% kanuma (a substance very similar to akadama) in azaleas. Kanuma holds way too much water here in our hot and very humid environment. This leads to root rot no matter how careful you are about watering. I've tried the Kanuma and have now switched back to my deciduous mix for azaleas.

Again, the amount and size of the akadama depends on your area. The hotter and drier, the more you can use and the smaller the particles can be. I'd suggest you try some experiments this year and see what works best. You can get real anal rentitive about it (like I did) and test the mixes before trying them to determine the percentages of solid, water and air held in the various mixes. The testing to do this is easy and I can explain it separately if you're interested.

I've discussed this in the past with Kathy Shaner and she had a suggestion that I wish I had thought of. She suggested trying some different mixes in the same pot. What she suggested was to fill one side of the pot with one mix and the other side with another mix. You can even do this with 3 or 4 mixes in the same pot. After one year, pull the tree and examine the roots. The tree will tell you which one it liked the best by the number of roots in each portion.

Having said all this, for deciduous trees I use a mix of 2 part lava (1/8" and 1/4" sizes), 2 part pumice (1/8" and 1/4" sizes), and 1 part akadama (1/4" ). Conifer mix is of 4 part lava (1/8" and 1/4" sizes), 4 part pumice (1/8" and 1/4" sizes), and 1 part akadama (1/8" and 1/4" sizes). By the way, Boon Manakitivipart from Almeda, CA uses equal portions of each of these components in his general mix and says that it works well everywhere he has students.

You can get all these ingrediants from El Dorado Bonsai in Placerville, CA. 530-295-0222. They have the best prices I've seen on these soil components and will ship UPS. Good luck.

TreeBay

My experience is consistent with the breakdown experience of hard vs. soft akadama. The hard-fired stuff is great for pines and juniper. I use the soft akadama in fruiting trees and maples, whose roots can grow right into the larger granules and the porous, soft structure does a good job holding moisture. I would not use more than 50% akadama, but that is because we get winter rains (usually) in Santa Clara, and a pure mix of soft akadama under those climate conditions can keep the soil soggy for an extended period.

In Japan, where you get rain mainly in the summer (or maybe in the midwest, or places where winter doesn't mean weeks of scarcely interrupted rain), I think the concentration could be higher.

The hard stuff has a structure a lot like Turface. It would be nice to be able to find that product in the larger sizes. From what I have seen on the net there is a grade designated for aquatic soil that looks about right, but it is more expensive, of course.

BTW, I found this interesting article on container growing. It's in PDF format.

Regards,

Matt

PS. Everything is more critical in smaller containers than large - that goes for soil construction, sifting and watering too! As the containers get deeper, gravity begins to overcome capillary action, and poorer soils can function more effectively.

__________________

Want to be a seller on bonsaiAUCTIONS? Get authorized today!

bonsaiTALK: Over 100,005.36 Megabytes Served this Month!

Robert

I think you can ask ten different people about soil mixes and get 14 answers, and they all may be good, as long as they drain well, (no free water), yet retain moisture to some measure, and provide appropriate nutrients to your trees. You can spend great sums on exotic items transported a quarter way around the world, or perhaps you can find some locally.....depending on what you have and where you are and how much energyand money you wish to expend..
Here's what I use, and I'm pleased with it:
I use decomposed granite...you can get this 1/8th inch or 1/4 inch.
To a bucket of decomposed granite, I add 1/4 bucket, (by volume) of Supersoil, (or other planter mix)....1/8th bucket Dry Stall, (a product sold in
feed stores...an exploded clay product used in stables to soak up horse urine, and Very inexpensive, and then I throw in about 3 tablespoons of Osmocote,
.....mix well and serve. During the season I fertilize every two weeks with fish emulsion and alternatively with Miracle Gro. My trees thrive on this regimen.

I dig my own DG, put it through a sieve.......use the smaller 1/8" for smaller bonsai, and the larger 1/4" for larger grees, or trees more recently dug up.

You can buy DG in a "rock yard" very inexpensively. All the above costs very little.....and goes a long way.

Hope this helps............
Robert..........in Sta.Cruz

__________________
Robert.........in Sta.Cruz

Chadster

Thanks for all the information on akadama. I'll let you know how it goes...

__________________
Psalms-91