Coco Coir is an Excellent Growing Medium
Coco coir is an excellent substitute to conventional soil, especially if you are undertaking an indoor gardening project. Because it is an entirely natural fibre from coconut shells, it is perfect for organic gardening too.
Also known as coir, this growing medium is widely used by home gardeners and commercial growers. It has a number of advantages:
- Coir is clean. Unlike conventional soil, which often harbours pests and undesirable microbes, and unlike peat moss, coir is extremely clean. The ideal coir is germ and pest free. This is especially welcome when you are growing plants indoors.
- Coir is natural. This is important to many gardeners, especially those involved in organic gardening.
- The fact that it is natural also gives it an innate calibre that is plant-friendly.
- Coir is long-lasting. Some growing mediums can't be used for more than a season or two, while some substitute growing mediums can't be used more than once.
- Coir decomposes naturally. When it comes to disposing of coir, it can be added to a garden compost heap because it is entirely organic in nature.
- Coir is freely available. Because coconut plantations are plentiful in the East, there are plenty of coconut shells from which the fibre can be extracted.
- Coir is affordable. The wide availability of coir makes it kind on the pocket.
There are a number of other growing mediums acquirable including vermiculite, perlite, wood chips, rock wool and even sand and gravel. However, coir is a soft, captivating and odourless substitute to ordinary soil and that is why more and more growers are using it.
Coco coir is not new, however. It has been used since ancient times to make fishing nets and ropes. It has been used for indoor gardening containers in the Western world ever since the colonists discovered this versatile fibre.
