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Comment by JRComito on May 3, 2015 at 6:47pm

worms

Comment by Averan on March 12, 2012 at 2:26pm

how would you ever get the roots out?

Comment by JRComito on March 12, 2012 at 1:49pm
It seems a bit unsustainable to me. If you can't rinse and reuse it I'm not interested. I did some research today, and found some rinseable filter media used for koi ponds. It's called Matala.? Ever heard of or used it?
Comment by Averan on March 12, 2012 at 1:06pm

np.  glad to share my limited experience with this unique medium.  :)  not many others have played with it yet.

Comment by JRComito on March 12, 2012 at 12:42pm
I appreciate your insights and will be searching for a new media. I just went to stg's site and found the info regarding the technology behind it. Turns out it is food grade plastic. Definitely not what I want in my organic system. Thank you. No worms, just plants for this run. Then I'll harvest and switch media.
Comment by Averan on March 12, 2012 at 12:03pm

very well actually.  however, i worry about mixing plastics into organic systems....worms ingesting tiny bits of plastic fiber and such.  that is one of the biggest drawbacks of sure-to-grow imo.  you can't really compost it in the classical sense and you'll never really be able to separate out all the roots and organic matter from the little bits of fluff.

i was excited about stg at first because of the light weight and wicking properties, but now i'm switching over to growstones (in place of hydroton).  they're made from recycled glass right here in the USA and being just silica are safe to mix into organic/biological systems or just toss out onto the ground without fear of polluting.  plus, gravel-like media can be easily shook loose from the roots letting you toss the root ball into the compost pile.

Comment by JRComito on March 12, 2012 at 11:35am
I thought I might introduce some worms to compost the root masses after they are harvested. Got the idea from TCLynx. Sounds right to me. I wonder how well they will be able to move through the plastic fluff.
Comment by Averan on March 12, 2012 at 11:24am

are you avoiding gravel-like substrates because the weight of it all would make inserting/removing individual plants difficult?  hydroton and growstones are pretty darn light-weight, but certainly heavier than plastic fluff.

once a plant matures, i reckon you'll have a heck of a time yanking the root mass out through the tiny hole either way.

Comment by JRComito on March 12, 2012 at 11:03am
Those are all curiosities I have as well. So far so good. It's only been up about 2 weeks now. The one positive thing about this system is the simmplicicty of it. I can change it up fairly easy. What other type of media would work well in 6" PVC? I am looking for something more rigid like the filter media in a pond skimmer.
Comment by Averan on March 12, 2012 at 10:53am

is it packed full of sure-to-grow?  i think you're going to have problems with the media sagging/sinking downward as it collects solids.  I think it will also stay too wet.

Let us know how it goes.

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