Question
I live in long island, NY. I have a couple of sarracenias purchased from you guys and I was wondering what I could use as alternative to perlite. I've checked a few stores and can only find miracle-gro perlite which I've read is enriched with nutrients so I didn't purchase that. I'm mostly looking for an alternative doesn't float. I plan on putting my sarracenias together in a bog container. I've noticed that during heavy rains the perlite floats and gets washed out of the pot. I did find vermiculite but only in a small bag so it would be pricey to purchase to fill my two plastic wine barrel containers. I have read that you can use sand. I'm not sure what kind. I just want to be sure and not risk killing all of my sarracenias. I've gone to Lowes and Home Depot. They have 'natural play sand' and 'high desert play sand' and 'paving sand'. Are any of these ok or do you have any other suggestions? Thank you.

Answer
Hi Angie,

Sand works just fine.  All you're trying to do is increase aeration in the peat.  You want a sand that won't add nutrients.  Children's play sand often works well as long as it doesn't contain limestone.  The Lexus of sand is sandblasting sand which is pure silica.  It can be hard to find at times.  See if you have a rock/landscaping supply company nearby.  They often have materials you can use such as pumice or specific types of washed sand.  I was able to buy a bag of granite grit near us, and we don't have much granite in the Northwest.  Granite is much more common in the East, and is a hard rock that won't break down in the soil, so makes a good sand.  Avoid the pavers sand or the desert sand since they are likely to be alkaline.

Good Growing!

Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.cobraplant.com