### Description 1:1 mix of calcined clay and perlite. Sifted through a #10 bonsai screen prior to mixing. The calcined clay is the same as Turface, the product used to make baseball diamonds in the US. I purchased it from a local farm / tractor supply store under the brand name Allsport MVP. ### History Inspired by "[Al's gritty mix](https://www.houzz.com/discussions/1423691/container-soils-water-movement-and-retention-xvi)" from Garden Web, which consisted of granite grit, calcined clay (aka Turface), and small bark chips. I replaced the granite with perlite, and omitted the bark, since it would eventually decompose. ### Results As expected, this mix showed no decay or breakdown over the approximately 5 years I grew in it. Unfortunately, calcined clay only has weak wicking capacity -- perhaps stronger than perlite, but not by much. So it required frequent watering, in some cases daily. And because of its limited wicking capacity, it was not a good candidate for automated watering, since water from a single drip line wouldn't really spread throughout the pot, leaving large dry spots that are not root-friendly. The plants that succeeded in this mix typically were hybrids that inherited vigorous root systems from terrestrial lowland parents (think _thorelii_ and similar species). Some intermediates did well in it, too, even if they lacked such ancestry. Plants with predominately highland epiphytes in their ancestry (e.g., [[Nepenthes eymae x ephippiata|eymae x ephippiata]]) did poorly, with very little root growth at all. These plants often have naturally smaller, less robust root systems then their terrestrial cousins, but that made it more difficult for them to cope when the upper portions of the pot dried out, as was frequently the case with this mix. The photos below illustrate cases that run the gamut from highly successful to failure / no root colonization of the media. #### Successes ##### [[Nepenthes kampotiana x alata]] Root mass on 2015-12-21 after several years in this 1-gallon pot. Note the bulging tap roots. <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/23898673915/in/album-72157637981134675" title="Nepenthes &quot;thorelii&quot; x alata Kondo"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/5794/23898673915_f013670a0d_c.jpg" width="449" height="800" alt="Nepenthes &quot;thorelii&quot; x alata Kondo"/></a> <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/23602965350/in/album-72157637981134675" title="2015-12-21_09-43-23"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/583/23602965350_f2c6d92d19_c.jpg" width="449" height="800" alt="2015-12-21_09-43-23"/></a> ##### [[Nepenthes x splendiana|x splendiana]] The root mass on 2016-9-17 after growing in this mix for at least 4.5 years, here in a 2-gallon pot. Lots of thick, health roots throughout the pot. But these results were atypical, as the photos from other plants will show. I attribute the success with x splendiana to its _thorelii_-aggregate heritage (_smilesii_ or _kampotiana_, whichever was the actual female parent). <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/29837740622/in/album-72157647417495448" title="Nepenthes splendiana"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/5712/29837740622_4b858be760_w.jpg" width="225" height="400" alt="Nepenthes splendiana"/></a> <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/29837735382/in/album-72157647417495448/" title="Nepenthes splendiana"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/5183/29837735382_8b3d1603ca_w.jpg" width="225" height="400" alt="Nepenthes splendiana"/></a> After washing away the media: <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/29837726192/in/album-72157647417495448/" title="Nepenthes splendiana"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/7477/29837726192_9a0379f7a5_z.jpg" width="360" height="640" alt="Nepenthes splendiana"/></a> --- #### Failures ##### [[Nepenthes lowii x campanulata]] 2013-12-14 This root pattern was characteristic of plants that did not like this mix. The roots reached a depth where the oxygen levels were too low, after which they grow horizontally to reach the edge of the pot, and after that they resumed downward growth. The inner edge of the pot usually has better aeration than the center of the pot. <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/13016147594/in/album-72157637981134675" title="Nepenthes lowii x campanulata"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/7339/13016147594_132ba1e567_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Nepenthes lowii x campanulata"/></a> #### [[Nepenthes eymae x x trusmadiensis]] This plant also did not appreciate this mix, with very little root growth after months. <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/10172985106/in/album-72157637981134675" title="eymae x Trusmadiensis"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/3793/10172985106_fffd74c937.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="eymae x Trusmadiensis"/></a> <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/10172806854/in/album-72157637981134675" title="eymae x Trusmadiensis"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/8401/10172806854_78145d64a6.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="eymae x Trusmadiensis"/></a> #### [[Nepenthes eymae x (jacquelineae x izumiae)]] This plant showed very little root growth, possibly even root loss, several months after being potted into this mix. Slightly better than N. eymae x x trusmadiensis above. Shown here about 3 years from seed, on 2013-07-21 <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/10173047393/in/album-72157637981134675/" title="eymae (jacquelineae x&#x27; izumiae)"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/5329/10173047393_faec66fe08_w.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="eymae (jacquelineae x&#x27; izumiae)"/></a> <a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60359429@N08/10172805994/in/album-72157637981134675/" title="eymae x (jacquelineae x&#x27; izumiae)"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/5482/10172805994_2c1eef45fc_w.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="eymae x (jacquelineae x&#x27; izumiae)"/></a> --- [[Nepenthes in inorganic media]] | [[Nepenthes cultivation]]