Growing Better/Cheaper Container Plants with Substrate Stratification

 

What if someone told you that you could fill your pots halfway with a less expensive soilless substrate (large pine bark) in your container production system and get amazing benefits from it; better moisture control in the growing media container, better rooting, better fertilizer management, reduced wilting, and overall similar to better growth, all while saving costs?

That is what the science of substrate stratification is pointing to.  Usually, soil moisture settles at the bottom of the pot and never really dries out while at the surface you have a very dry zone where the roots are establishing.  By layering a larger particle size (like large bark) on the bottom with a finer particle size media (peat and fine bark mix) on the top, the moisture balance is somewhat flipped and evens out over the entire pot keeping moisture levels more balanced in the pot.  Aside from the cost savings you also gain the production benefits mentioned above as well.

Here is a good video link to more information on the transformative and evolving science of substrate stratification that is coming out of Dr. Jeb Fields and other labs looking at rethinking the way we have been growing container plants for years. https://youtu.be/imA-BgHzluk?si=ZPFUPsIjsAppAbpk.  If you’d rather read about the research here is a link to a study on the same topic. https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/11/8/1454