Requirements for a Good Planting Media for Planting Vegetables

 

The role of planting media is so influential on plant growth. Because it serves to meet the needs of oxygen and nutrients, plants can grow healthily. One of the main causes of crop failure or plant death can be caused by the wrong use of planting media. Without a good planting medium, the growth of seeds or plants planted will not be optimal.

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Therefore, in gardening, the main step that must be considered is a good planting medium. In general, there are four main requirements that must be considered when preparing planting media.

Here are 4 characteristics of a good planting medium for farming:

1. Having porosity and moisture

The characteristic of a pivoting planting medium is that if it is held it will be loose or decompose and feel moist, but not wet. The axis of planting media has an empty cavity between the materials so that water can penetrate so that water does not stagnate in pots or polybags.

However, on the other hand, the materials that make up the planting media must be able to absorb water (hygroscopic) to be stored as water reserves and maintain moisture. That way the plant roots can grow properly and perfectly.

2. Has macro and micronutrients

Another requirement of a good planting medium is to have important nutrients. Planting media must contain nutrients for plant growth, both macro-organisms, and micro-organisms, such as mycorrhiza, Trichoderma, rhizobium, and others.

These nutrients are very helpful in maintaining the biological balance of the growing media, which will determine the productivity and fertility of the plants to be produced.

3. Contains 3 essential blends

The use of soil alone as a planting medium is considered ineffective because the soil does not contain the nutrients needed by plants. To perfect the planting media, you can mix burnt husks, manure, and compost in a ratio of 1:1:1. Then stirred evenly before being placed in a pot or polybag.

4. Free from pests and diseases

A good planting medium is a planting medium that is free from pests and diseases. Pests and diseases contained in the growing media can attack plants and cause plant death.

For that, before use, it's a good idea to sterilize the planting media before use. Sterilization can be done physically such as pasteurization or the general term steamed, burned, or chemically using pesticides.

Requirements for a good planting medium

Planting media has the function to support plants, provide nutrients and provide a place for plant roots to grow and develop. Through growing media, plants get most of their nutrients. For plant cultivation in pots or polybags, planting media is made as a substitute for soil. Therefore, it must be able to replace the function of soil for plants.

A good planting medium must have physical, chemical, and biological properties that are in accordance with the needs of the plant. In general, a good planting medium must have the following requirements:

1. Able to provide growing space for plant roots, as well as being able to support plants. That is, the planting medium must be loose so that the plant roots can grow well and perfectly, but still solid enough to hold the roots and support the stems so they don't collapse. If the media is too loose, root growth will be free but the plant will be uprooted too easily. Conversely, if it is too dense, the roots will be difficult to grow.
2. It has good porosity, meaning that it can store water while also having good drainage (ability to drain water) and aeration (ability to carry oxygen). The planting medium must be able to retain soil moisture but must be able to remove excess water. A porous planting medium has an empty cavity between the material. The media is still permeable to water, so that water does not stagnate in pots or polybags. But on the other hand, the cavities must be able to absorb water (hygroscopic) to be stored as a reserve and retain moisture.
3. Provide sufficient nutrients both macro and micro. Nutrients are very important for plant growth. These nutrients can be provided by fertilizers or the activity of microorganisms contained in the growing media.
4. Does not contain seeds of disease, planting media must be clean from pests and diseases. Pests and diseases contained in the growing media can attack plants and cause plant death. Planting media does not have to be sterile because many soil microorganisms are actually very beneficial for plants, but must be hygienic from germs.

How to make organic growing media for vegetables

1. Prepare soil that is loose and fertile, preferably taken from the topsoil. Make sure the soil is dry so the soil doesn't clump. Clogged soil can cause raw materials to be mixed evenly. Then sift the soil until it becomes fine grains.
2. Prepare the compost that has been cooked. Then sift the humus or compost as the first method.
3. Prepare husk charcoal that is dry and ready to use.
4. Then mix the soil, compost, and husk charcoal in a container. The composition of the mixture is 2 parts of soil, 1 part of compost, and 1 part of husk charcoal. Then stir the mixture until smooth. The three raw materials mentioned above can also be mixed with other compositions, namely 1:1:1 or 2:1:1. Depending on which one is the best in your opinion, of course, it also depends on the type of plant to be planted and also the availability of raw material resources for its manufacture. You better try it by trial and error so that you get the right composition formula.
5. Prepare a pot or polybag and enter a mixture of the three raw materials. The planting medium is ready to use.
6. In conclusion, planting media is very helpful if we want to grow vegetables in the form of pots/polybags.