My urban yamadori (Cedar Elm)

bucknbonsai wrote:NAPA autoparts brand oildry seems to hold up to freezing/thawing better.

In terms of groundlayer/airlayering, ive had mixed luck. I have been girdling the trunk about 4 inches off the ground then take a big nursery can and cut it up to form a 6inch deep ring about 15inches in diameter. I then fill this with potting soil. Sometimes i try to put moss against the wound and then fill the rest with soil. Does anyone else do it this way, or just use moss wrapped with bag, right at ground level?

Bucknbonsai
When I air layer I prefer to use the cut pot method. I only put moss in the bottom and fill the rest of the pot with 100% door/dry and just keep it moist. The last one I did I left on thru the winter and separated in the spring after spring bud break. It didn't sound like much but in that time we had a cold winter well for us. In one span we had temps in the low teens for almost two weeks.

As far as the floor/dry (NAPAdamma) growing medium goes. I have used it for more than 10 yrs here with good results. I have never found it to clog I cannot say that with many other substrates. I also don't use any organic. I have found the best floor/ dry is usually marked on the bag as being suitable for potted plants. I find it to be very similar to a sandy clay like medium. If you want to get some funny looks go to a garden supply and ask for sandy loam. Any that's what works for me in my back yard.

Mitch

The only oil-dry that I've found locally was at WalMart...haven't seen the NAPA brand (or any others). The stuff I tested softened pretty quickly...didn't break down completely but there was a fair amount of degradation. In comparison, almost no degradation at all of turface which I tested side-by-side.

I'll keep an eye out for other versions. Perhaps not all "oil-dry" is created equal.

Must......resist.......Oil-Dri....Turface......debate!

Must.....Try.....to......fight it!

Come on, Jay - it's not healthy to repress your feelings!

bucknbonsai wrote:NAPA autoparts brand oildry seems to hold up to freezing/thawing better.

In terms of groundlayer/airlayering, ive had mixed luck. I have been girdling the trunk about 4 inches off the ground then take a big nursery can and cut it up to form a 6inch deep ring about 15inches in diameter. I then fill this with potting soil. Sometimes i try to put moss against the wound and then fill the rest with soil. Does anyone else do it this way, or just use moss wrapped with bag, right at ground level?

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Yes I agree the Napa auto floor dry is made with calcined diatomaceous earth.diataomaceous earth can retain water like nothing else.wont have to worry about insects in soil either as it slices up insect larvae ect.