Many monstera fans are beginning to grow monstera plants with LECA balls as the popularity of hydroponics and semi-hydroponic growing techniques among owners of houseplants rises.
If you’re completely perplexed, the following definitions should help:
Any technique for growing plants without soil is referred to as hydroponics. (It is feasible, indeed!) It frequently entails merely cultivating plants in water! Similar to hydroponics, semi-hydroponics typically refers to a technique for growing plants in an inorganic medium.
Growth in LECA balls is one of the most well-liked and effective semi-hydroponic growing techniques for monstera plants. If you struggle with overwatering and are looking for a new adventure with your monstera plant, LECA might be the answer!
Small, porous clay balls known as LECA balls are used as a growing medium to guard against pests, acidity, and root rot. “Lightweight expanded clay aggregate” is what LECA stands for.
Because LECA balls have a high porosity, they improve drainage and aeration, which helps the plant retain moisture from the water and maintain healthy roots.
LECA balls’ primary drawback is their ability to dry out your plants. Although LECA balls can keep some moisture and are excellent at aiding in water drainage, they have a weak capacity for storing water, and they dry out very rapidly once they have been drained.
Advantages of Growing Monstera Plants with LECA
Put an end to pests. Insects prefer the dim, moist environments that are frequently found in soil, but they can’t survive long in LECA.
No more excessive irrigation (or root rot)! If you tend to love your monstera to death by overwatering it, LECA balls are an excellent alternative because they dry out faster than soil. The fungus and bacteria that might cause illnesses like root rot are absent since LECA balls are also sterile.
fantastic root aeration. You won’t ever need to aerate your monstera’s roots or be concerned about compacted soil because LECA balls are incredibly porous.
LECA balls can be used again. Your LECA can be recycled and used repeatedly for other plants! Just be sure to wash and sterilize the LECA with isopropyl alcohol or peroxide in between recycling them.
In the LECA, can all plants survive?
You’ve joined a number of internet forums for indoor gardening, and you keep hearing people use the acronym LECA. Some claim that it is superior to soil. You might be wondering what LECA is and whether it would be a better choice for indoor plants than soil.
The abbreviation LECA stands for lightweight expanded clay aggregate, a growing medium made of clay that is used to support hydroponic crops. The clay balls act as passageways for both water and air. Don’t rule out soil as a growing medium, either; not all plants thrive in LECA.
You undoubtedly still have many questions about LECA, and I’m here to answer them. I’ll describe in detail how LECA functions as a growth medium in this article. Along with discussing the advantages and disadvantages, I’ll discuss which indoor plants thrive under LECA and which ones don’t.
Do I need to put my plants in LECA?
Leca is essentially a soil-like growing material that you may use to cultivate your plants.
A group of baked clay balls known as leca expand when submerged in water.
Because dirt includes nutrients, it is quite simple to feed your plants while using soil.
Therefore, you might be questioning why you would even think about using this for plant growth.
You’ll see why it’s helpful after reading this piece, and you might even want to try it for yourself.
What types of plants struggle in LECA?
Passive hydroponics is referred to as LECA, or lightweight expanded clay aggregate. Indoor gardeners may assert that every houseplant thrives in LECA, but I don’t agree. Which plants don’t thrive in LECA, I want to inform you today? those who don’t.
In LECA, the following plants might not thrive:
- prayer tree
- Stromanthe
- a thorny bushes
- Ferns
- pearly whites
- Pothos
- Potatoes
- Corn
I’ll repeat myself, but many indoor gardeners can cultivate the aforementioned plants in LECA. But much more so, cultivating the aforementioned list of houseplants in LECA will result in delayed development or dormancy as well as other unattractive side effects for indoor gardeners.
In LECA, do plants grow more quickly?
The roots of these plants typically extend out in search of moisture, which they can easily find in the clay balls.
Leca absorbs all the moisture it can, as opposed to soil, which retains moisture, and allows any extra water to drain to the bottom of the pot.
Your plant will need to obtain moisture from other sources once it has absorbed all of the moisture that the clay balls have absorbed.
When a plant, such as a spider plant, is really thirsty, it will develop roots everywhere in an effort to absorb as much liquid as possible.
If your plant, on the other hand, prefers arid conditions, it won’t spread out as much and will instead wait for the Leca to absorb more water.
Leca can support slower-growing plants, but they will have far less control over how much moisture they can take in.
Waiting for the Leca to absorb additional water once more is not an issue at all if you have a slower-growing plant that also enjoys being dry.
In fact, like Sansevierias, these plants enjoy the drought and prosper in it.
Why are my plants in LECA dying off?
Leca is an alternate method for growing plants without the use of soil. People are curious to learn more about this expanding medium because it is receiving more attention nowadays. Does it apply to all plants? Is it challenging? Is it superior to soil? These are excellent inquiries to make. Let’s discuss the advantages of employing leca and respond to those queries.
Reduced risk of pests
You’ll encounter pest problems far less frequently if you use Leca as opposed to soil. This is due to the fact that roots in Leca are less likely to develop root rot than those in soil. The roots of your plant will be destroyed by soil that has been left too damp for too long. Bugs and other pests are drawn to this. Leca doesn’t contain any living things, thus if it gets wet for an extended period of time, it won’t begin to decay. Your plant’s roots are not overwatered because they receive moisture from the clay balls in modest amounts. Root rot is significantly less likely to occur as a result of this mixture, which also deters pests.
Spider mites are one pest that thrives in dry settings. Moisture is very well absorbed and contained by soil. The rest of the plant suffers from high humidity when moisture cannot quickly evaporate. As a result, you might need to spritz your plant to ensure that its surroundings are sufficiently damp. In order to prevent spider mites and other pests from settling down, humidity is necessary. Leca has several opportunities to evaporate part of the moisture it contains due to the wide spaces between the clay balls. This keeps the air around the plant moist even when it isn’t being misted.
Easier plant care
Leca is excellent at controlling moisture, so you may water your plant regularly without drowning it. By itself, this eliminates one of the most difficult aspects of caring for plants. You only need to ensure that there is always water in the pot for the Leca to absorb in order for it to water your plant for you.
Currently, providing your plant with the right amount of sunshine is your largest issue. You now know that exposure to sunshine is the cause of any color changes your plant may experience. When utilizing soil, it may be a result of a confluence of watering issues and inadequate sunshine exposure, but one of the variables is now removed. This makes it simpler to maintain for even the toughest plants.
Less week-to-week maintenance
Leca controls the moisture in your pot, as we discussed in the previous part, and the plant absorbs this moisture at its own rate. Only when the Leca is unable to absorb any more water or when all of the water has been absorbed must additional water be added to the pot. Depending on the time of year, this can take several weeks.
You might need to water your plant once a week if it is in soil. Your plant will dry out again in the summer if you follow my advice and allow the extra water drain from the soil to prevent watering issues. This will take a week or two. Leca grows at the rate of your plant, thus for some plants, you may only need to water once a month.
Reusable growing medium
You’re in luck if you’re using Leca and decide that you’d like to reuse some that you previously used for another plant. If Leca is properly cared for and cleaned, it can be used repeatedly. Reusing dirt for your plants is not a good idea. Nutrients are present in soil, and if you use the same soil again after the previous plant has consumed them all, the new plant will not be able to get the nutrients. Reusing soil is impossible if you don’t utilize fertilizer because your plant won’t have anything to eat. However, what if a prior plant had some sort of bug that is now present in the soil? If you utilize fertilizer, you might be able to reuse the soil. Now, even your new plant will be impacted. Unless you use more drastic procedures, you can’t actually clear the soil as well as you can using Leca.
Leca is reusable indefinitely, but only if you thoroughly wash it before putting another plant in it.
Can LECA and dirt be combined?
Leca is made to control the right amount of moisture for your plants’ roots during irrigation.
Leca barely holds about 30% of its own weight in moisture, making it ideal for plants that want to dry out.
Leca helps your soil stay light and dry by preventing the soil from retaining a lot more of that moisture.
It becomes difficult for water to drain or for oxygen to pass through the compacted soil.
Why is LECA beneficial?
Jefferson claims that it offers the water and oxygen that plants require to develop. Because of the LECA components, the roots may immediately absorb water without being suffocated. The baked clay balls swell after absorbing water.
“The clay holds onto the water and gradually releases it for the plant to use. The clay balls maintain appropriate drainage while preventing the plants from fully drying out, requiring less watering—ideal for people who forget to water or are away. For those who are busy, Jefferson says, “you may add a little extra water, and the system stays moist for a longer period of time.”
How frequently should plants in LECA be watered?
The first time around, LECA can be a little challenging. Because it’s so dissimilar from growing plants in soil, not because it’s difficult.
We go over a few of the most significant aspects of watering plants in LECA below.
Prior to Planting
You must soak your plant for at least 15 minutes before planting it directly into LECA. This gives the plant a time to get ready for the transition.
Compared to plants you just rinse off and plant, pre-soaked plants are significantly more likely to transition successfully.
Directly After Planting
Watering your plants is simple once you’ve secured them in their new LECA habitat. Add water directly to the reservoir that has already been combined with nutrients. In this manner, the water will start to be absorbed by the LECA and transferred to the roots.
It ought to be adequately hydrated if your LECA was properly produced. If it isn’t, you might need to start by adding extra water.
Regular Watering
Watering LECA plants on a regular basis is very simple. Most 6-inch-tall or smaller plants only need to be watered once every two to three weeks. Simply pour water into the bottom container or reservoir.
Keep a check on your LECA, though, and rehydrate them with water if they start to dry up. The LECA must drink plenty of water to keep healthy. Otherwise, your plant will get exceedingly thirsty and potentially die if not caught in time.
Should LECA be rinsed?
Pre-treated clay is fired at high temperatures in a rotating kiln to create LECA, which is subsequently chilled. A light-weight expanded clay aggregate (LECA), which has grown five times in size as a result of this technique. Natural clay’s “pre-treatment” is a mystery, although it probably comprises chemicals and binding agents that, when in contact with heat, allow the clay to expand and form tiny balls. Even though some of the chemicals probably evaporated or became inactive during the fire process, these LECA balls undoubtedly include “stuff” or “crud.” Additionally, to lower the temperature once they are removed from the kiln, these balls are submerged in cool water, but what is in this water?
But my plants are fine—I just give it a rinse and use it!
many people on the internet claim. Yes, I can live in a house that is filled with garbage as well, but I won’t be happy about it!
It’s normally a good idea to treat LECA before using it to give your plant a healthy start in semi-hydroponics. A plant may grow much more slowly than it should if LECA is not properly hydrated. I’ve also observed that well-soaked LECA needs far less flushing than unsoaked LECA over the course of the past year of LECA growth. Make a decision on how you want to be lazy here if you use LECA and are inclined to be lazy. For me, a few more days of planning are well worth not having to flush every week.
Step 1: Rinse the LECA
Take the LECA out of the bag and thoroughly rinse it to remove any dirt or clay particles.
Pro tip: I perform this outside using a mesh laundry bag and my garden hose. Avoid pouring clay dust down the drain; it’s bad for the pipes.
Step 2: First Soak
Using hose water or tap water, soak the LECA for 24 hours. With this initial soak, the LECA will be cleared of the first wave of dirt.
You can use your LECA after letting the initial soak sit for at least two days if you’re feeling particularly indolent. (You must exercise patience if you want to be especially lazy.)
Pro tip: I place the LECA-filled wash bag in a big plastic container and soak it. I can fit the entire 50L of LECA into two mesh washing bags.
Science: After the initial soak, you can check the PPM of the soaking water. (See my nutrient solution tutorial for a PPM introduction.) My tap water has a PPM of about 150, and Hydroton LECA measured at 800 after soaking for 24 hours. That is a significant amount of more debris in the water compared to a fertilizer solution that is 300PPM. Imagine not soaking; your nutrient solution would make up 1/3 of the mixture, and the remaining 2/3 would be unidentified substances. Gross.
Step 3: Second Soak
Replace the soaking water with new tap or hose water after discarding the old water. Spend an additional day in the bath. You can use your LECA once you’ve soaked. However, keep reading if you want to know how to give high-value plants a strong start.
Science: After 24 hours, the second soak typically produces between 300 and 400PPM. Do you still recall learning about the Law of Chemical Equilibrium in high school science class? Yeah, I don’t either. The water and chemicals inside the LECA, however, need to be in balance with the water outside until they are equal inside and out when your LECA (product) is combined with water (reactant). If your water is 100PPM and your LECA is 800PPM, your water will gradually increase in PPM while your LECA will decrease in PPM over time. The second soak is done to expedite the procedure. If you soak LECA at 800 ppm in 100 ppm water as opposed to 400 ppm, the 100 ppm water will move much more quickly, and the equilibrium point will be lower.
Step 4: Dry and Store
If you won’t utilize the LECA right away, drying and storage are advised. The mesh washing bags are perfect for drying the LECA because they have such great ventilation! You can skip this step if you want to use the LECA right away.
Pro tip: For all the LECA I intend to use in the winter, I will complete Steps 1 through 4 outside in the summer. Additionally, if you leave your LECA outside and it rains, you win twice because nature will wash your LECA for you! But keep in mind to bring those mesh washing bags inside once you’re finished; the reason my bags are damaged is because animals tried to peek inside.
Step 5: Third Soak
A second soak is not a bad idea, particularly for expensive plants. When performing this step, I use distilled, reverse-osmosis, or filtered water at 0PPM.
Some people like to soak LECA for more than two weeks prior to use. If you’re utilizing cleaned, dried LECA from earlier procedures, this is also a good idea. Never use LECA that is dry; always use LECA that has been soaked and wet.
Along with any rooting hormones like KLN, you can also add CalMag (a calcium magnesium supplement) to the soaking water. As the Ca and Mg ions replace the less desired soluble minerals in the LECA, these supplements can be added as early as the first soak.
I have two buckets that are constantly stocked with LECA that are located in CalMag and KLN. Before I use it up, they might occasionally soak for a few weeks.
Why shouldn’t you use dry LECA, according to science? The reason is that LECA wicks water very well. Roots may become desiccated if they come into contact with excessively dry LECA, which will draw water away from the roots. Prior to usage, always make sure they are thoroughly wet.