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 Proteus
member
Registered: 10/04/01
Posts: 103
Loc: Dallas, TX
Last seen: 22 years, 2 months
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 Surprising news about Vermiculite.. 
#479229 - 12/04/01 08:31 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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So I was looking at my trusty Home Depot last night for vermiculite and couldn't locate it. So I tracked down the LAwn&Garden guru who was working there and he tells me that vermiculite has come under attack by environmentally-concious groups. Apperently it has adverse effects on the environment and is being phased out. That is why you will not see vermiculite for sale in big corporate stores anymore like Wal-Mart, Home Depot, & such....
I didn't believe him, so I went to Wal-Mart - - But they had everything but Vermiculite...!
Anyone else hearing this kind of news on their homefront???
So - - What can I use instead of Vermiculite????
I prepared 6 jars all of different substrates last night as experiments - I'll post on the results....
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There is the theory of the Mobius Strip
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 puscle
genius of love
Registered: 01/06/01
Posts: 4,539
Loc: NY
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Proteus]
#479236 - 12/04/01 08:47 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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Yesterday's news, Proteus. There was an asbestos scare concerning verm that started earlier this spring.
You can still find it at garden supply stores, AGWAY and many hardware stores. Oh, did I mention AGWAY?
Sixteen pounds for sixteen bucks.
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Anonymous
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: puscle]
#479244 - 12/04/01 08:54 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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So is their anything you can use as an alternative to Verm. that Does NOT have to be pressure cooked?..
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BeppoMarx
old hand
Registered: 09/01/01
Posts: 1,126
Last seen: 19 years, 5 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Anonymous]
#479253 - 12/04/01 09:07 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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no. youre pressure cooking the substrate in whole; its not just verm that needs sterilization. whatever you put in your jars must be at least boiled or PCed
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Holy shit people; COMMON SENSE! we were all born with it where did it go?
maybe theres a tek out there to explain how to use it!
BUCKETS BRIGADE left hand man!!!
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Proteus
member
Registered: 10/04/01
Posts: 103
Loc: Dallas, TX
Last seen: 22 years, 2 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: puscle]
#479257 - 12/04/01 09:12 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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oops - Sorry about the old info. It just surprised me b/c my last Verm. purchase at the same Home Depot was a couple months ago... well - I guess that would be around the time... errr......
I dont have an AGWAY (never heard of it) But I wish we did - thats a great price. I'm gonna check some local nurseries and see how things go. If worse comes to worse- I can order the shit online... that would sincerely suck :-[
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There is the theory of the Mobius Strip
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Mklangelo
enthusiast
Registered: 10/30/01
Posts: 297
Loc: Continental United States
Last seen: 22 years, 7 months
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Proteus]
#479258 - 12/04/01 09:13 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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You mean it's not just for breakfast anymore??
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[red] Life:[/red][blue] Live it foward, understand it backward...[/blue]
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Anonymous
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: BeppoMarx]
#479272 - 12/04/01 09:47 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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well for example, from what I hear Bird Seed can ONLY be PC'd or it wont work?.. Are their any substitutes to Verm. that can still work with just boiling?
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Anno
Experimenter
Registered: 06/17/99
Posts: 24,167
Loc: my room
Last seen: 1 month, 1 day
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Anonymous]
#479363 - 12/04/01 11:02 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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Again, birdseed is NO substitute for vermiculite. If you wana do cakes ala PF-method. you need vermiculite. Point.
Birdseed can be used on it?s own or with vermiculite, also rye. But as soon you are adding whole grains to a substrate, it has to be pressurcooked. If you add a flour, it can be boiled, still you get more reliable results if you PC it.
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Hippie3
mycotopiate
Registered: 11/06/99
Posts: 3,090
Loc: mycotopia.net
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Anonymous]
#479382 - 12/04/01 11:12 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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to replace vermiculite in pf cakes, you need to take a two-pronged approach.
first, you can substitute polyfil synthetic fiber for the top layer of vermiculite to act as an air filter between the substrate and the lid's inoculation holes.
second, you can grind sponges for use as a substitute for the vermiculite in the cake itself, assuming pf tek style cakes are desired.
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Admin @ mycotopia.net
Mycotopia
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Proteus
member
Registered: 10/04/01
Posts: 103
Loc: Dallas, TX
Last seen: 22 years, 2 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Hippie3]
#479462 - 12/04/01 12:15 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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I found a stockpile of Vermiculite today at Calloway's. However it was 6 dollars for 4 pounds. Oh well - I bought them all!
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There is the theory of the Mobius Strip
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straightbangin
member
Registered: 11/09/01
Posts: 168
Last seen: 20 years, 8 months
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Proteus]
#479567 - 12/04/01 01:37 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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vermiculite is at True Value Hardware or maybe some smaller mom and pop hardware stores. i'm not sure if true value is nation wide or just here in NY. i got 2 huge bags for $3 each. if you're really hard up for it. Mail me a biggest puffiest envelope you can find and i'll mail ya some ;)
AOL IM banginraver2
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baraka
Registered: 07/15/00
Posts: 10,768
Loc: hyperspace
Last seen: 2 years, 8 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: straightbangin]
#479617 - 12/04/01 02:37 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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I got a big bag of vermiculite at plantland today.
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This is the only time I really feel alive.
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FreakShow
3n+hu$|@$+
Registered: 11/14/01
Posts: 439
Last seen: 21 years, 9 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Proteus]
#479626 - 12/04/01 02:40 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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here's the story I got at Home Depot. They told me that they were all out becase the company which they recived the vermiculite from was going out of business; therefore, not shipping verm. to them.
They did however have 2x 20 lb. bags of it left. I think they were about $17.00/ea. I passed on the verm. and found 1lb bags of it at Fred Meyer. =)
it's interesting we got two seperate stories from the same store chain. it's got to be a conspiracy!
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straightbangin
member
Registered: 11/09/01
Posts: 168
Last seen: 20 years, 8 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: FreakShow]
#479649 - 12/04/01 02:56 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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Home Depot told me that they weren't getting it anymore for some reason and they didn't know why. Another garden store (Hewitts) said that it was out of season and they were out.
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bizarro
member
Registered: 09/01/01
Posts: 173
Loc: Southern Illinois
Last seen: 22 years, 4 months
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: straightbangin]
#479710 - 12/04/01 04:05 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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has anyone tried perlite as an alternative to vermiculite in making cakes? i haven't tried it myself, but i wonder if it wouldn't work - it should have similar properties as far as holding water and air, but it does get pretty soggy. i've only used perlite in soil mixtures, so i can't really say for sure.
anyway, i just got a bunch of vermiculite from http://www.discounthydro.com, but if it is, in fact, not going to be produced anymore, i'm sure there are alternatives.
take care! good luck!
-chris
ps. i tend to believe the 'out of season' thing more. i'm not saying it's not true, but people have known for a while that you should be careful not to breathe in the dust from vermiculite . . .
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Anonymous
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: bizarro]
#479747 - 12/04/01 04:46 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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No, but I think finely chopped straw would work ok. Soak it for 2 days
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erc
Stranger
Registered: 11/26/01
Posts: 17
Last seen: 22 years, 7 months
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Proteus]
#479931 - 12/04/01 07:48 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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Go to your closest garden store. Case in point; There is neither a Walmart or Home Depot in our city so I went 20 miles out of my way to Home Depot. Nothing. I went 20 miles further to Walmart. Nothing. I returned home and recalled that there was a ma n pa plant store next to the ma n pa hardware shop 2 minutes from my house. And ta dow! $1.30/huge scoop. The have perlite too!
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MrFreeze5
journeyman
Registered: 10/22/01
Posts: 69
Last seen: 22 years, 5 months
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: bizarro]
#480146 - 12/04/01 10:54 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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I've tried perlite instead of vermiculite. It didn't work out real well. The perlite compacted together and the mycelium just grew around the outside of the jar. And it took it a month to do that. The perlite tended to get dingy after about a week or a week and a half and parts turned brown. It did not work out. I managed to break one cake up and make a casing which is not doing too bad, but that is out of 12 jars. The rest got contaminated or just wouldnt grow.
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The path of indulgence leads to the house of wisdom.
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downforpot
Stranger
Registered: 06/25/01
Posts: 5,715
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: MrFreeze5]
#480219 - 12/04/01 11:59 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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what? are u for real, verm isnt gonna be produced no more? ahhhhh, shit, i dont get it, earth is fucked anyway from the gases, hehe. now that just pisses me off, oh well, i got my pc so im tryin to use bird seed now. but still, fuck those enviromental fucks.
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http://www.myspace.com/4th25
"And I don't care if he was handcuffed
Then shot in his head
All I know is dead bodies
Can't fuck with me again"
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FreakShow
3n+hu$|@$+
Registered: 11/14/01
Posts: 439
Last seen: 21 years, 9 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: downforpot]
#480227 - 12/05/01 12:05 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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just went to fred meyer tonight and bought the last 1lb bag of vermiculite. What a shame. hopefully they'll order more. I used most of it for jars tonight anyway.
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Papa_Bear
M-M GOOD!
Registered: 08/30/01
Posts: 756
Loc: Colorado
Last seen: 4 years, 11 months
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 Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Proteus]
#480270 - 12/05/01 12:52 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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I purchased a bag of Vermiculite at a Nursery and Landscaping business. 20 lb bag for 12 dollars. Great Deal!
That was about 5 months ago.
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Phake_ld
enthusiast
Registered: 10/08/01
Posts: 230
Last seen: 22 years, 2 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Proteus]
#480359 - 12/05/01 03:37 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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The only danger in vermiculite is when your initially open the bag. The pressure usually causes a plume of powder to rise which is known to be toxic if inhaled.
But after the bag has been opened once, you dont have to worry about it. So some of what the sales associate said to you is true.
Edited by Phake_ld (12/05/01 03:39 AM)
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psilocybian
enthusiast
Registered: 10/19/00
Posts: 153
Last seen: 22 years, 4 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Phake_ld]
#480739 - 12/05/01 01:22 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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Ground up sponges? Now thats original. Does it work well?
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BrownPastures
old hand
Registered: 03/15/01
Posts: 968
Loc: here
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Anno]
#480765 - 12/05/01 01:45 PM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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Hehehehe i just saw this thread and felt like chiming in........
if you cook the hell out of your "whole grains" and just add *small* ammounts of verm or any other non nutritous and/or nutritious substance(something you would use for casing)..... you get the same if not better results........
peace
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DELUDE
CNS+PC
Registered: 11/02/01
Posts: 95
Loc: Bulgaria
Last seen: 18 years, 11 months
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Re: Surprising news about Vermiculite.. [Re: Hippie3]
#485740 - 12/10/01 05:35 AM (22 years, 9 months ago) |
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Polyfil? I'm not sure what that is besides it's a pillow filling. Anyway can't you use some sort of foam plastics insetead of it for the top layer of the jars?
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Stuck in a Body -=- Lost in a Mind!
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