Gardening also has its ‘technical jargon’, some of which applies only to pot culture of plants.
Crocking : A crock is a pottery storage jar. It now also means broken down (as in ‘an old crock’). Gardeners use it to describe broken pieces placed in the base of a pot to assist drainage.
Other material may be used. Big pots need big pieces, if small, a few clean pebbles will do. Crocking is especially important in locally made pots. Their basal drain holes are usually not big enough, so make the level of the crocking well above these.
Pieces of broken clean pots, broken roof tiles, broken clean bricks, river stones, even chunks of coconut husk may be used. Once these are in place it is necessary to provide a covering of some sort – to allow water through, and stop potting medium dribbling down to fill air spaces.
I use large, dry leaves (eg: Jackfruit), dry coconut palm fronds, chunks of coconut husk. A handful of rice husks will do very small pots. Organic matter breaks down over time but then the plant usually needs ‘potting on’ or planting into the open garden.
Potting on : The pot should be marginally larger than the root ball. A small pot, say 8cm diameter x 6cm deep, suits a single seedling or one small cutting. Using a much bigger pot means the plant cannot use all the water in the soil around it. The soil becomes waterlogged and sour. Unless the plant requires really wet conditions, roots will rot and the plant dies.
When the plant’s roots have filled its present pot it should be potted on into the next size up – 8cm.x6cm to 10cm.x8cm. etc. If roots begin to grow outside the pot, potting on is overdue and you may have to resort to:
Teasing out : A pot filled with roots is often pot-bound. If roots are wound around the pot in a spiral you must ‘tease’ the roots out before potting on or planting otherwise they will maintain this pattern and the plant will not prosper.
A strong jet of water may unbind the roots. More likely gently teasing the roots apart is required. An old table fork is a good tool. If roots are really impacted, more drastic treatment is required. Using a sharp blade (eg a box cutter) make 6-8 vertical slashes about 2-3 cm deep at regular intervals around the root ball. Prune back green parts to ease the burden on the roots.
When the plant has grown to its mature size or you don’t want it to grow bigger, remove the plant from its existing pot or tub. Trim away the bottom third of the root ball, then ‘shave’ about 2-3cm (depending on size) away from the sides using a clean, sharp instrument (knife parang, sharp spade etc.).
Clean, replace, or completely renew crocking. Give the pot/tub a good scrubbing or use a new one of the same size. Repeat processes described above, replanting no deeper than before. Renew the potting medium at the bottom and sides, tamp down gently and water well. Wait two weeks for the plant to settle before fertilizing.
Plastic pots/tubs are better than pottery. Local pottery is exceedingly porous and water loss is rapid. Plastic retains moisture better and you can place the pot inside a larger earthenware pot for a better aesthetic appearance.
POTTING MIXES
The only place I have seen large bags of potting mixes for sale is at Ace Hardware, Kuta Galeria. These are imported and are really expensive. You can make your own – see recipe below. It is time consuming, but what are your domestic staff for?
To 20% clean, washed, river sand add 20% larger pieces of chopped coconut husk (use pine-bark mulching pieces as a guide). Rice hulls are readily available from any local mill for the asking (usually burnt anyway) so add 20% of these. If they have cold ash, ask for some of this too.
Organic matter is needed ie: Horse, cow manure, or dried sewage sludge are good sources. The final 20% should be compost. Every good gardener should have a compost heap tucked away in a hidden corner of the garden where all kitchen scraps grass clippings leaves etc. are thrown (exclude meat scraps they smell bad and attract flies). Any used charcoal from barbecues may also be added.
A 5cm layer of good garden soil should be sandwiched between every 10cm. of vegetable matter. Persuade the males in your household to go pee on the compost heap whenever the need arises, (an excellent source of urea). When the heap is about one meter high, start a new heap. Allow the old heap mature for two weeks then turn it over daily for one week before using.
The proportions given above are approximate and may be varied according to supply. Place ingredients in a pile and thoroughly mix together before use.
Caution: All potting mixes – imported or home-made – carry some risk. Disposable gloves and face masks should be worn while handling and later destroyed, plus a good ‘wash-up’ on completion.
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