Perfect media to grow Sansevieria?

Garden soil? Cinder? Cocopeat? Perlite? Coarse Sand?

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Why to fret about the media for Sansevieria?

To be honest, if you are the type that do not fuss much about how optimally they grow, keep your Sansevieria in a well sun-lit area and water as per the seasons - increase in summers, mildly in autumn & spring and sparingly in winters; whats more, you generally do not need to fret about the media for Sansevieria.

However, if you are the type that have acquired a reasonably expensive and/or variegated Sansevieria plant, want to grow it to its optimal and healthy mature form to show it off to your fellow hobbysits, thereby claiming how awesome you are at growing your beautiful Sansevieria; well then the media in which you are growing your Sansevieria is of utmost importance.

Based on our experience of growing Sansevieria for more than a decade, here is what we recommend as an ideal, all-weather and all-expert-level way of growing Sansevieria:

Rule # 1: Always select minimum 1 size bigger pot than you think your newly acquired Sansevieria requires. Contrary to what has generally been made a rule, Sansevieria thrive in bigger pots. Look at this way - there are no limiting their roots by way of small pots, when they grow in nature, right? And do they thrive in nature? 😊 Bigger the pot, healthier the plant will be and it will grow to its optimal glory! And, not to forget - ample size drainage holes to let out the extra water so that the roots are NEVER water soaked.

Rule # 2: Sansevieria like 'fluffier'/'flakier' media. Not very difficult to understand, yeah? There are so many ways to make your media 'fluffier'/'flakier'. Make use of what you find easily available and pocket friendly. We love to use a mix of coco-peat, coco-chunks, vermi-compost and medium grade cinder. Alternatively, one can always try pumice, perlite, leaf mold, rooting wood chunks, etc. The idea behind making the media 'fluffier'/'flakier' is quite simple really - allow the roots to breathe. The more they breathe, the more they grow.

Rule # 3: Add all organic feed/fertilisers only at the bottom of the pot. Feed/fertilisers that are not directly in contact with roots take a lot of time to actually deliver the feed/fertilisers to the plant. So when you are putting the media in the pot, ensure the feed/fertilisers is put first so that it stays at the bottom. Of course, by this time you would have covered drainage holes, to not let the media escape through them.

Rule # 4: Do not deep-water immediately after planting the Sansevieria in the pot. Remember, plants do not gulp water like humans and animals... plants absorb moisture. Water minimally, allowing the media to get slightly wet so that the newly planted Sansevieria can sense moisture and the fibrous roots that deliver water content to the plant can start emerging.

Rule # 5: Sansevieria absolutely love sun and water. Of course, this doesnt mean that they be kept in the blistering summer sun of North India. An ocassional rain or the monsoon downpours work wonders for them. However, if its pouring buckets for more than a couple of hours, you need to check the forecast and subsequent rains. Too much exposure to rains doesnt bode well for them either. NEVER mix ground water and rain water. If the plants have been exposed to rain water, let the media run fairly dry before you attempt giving it ground water. Sansevieria love water - so ensure your watering regimen takes care of that. Water them till the water starts seeping out from the bottom. But at the same time, ensure enough gap between two waterings to not make the media soggy all the time.

Rule # 6: If you have winter temperature of less than 7-8 ℃, you need to ensure that the Sansevieria do not face the chill. So you might have to bring them indoors till such temperatures last or you can pray to the almighty that the chill vanishes 😊

Rule # 7: Sansevieria thrive in clusters that generally involves different shapes and sizes of them kept together in no particular order. Kept individually, they seem to be missing their friends to talk to and hence do not seem as happy as otherwise.

Rule # 8: If you are the type that like to 'harvest' offsets and grow them as new plants or trade them for your dream plants, please be advised that Sansevieria offset like crazy! However, do not rush to plant the freshly harvest offsets. Let the wounds heal and develop a protective covering on the wound. If you do not let this happen - this is the surest way of the offset catching the infection and melting away.

Rule # 9: Once you 'harvest' offsets from the mother, let her rest. Do not cover the portion from where the offsets were harvested, for a few days. Do not water for a few days. If possible, move the mother to the shade for a few days.

Rule # 10: All the rules written above are meaningless 😊 you can make up your own rules as you experience growing them in YOUR care. Remember, each location is different, each garden is different, each house is different. The amount of wind or direct sun responsible for moisture evaporation is different at each location, the amount of dampness below the pot - whether kept on ground or at an elevated position, etc will differ and make the plant behave differently. However, we strongly believe what we have penned above will help hobbyists who have been smitten by Sansevieria will find these a good starting point.

Support: If you still have any questions or observations to share with us or get more insights, do reach out to us and we would be happy to share our experiences to help you.

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