You might find these white balls in a range of sizes and textures, such as large puffy balls or clusters of white eggs. There are many species of soil mites and all are close relatives to ticks and spiders. They may appear as little white dots walking along the surface of the soil or along a plant container. These tiny creatures are about the size of a pinpoint and are very easy to miss. The dried seed ball can sit dormant for as long as the seed is viable, but for best results deploy them in the following season.ĭrop your seed balls before good rain is coming, or just when you have time. White fungus balls in the soil are most often fungal colonies. Potting soil mites make their home, with many family members, in soil. Mix equal parts of dried clay soil and compost and a similar amount of seed.Millie has dug up some clay soil in her garden and dried it to see how it works making seed balls – this time making Rocket seed balls Gently roll into little balls – about 2cm across – being careful not to damage the seeds.Continue to mix, slowly misting with water until the mix just comes together around the seed.Mix equal parts of the compost & dry clay powder and add a similar amount of seed.

Millie is making some combination seed balls using Cosmos sulphureus (Orange cosmos) and Alyssum seeds. It’s a great method to use for smaller seeds. This method packs nutritional matter for the seeds into the seed ball. Keep adding clay powder and water until the seeds are well coated.Use a water spray/misting bottle to moisten the seeds and mix to coat them in the clay powder.Sprinkle dry clay powder over the seeds.If you notice clusters of hundreds of tiny white balls on the soil surface, chances are you made the mistake of using uncomposted lawn clippings as a mulch. The purpose of perlite is the same as that of sand, however, compared to sand, this white stuff in potting soil is. Millie is making 3 types of seed balls – a simple version using clay only, a combination version that uses clay and fertiliser and version using clay from her own garden!įor this method, Millie is coating artichoke seeds in clay. This allows quick grabbing of nutrients and water, which most crops need. Dry, smashed-up clay (you can use potters clay, or dry and crush your local stuff).Unfortunately, it’s hard to always be home on the perfect seed sowing day so Millie has discovered a way to make some set and forget seed starters – seed balls or seed scats! Since perlite retains its structure and does not get compacted, it keeps soil mixes light and airy, keeping those pockets of air intact, and providing plenty of space for tender, young roots of plants to easily make their way through to develop and grow.Raising seed directly in the garden is all about timing - ensuring the soil and air temperature is right and moisture is consistent through germination. When roots try to grow through compacted soil, it is basically like hitting a brick wall.

Compacted soil inhibits root development. Over time, heavy soils can get compacted. The addition of perlite also helps to lighten the weight of soil. Tiny balls in potting soil / agriculture 279741 Asked September 21, 2015, 3:46 PM EDT Hi, I was wondering if you could have a look at this tiny objects which I discovered in my potting soil. This is one of the many reasons we encourage gardeners to mix in plenty of this amazing soil amendment into your potting soils, especially when you are potting up plants that really won’t tolerate wet soils at all (like succulents and cacti). What are the little white balls Are they bean bag beads The small styrofoam-like particles in your potting soil are a mineral called perlite. They’re an ingredient commercial potting soil vendors that provide additional nutrients to your plants and allow water to drain. Perlite is an excellent medium for filtering out excess water, leaving your roots with plenty of access to life-sustaining oxygen. As it turns out, those little white balls in potting soil aren’t actually synthetic at all. While plants definitely need water to live, excess water can be the kiss of death to the roots of plants if they sit in too much moisture for too long.

Drainage is also greatly improved in soil which is a must for plant vitality.