Diatomaceous Earth / Molar Clay?

[maisondecactus]

Hi,

I have been experimenting to make my own cacti putting soil. And I have come across diatomaceous earth. It seem very interesting and I want to try it.

I am thinking of using this:
https://www.eurocarparts.com/p/euro-car ... SoQAvD_BwE

But I would like to know:
1. Is diatomaceous earth the same thing as Molar Clay?

2. Is diatomaceous earth/molar clay environmentally friendly? I’m already using John Innes compost that has peat in it (peat-free compost, to me, is too light but please let me know I might be wrong), and I’d like to make my potting soil as least environmentally impactful for to the possible.

3. Is it safe? (probably is - given many people are using it) I read somewhere that food-grade ER has less than 1% of crystalline silica and no more than 10mg/kg of arsenic or lead. I am probably answering my own question, but since it is used for cat litter etc, it is safe to use it as long as we are careful not to inhale the dust?

4. How much should I use?

[el48tel]

Diatomaceous Earth is silica ... skeletons of sea creatures called diatoms.
It's dangerous stuff if breathed in because it is silica.
It is great for killing some insects because it rubs their exoskeleton off.
Use sparingly around the GH and plants and in compost

[JonNo]

When I was trying to find an answer to the mealy bug problem, someone suggested using diatomaceous earth in and around the pots. When I looked into it, I came across warnings about how harmful it can be and that you should always wear a mask when in close proximity to it. As all of my plants are kept in the house I decided against it... Only my two penn'orth, of course, I imagine a lot of people use it successfully.

[Chris L]

The absorbent granules as in the Europarts link is the same as the Tescos cat litter. Cheaper than cat litter too.

That is safe to use in your mix, but don't put too much in. It will absorb water and can make the compost stay damp if the weather is poor for a prolonged period (i.e. as it was in the UK for the back half of last year).

Diatomaceous Earth is similar but different. It is a very fine powder - like talcum powder - and can be used to kill mealy bugs. Wearing a MASK is ESSENTIAL. It is dangerous to breathe in the dust particles, and it floats about like crazy in the wind.

I did an experiment last year with it and for it to be effective in killing mealy bugs (and that is the only reason to use it) it needs to be liberally dosed over all the plants for several months. I did it from September 2019 to May 2020. It did drastically reduce mealies, but makes the plants unsightly.

However, I would not recommend using Diatomaceous Earth in powder form due to the danger of using it.

[maisondecactus]

Thank you for the replies!

So molar clay is the one to use to use in the potting mix.
Diatomacious earth is similar but diffirent that it is in powder form and should be taken extra caution not to inhale it and it is used for killing bugs.

I wonder if molar clay production is environmentally friendly...?

Some of the commercial cacti mx has this porous grits and I am sure it is molar clay. Please correct me if I am wrong.

I think it would be interesting to do a small experiment to see if using molar clay in the potting soil mix improves cacti growth/health.

[Paul in Essex]

No need to wonder - the answers are here! If you search this forum for 'cat litter' you'll see people have been using moler clay - usually spelt with an e - for years.

[maisondecactus]

Thank you Paul, and everyone for answering my forum post.
My terrible spelling!
Who would have thought to use cat litter?! I will check on the thread. Very interesting.

Kyoko