What is Coco Peat?

You may or may not have heard of coco peat before. Its been growing in popularity in the gardening industry as a form of growing medium, or addition to soil mixes. Today we’re covering what coco peat is, and the different uses and benefits of using coco peat in gardening.

What is Coco Peat?

Coco peat is a type of coco coir, and is a natural biproduct of coconuts. Its made from the pith inside a coconut husk, which is in between the outside fibers of a coconut shell and the white meat inside.

Coco peat typically comes in vacuum sealed bricks, but before you use it you should soak in water and break up into a light and airy growing medium.

You can get coco peat at most gardening stores, or order it online. We like this brand on Amazon, but there are many options to pick from that do basically the same job.

Uses of Coco Peat

Coco peat is often used in gardening, which is the primary use we’re going to discuss in this article. However, there are other applications of coco peat too. For example, coco peat can be used as a component in insulation during construction projects.

In gardening, it can be used in a variety of ways. It can be used in hydroponic gardening as a growing medium. It can also be mixed into potting soil to provide nutrients and drainage for potted plants. You can also use it by itself as a growing medium for potted plants.

Benefits of Using Coco Peat in Gardening

Coco Peat is Reusable

One of the main reasons we love using coco peat as a growing medium in gardening is that you can reuse it. While we dont recommend reusing potting soil season after season, with proper care coco peat can be reused time and time again.

To reuse coco peat season after season you need to rinse it in between use. Simply rinse the coco peat and let air dry before putting away for safekeeping or reusing again.

Rich in Nutrients

Coco peat is naturally rich in nutrients that will help boost plant growth. Nutrients like potassium, zinc, iron, and manganese are all present naturally in coco peat.

If you’re using coco peat as a growing medium by itself, you’ll still want to use a fertilizer to supplement all these naturally occurring nutrients. However, adding coco peat as a mix into potting soil can help give your plants the extra vitamin boost it needs to thrive.

Adds Drainage and Aeration

One of the main uses for coco peat is to mix into potting soil to give soil both drainage and aeration. Lack of drainage is a common problem for both house plants and in container gardening.

Coco peat is a light and airy medium, which helps prevent soil from getting too compacted and retaining too much moisture after watering your plants. This helps prevent root rot and a myriad of other issues that comes with perpetually moist roots.

The lightness of coco peat also helps bring air to the roots of your plants, which may not sound like a good thing, but it is. This aeration is healthy for roots and will help them thrive!