Rooted poinsettias (‘Christmas Day Red’) in 6″ standard pots were evaluated at Auburn University to compare HydraFiber® 160WB blends against a peat/perlite commercial control. Media blends ranged from 70% peat:30% HydraFiber to 40% peat:60% HydraFiber, with additional treatments containing supplemental slowly available N. Substrate pH, EC, growth index, chlorophyll SPAD, shoot dry weight and foliar tissue were monitored from 8/17 to 11/22. All treatments produced market-quality plants, with no statistical differences in shoot dry weight and no commercially significant benefit from added N, even at 60% HydraFiber.
Key Points
- Objective was to determine performance of rooted poinsettias in HydraFiber vs. peat-lite substrates.
- Media treatments included peat/perlite control and blends from 70% peat:30% HydraFiber to 40% peat:60% HydraFiber, plus variants with supplemental slowly available N.
- All tested treatments resulted in market-quality plants, and poinsettias could be successfully grown with up to 60% HydraFiber.
- Supplemental N did not provide commercially significant benefits at the tested feed rate, with no statistical differences in shoot dry weight and no visual quality impact from SPAD or foliar tissue differences.
