5 Reasons Why I Use LECA balls for My Houseplants
One question I often encounter on my Facebook page is why I prefer to use LECA balls for my houseplants over traditional soil.
Initially, I didn’t intend to use leca balls entirely for my houseplants. I tried it first with my snake plants and alocasias. I was amazed at how well they did without worrying about soil pests. So, I started transitioning all my houseplants to leca.
That year, I spent the whole summer learning about using leca balls for houseplants. There are advantages and disadvantages, but here are the main reasons I prefer it over soil.
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- Art — Growing a houseplant in a clear pot filled with clay balls looks aesthetically pleasing to me. I find it artistic to display a plant arranged beautifully in clay balls. If you have watched the series Beef on Netflix, the main character, Amy, owns a small business that sells artistically arranged houseplants. That part of the series inspired me to take an artistic approach to potting my houseplants in clear glass pots and leca balls.
- Avoid soil pests — I have had bad experiences with soil-related pests in the past. Endless fungus gnats, snails, and slugs have invaded my indoor plants before. Since switching to leca, I have never seen those pests again.
- Monitor root health — I’d say I’m crazy about seeing the roots of my houseplants. One thing I hate when they’re still in the soil is being clueless about root rot. I thought my plant was doing well, but in fact, the roots were already starting to rot in the soil. With clear glass pots and leca balls, I can see root growth more clearly and detect problems early.
- More precise watering schedule — There are two ways to use leca balls: open and closed systems. I prefer using the closed system. I use clear glass pots to see if the water has been absorbed inside the pot. I generally fill 1/3 of the pot with water and refill whenever the water level goes below that.
- Reusable — leca balls do not decay or disintegrate. They can be reused perpetually.
As with all other things, using leca balls for houseplants has its own disadvantages. Read the next part of this post to learn the challenges you may encounter when using leca balls for plants.
