Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Hacks & How-to's
  3. Evergreens

The best vermiculite

By

Vermiculite is almost magical in its abilities — it prevents root rot while providing essential moisture. It can replace soil in hydroponics and can be used to germinate seeds. Different grade and size vermiculite differ with each purpose. Here is a list of the best vermiculite online to help you choose the one fit for your garden.

Vermiculite is indispensable. It can be used to germinate seeds because it holds water that the seed can absorb slowly. It prevents compact soil by absorbing excess water and providing aeration. When you replace soil with vermiculite, you’re also allowing the plant to absorb other nutrients like calcium and ammonium for faster growth. You can also mix vermiculite into soil to prevent root rot and drying out. Let’s check out our top picks for the best vermiculite.

Plantation Products Vermiculite

Best overall

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Plantation Products’ vermiculite is ideal for improving soil quality in large quantities. It does so by loosening soil, encouraging aeration, and holding onto water. Furthermore, it’s approved for germinating seeds and propagating seedlings. One pack contains 8 quarts of vermiculite.

PVP Industries Coarse Vermiculite

Best value vermiculite

Image used with permission by copyright holder

PVP Industries offers a 4-cubic-foot bag of vermiculite that’s free of asbestos. This particular vermiculite is coarse, which helps loosen soil and encourages moisture retention. When soil is loosened, roots can expand, and your plants can thrive even more. PVP Industries’ vermiculite is ideal for loosening compact soils like clay and improving soil moisture.

Espoma Organic Vermiculite

Best organic vermiculite

Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you’re seeking a completely natural vermiculite to lighten heavy soils, Espoma’s bag of organic vermiculture is your ideal choice. Heavy soils inhibit root growth, but vermiculite loosens soils to encourage root growth. One bag weighs 1.5 pounds, which is great for improving individual pots or smaller patches of the garden.

Vermiculite is better than a fertilizer — it helps roots grow, keeps soil healthy, and houses germinating seeds. Whether you’re looking to supplement your whole garden or a few potted plants, vermiculite will help keep your soil moist and loose for better aeration and root growth. Try any of the vermiculite bags on this list and witness the significant difference in your plants.

Topics

Editors’ Recommendations

How to Style a Coffee Table That Feels Collected, Not Cluttered
Plant, Furniture, Table

A well styled coffee table can make your formal living room stand out and should feel intentional, considered and appropriately arranged. The goal is balance, and it should support the room rather than compete with it.

Start with a foundation. Use one or two large books to ground the arrangement. Choose books with substantial covers that reflect the palette of the room, whether neutral or tonal, and complement the space. Stack them rather than spreading them out. This creates structure and gives everything else a place to sit.

Read more
Flowers From the Garden: A Summer Centerpiece Method
Flower, Flower Arrangement, Plant

A simple, season led approach to summer florals, built on what is in bloom rather than what is in stock.

There is a particular generosity to summer that no other season offers. The garden is full and the flower markets overflow. The roadside stands begin to set out buckets of zinnias and dahlias by mid June and July. The backyard, once an afterthought, begins to feel like an extension of the home itself. The question is no longer whether to bring flowers into the house, but how often.

Read more
The Easiest Way to Set the Table
Cutlery, Fork, Spoon

Have you ever wondered why the fork sits on the left and the knife on the right? Or why Europeans eat “Continental style,” holding the fork in their left hand and the knife in their right, while Americans cut, switch hands, and then eat? It turns out there’s a reason for all of it, and once you understand the history, setting the table suddenly feels far less mysterious. Before beautifully layered place settings and Pinterest-worthy tablescapes, dining was far more practical. Medieval feasts were less about etiquette and more about survival. Plates were often shared, forks were nonexistent, and eating with your hands was the normal standard. Tables were filled with trenchers (pieces of bread used as plates), and the idea of “proper placement” simply didn’t exist.

By the mid-to-late 1800s (around 1860–1870), European dining evolved again as meals began to be served in courses. This shift introduced what became known as the Russian style of dining, where utensils were laid out intentionally and used from the outside in. The fork stayed in the left hand, the knife in the right, and the table itself began to reflect structure, rhythm, and order. This approach eventually became the “Continental style” still used across much of Europe today.

Read more