Perlite vs. Vermiculite: Know How and Why to Use Them

Back when I was new to gardening (green, you might say), I walked into a plant nursery looking for perlite, as I’d run out of it for my DIY potting mix.

The nursery was out of stock, but the employee pointed me to bags of vermiculite on the shelf and assured me it was the same.

“This is what we use in our greenhouse. It works the same way perlite does,” he promised. “You can use it in your potting mix.”

It’s true that vermiculite was one of the components of my potting mix, but could I really...