Glass Jar Garden

Soils and layers

Substrate barrier mesh

Reusable

Fine mesh that keeps soil out of the drainage.

What the simulation uses

Holds water
1 % by volume
Water it keeps after draining; the rest runs down to the drainage.
Pore space
60 % by volume
Room for air and water between grains; low means roots suffocate when wet.
pH
6.5 to 7.5 pH
How acid it keeps the soil.
Mould risk
none
How much fresh food it gives white mould; high-risk soils fuzz over in the first weeks.
Nutrients
none
Plant food it brings.
Presses down to
97 % of its loose depth
How far pressing can pack it, keeping its weight.

Description

Skip it and fine particles clog the drainage, water wicks back up and the soil goes stale and airless. It is inert, takes up no depth and can be reused.

Also called fibreglass window screen, weed barrier, substrate divider.

Estimated, where sources were thin: bulk_density not meaningful (sheet material; ~100-150 g/m2 areal mass, est); porosity/water fields set to mesh-open-area estimates.

Sources

Grow it in a jar