Experiment

I am waiting for my equipment to arrive, so I purchased some pellets so I could try them out and see if they do make a difference. I'm really excited to see they do!

Nasturtiums

I put wool pellets in one pot and not the other.

There was no difference in germination rates.

However, the plant growth was very different. With the pellets the plants grew taller and were much greener.

Nasturtiums

They are getting too big for their pots, so I needed to transplant. The root structure was noticeably better, stronger and healthier with the wool pellets

Nasturtiums and Weeds

I also planted some other plants in bigger planters with both soil mixes. I've added the nasturtiums in to the planters with their respective mixes.

The weeds with wool are noticeably greener, and the leaves are less curled and stressed. We had a major heat wave during testing that put a lot of strain on all of our plants, and the wool pellets helped retain moisture to keep the plant healthier and less stressed.

In the garden

Here's what it looks like to use raw fleeces around the plants. It's great mulch helping to keep weeds to a minimum. I don't mind the appearance, but it's not for everyone. Additionally it's awkward to work with, quite smelly, and raw fleece is very bulky and hard to ship.

Pellets will be compact, easy to ship, easy to work with, less smelly, and the heat created by the pelletizing process will kill weed seeds. They will also provide additional aeration to roots and more even water retention.