Learning Objectives:

• Learn the practical steps to using coir-based products in home gardens and school environments
• Understand different formats and how to rehydrate or prepare them
• Discover educational, environmental, and hands-on benefits of coir in everyday life

Getting Started with Coir at Home

Why coir is perfect for home gardening:

• Lightweight and easy to store (especially in compressed form)
• Clean, mess-free alternative to heavy soil or compost
• Naturally pest- and pathogen-resistant
• Great water retention = less watering needed

Common coir formats for home use:

• Coir Coins: Perfect for seed-starting. Simply soak and sow.
• Coir Grow Bags: For tomatoes, chillies, and salad leaves.
• Coir Pots and Trays: Ideal for herbs or ornamental plants.
• Compressed Blocks: Can be used for containers, raised beds, or mixed with other media.

Step-by-Step: How to Prepare and Use Coir

1. Hydrate Your Coir Block
   • Place in a large container
   • Add warm water gradually (4–5 litres per 1kg brick)
   • Let it expand and fluff up — takes about 15 minutes
2. Mix (Optional)
   • Add perlite, vermiculite, or worm castings to enrich
   • Add slow-release nutrients if growing high-demand crops
3. Plant
   • Use in seed trays, containers, or mix into beds
   • Monitor moisture — coir retains water well, but don’t overwater
4. Reuse or Compost
   • Coir can be reused 2–3 times
   • Compost the used coir or refresh by rebalancing nutrients

Using Coir in Schools

Why schools love coir:

• Peat-free and planet-friendly
• Fun for hands-on STEM learning
• Engages students in sustainability, science, and gardening
• Easy to store and distribute in packs

Popular school activities using coir:

• Grow-from-seed kits with coir coins and trays
• Build-a-bag garden with coir grow bags on trolleys
• Root observation projects using coir and clear pots
• Coir vs Soil water retention experiments

Reflection & Group Discussion Prompts

1. What surprised you most about using coir instead of soil?
2. How might coir gardening reduce your household or school’s environmental impact?
3. If you were to recommend coir to a friend, what would you say?
4. What challenges could you face using coir, and how might you solve them?

Activities

Activity 1 – Coir Hydration Challenge

• Try rehydrating a coir brick at home or in class
• Measure water input and expansion size
• Track how much water it retains over a week

Activity 2 – Start a Windowsill Garden

• Use coir pots and coir-based compost
• Grow herbs like basil, coriander, or mint
• Keep a growth journal

Activity 3 – Science Fair Project: Coir vs Compost

• Test seedling growth in different media
• Document progress, take photos, measure height weekly
• Present your findings with graphs

Activity 4 – Design Your Own Coir Kit

• What would you include in a school coir kit?
• Design packaging, write instructions, and give it a fun name

Summary

Whether you’re a home gardener looking for eco-friendly options or a teacher searching for educational tools, coir is a flexible, practical, and sustainable choice. From seed starting to science experiments, coir opens doors to hands-on, planet-friendly growing — wherever you are.