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Post your Organic Soil Mix

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Post your Organic Soil Mix

justiceman 1,083 Replies 446,880 Views
Page 14 of 55 · Replies 261–280 of 1,084
#262
Just plain water should be fine, but warm or hot tends to clean a bit better. Please remember, my experience with carbon used for filtration is only with aquatics, not air filtration. I couldn't think of a way to reuse the old canisters/containers themselves, no experience with that.

The thing is this isn't high tech, it's incredibly old technology, the knowledge of which had been lost to humans until archaeologists kept digging up this incredibly rich, productive earth.

If you're using a 50L sack of soil, then use 5L of carbon, that's 10% (I hope! not so good with math).
 
#263
hey thank you sea.i cant beleive how we ,forget, knowledge so important?! its amazing isnt it.to think we have lost more knowledge probbebly than gained.in some ways. oh + the empty cannisters will work A+ for home made silencers!most deff.it will be used ,like, a filter.only instead of carbon it will hold ?1,inch foam pieces.its just to cut down on noise.not that its really noisy.at all really but im to hype to waste them.lol ill make use of them cages for a few things.:-) im ALLWAYS looking for the next thing to do.if there is nothing?well i just re-do everything.lol.thanks sea.
Seamaiden said:
Just plain water should be fine, but warm or hot tends to clean a bit better. Please remember, my experience with carbon used for filtration is only with aquatics, not air filtration. I couldn't think of a way to reuse the old canisters/containers themselves, no experience with that.

The thing is this isn't high tech, it's incredibly old technology, the knowledge of which had been lost to humans until archaeologists kept digging up this incredibly rich, productive earth.

If you're using a 50L sack of soil, then use 5L of carbon, that's 10% (I hope! not so good with math).
Click to expand...
 
#264
Seamaiden said:
I say reuse those old filters, especially if they're not doing anything for you anymore.
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I want to hear form farmers who know how to re-vitalize carbon from filters. My filters cost $60 and most of that cost is in forming a nice stainless steal case that simply needs fresh carbon or re-freshed carbon. I have read that heating in a co2 environment will work, but I feel the need for more direction before taking a stab at it. I have also been unsuccessful in finding a source of new activated charcoal.

On the subject of 'new world' archaeology finding evidence of extensive charcoal use in pre-contact agriculture in South America. Might it have been used as a soil extender? Next in line after limited water may well have been availability of arable soil. The ability to create soil with charcoal may have been a valuable tool in an extensive food production technology.
 
#265
over to the amazing seamaiden for that one.but i kinda get ur drift.and yea it makes good sense! its a good argument like but sea im sure will know a lil something about it?she articulates her self very well + clear.
Dunge said:
I want to hear form farmers who know how to re-vitalize carbon from filters. My filters cost $60 and most of that cost is in forming a nice stainless steal case that simply needs fresh carbon or re-freshed carbon. I have read that heating in a co2 environment will work, but I feel the need for more direction before taking a stab at it. I have also been unsuccessful in finding a source of new activated charcoal.

On the subject of 'new world' archaeology finding evidence of extensive charcoal use in pre-contact agriculture in South America. Might it have been used as a soil extender? Next in line after limited water may well have been availability of arable soil. The ability to create soil with charcoal may have been a valuable tool in an extensive food production technology.
Click to expand...
 
#266
and have you phoned your hydro shop? every single hydro shop were i am do refills!+ im in a crappy place.for good supplies.also.iv ,read, after a refill your filter will be only 50% as good as it was! and thats even if they use A grade carbon.aka the best.lol
peace
s-
 
#267
Dunge said:
I want to hear form farmers who know how to re-vitalize carbon from filters. My filters cost $60 and most of that cost is in forming a nice stainless steal case that simply needs fresh carbon or re-freshed carbon. I have read that heating in a co2 environment will work, but I feel the need for more direction before taking a stab at it. I have also been unsuccessful in finding a source of new activated charcoal.

On the subject of 'new world' archaeology finding evidence of extensive charcoal use in pre-contact agriculture in South America. Might it have been used as a soil extender? Next in line after limited water may well have been availability of arable soil. The ability to create soil with charcoal may have been a valuable tool in an extensive food production technology.
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Oh, it absolutely was, and that's the thing that got so many peoples' attention--other than what was reported in the Spanish texts it was assumed that the region really couldn't support a very large human population because these jungle soils are known to be very nutrient-poor. It was during a dig that the terra preta was discovered, and it had already been observed that these areas of dark earth were much more productive as compared to the red, heavy clay earth in surrounding areas. It's *still* being farmed, and productively.

The knowledge of how it was made has been lost, but archaeologists have found a huge variety of materials, including household garbage in the form of pot sherds and leftover animal bones, mostly fish. There are many theories on how these indigenous peoples made the terra preta, but the most widely accepted theory is that they would throw all trash into a certain area, and then after it was built up over a certain period of time a slow fire was built over the top, using a combination of brown, dry matter that would burn more easily and green leaves and plant material that helped smother the fire without putting it out completely, rather like how a pig is roasted Hawai'ian-style.

As for revitalizing carbon, I've only ever done this in the aquatic scenario, so can really only discuss it on that level.
 
#269
hey sea:-) sorry to bother u again.haha your the only lady i know with the know how. so im getting caps 3,paks + im gonna use the carbon out of my old filter after washing tit etc. the pores etc in my carbon should be a good place for the bennies to ,breed, live? is that correct?obviously ill use my molasses + sugaree for a food source.will the carbon keep em alive longer like ive heard?.oh,also.any special thing i have to do with the carbon mixed in my soil?lol sorry for a whole bunch of questions,:-)really am.just if u tell me? well then i got the knowledge:-)haha. cheers sea.
peace
s-
Seamaiden said:
Soil blocking is another planting method for food production growers. You HAVE to get the mix right or it won't stay in a block. Pain in the ass, I never explored it farther.

A little goes a looooooonng way with biochar. I've done some beds outdoors, but need to figure out a better way to get it done because for me it was time-intensive, too time-intensive, to get a small amount. I used rice hulls in an open-air method, creating a small fire and then burying it, and keeping the vent holes buried as soon as they come up. The goal is to get the hulls or other material charred, but not burned to ash, ya dig? Think: carbon.

So, for my soil beds less than an inch of char would be plenty. For indoor growing, I would make a mix with about 10% char at most. You can substitute a few things for making your own char, like activated carbon, but that could get expensive. The goal is to create a home for microbes that is also chemically active and 'locks' onto nutrients.
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#270
They don't live 'on' the carbon; i.e. consume it for food, they live in it. They'll also utilize what it 'locks' onto, chemically-speaking. I don't think you even have to rinse your carbon, but I could be wrong. If you just make sure that the soil is as good as it would have been without the carbon, then just add the carbon, the microbes will do just fine, though they may colonize a bit faster.
 
#271
T
Seamaiden said:
They don't live 'on' the carbon; i.e. consume it for food, they live in it. They'll also utilize what it 'locks' onto, chemically-speaking. I don't think you even have to rinse your carbon, but I could be wrong. If you just make sure that the soil is as good as it would have been without the carbon, then just add the carbon, the microbes will do just fine, though they may colonize a bit faster.
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thanks sea.u allways really helpfull:-)ta man.
s_
 
#275
masshole61 said:
Am looking into switching from perlite to rice hulls for soil aeration. Any ideas on sourcing rice hulls and what I should look for?
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I get mine at the local feed store, dirt cheap stuff like $7 for4.5 cf compressed. Also a lot of folks use rice hulls under their pools instead of sand. (nice and soft on the feet)
 
#276
haha, cool thank you sea! and yes your maths are correct.ha. our soil only comes in 50,l sacks so 3 ,of them + 15,l carbon.+ just ewc like allways.cheers
s-
Seamaiden said:
Just plain water should be fine, but warm or hot tends to clean a bit better. Please remember, my experience with carbon used for filtration is only with aquatics, not air filtration. I couldn't think of a way to reuse the old canisters/containers themselves, no experience with that.

The thing is this isn't high tech, it's incredibly old technology, the knowledge of which had been lost to humans until archaeologists kept digging up this incredibly rich, productive earth.

If you're using a 50L sack of soil, then use 5L of carbon, that's 10% (I hope! not so good with math).
Click to expand...
 
#277
masshole61 said:
Am looking into switching from perlite to rice hulls for soil aeration. Any ideas on sourcing rice hulls and what I should look for?
Click to expand...
Like urbanfog, I get mine at the local feed store WHEN they have them. Otherwise, I hook up the trailer and head down into the central valley to one of the sources. Relatively easy if you're in California or another rice-producing state. Otherwise, think: nut hulls. For example, I would think that walnut or pecan or even peanut shells/hulls might provide some loosening of the mix, depending on their size. All are hard, so they must be high in lignin, possibly Si like rice hulls are.
urbanfog said:
I get mine at the local feed store, dirt cheap stuff like $7 for4.5 cf compressed. Also a lot of folks use rice hulls under their pools instead of sand. (nice and soft on the feet)
Click to expand...
WTH? You're not that lady who bought EVERY sack of rice hulls in the area last year, for her pool, are you? Man...!! That fucked up my biochar shit!
 
#278
so basikly its all just extra organic matter + mostly to keep the soil loose?. i like using mr spliffs mounding tequnike,.it stops any of that soil shrincege shiyt,.
 
#279
Organic matter that decomposes very slowly. My experience with rice hulls outside says they take at least 3 years to break down. Of course, that could be very different in a more humid area, taking a year or maybe even less, or taking 5 years in a place like, say, Colorado at elevation. But the idea is to NOT use something that must be mined and treated before use (for me), to use something that's sustainable and renewable, and agricultural waste is perfect in many respects.
 
#280
absoulutelly right, straw etc + pond slime works amazing for dave and hiw garden of weeden. he digs tons of straw inrto his beds + skims the slime of his pond + its really thriving:-).
Seamaiden said:
Organic matter that decomposes very slowly. My experience with rice hulls outside says they take at least 3 years to break down. Of course, that could be very different in a more humid area, taking a year or maybe even less, or taking 5 years in a place like, say, Colorado at elevation. But the idea is to NOT use something that must be mined and treated before use (for me), to use something that's sustainable and renewable, and agricultural waste is perfect in many respects.
Click to expand...
 
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