Correcting Improper Soil Amendment Ratios?

[Minitiger]

Any advice on this would be greatly appreciated. What I was wondering was if it's possible to use an organic soil mix that may have improper ratios of certain organic amendments and/or fertilizers added to it. This is my first grow in a looooooong time and definitely my first organic grow. I had to go to work later in the day, so I was kind of rushing things, on account of the fact that I wanted to get the mix cooking and get going. Thought I was gonna make twice the amount of the recipe I'm using, then thought I may not have enough room in my cooking container and went with what the soil recipe called for' but not before I MAY have added too much of certain amendments (possibly oyster shell, maybe kelp meal' maybe gypsum, maybe who knows haha). In any event, the few amendments that I added were only 50% more than the soil mix recipe called for. Two days later, I got worried that I may have added too much of a few ingredients, so I added 50% of the base soil mix (equal parts Ocean Forest/rinsed coco/EWC and perlite) and blended that with the initial soil mix. If I let it cook for like 60 or 90 days, will it be all good to use?

I also mixed another batch of soil a few days ago with the correct ratios in a different, larger container, following everything to a T and paying attention haha. But I was just wondering if, by letting the (possibly) messed-up soil mix cook for a long-ass time, will it eventually be safe to use?

By the way, I'll be on these forums a lot from here on out. Eager to document my grows once I get going and I hope y'all will pay attention and can help me out. I've got Goji, Prayer Tower, Goldstar and El Jefe Thai beans that I'm DYING to sprout, but I wanna be sure I've got everything in order first. I'm real particular like that haha!

 

[Tnelz]

With the amendments u listed as possible overages u should be fine. May keep ur ph on the high side but I'd say don't worry to much. Let it cook a little longer than u normally would. I would be afraid to put a plant in soil with high amounts of those amendments. I'd run a clone or something in that soil first and see what happens. Good luck to u bro.

 

[Minitiger]

Hey, thanks so much for the help. What I'm worried about is that I may have added too much greensand, which I know is a very slow-release form of nitrogen (I plan on recycling my soil mix). I may have added too much soft-rock phosphate, as well. I swear I wasn't baked when I was making my soil mix haha. I was just rushing because I had to go to work, like I said. Cooking the mix longer should help correct that, too, right?

I guess what I'm really asking is if you put incorrect ratios of any type of soil conditioner/fertilizer in your soil mix initially, will it disrupt the cooking process altogether?

I agree with you about running a clone or something in it first. I was actually planning on just planting a couple different bag seeds I've found, since I didn't pay for those and don't really plan on growing out anyway, just to see if they'd sprout.

Anyway, yeah, thanks for your response.

 

[ShroomKing]

Hey, thanks so much for the help. What I'm worried about is that I may have added too much greensand, which I know is a very slow-release form of nitrogen (I plan on recycling my soil mix). I may have added too much soft-rock phosphate, as well. I swear I wasn't baked when I was making my soil mix haha. I was just rushing because I had to go to work, like I said. Cooking the mix longer should help correct that, too, right?

I guess what I'm really asking is if you put incorrect ratios of any type of soil conditioner/fertilizer in your soil mix initially, will it disrupt the cooking process altogether?

I agree with you about running a clone or something in it first. I was actually planning on just planting a couple different bag seeds I've found, since I didn't pay for those and don't really plan on growing out anyway, just to see if they'd sprout.

Anyway, yeah, thanks for your response.

The thing about soil mixing is that you really won't know how well you did untill after the grow. I ruined a good harvest because of nitrogen toxicity. Play it safe and don't worry about the ratios now, what is done is done. But I would cut that soil before use. Best of luck.
Peace

 

[NaturalTherapy]

Get a soil testing kit from a hardware store and figure out where your levels actually are. Dirt cheap and accurate

 

[Bulldog11]

Hey, thanks so much for the help. What I'm worried about is that I may have added too much greensand, which I know is a very slow-release form of nitrogen (I plan on recycling my soil mix)..

It is?

 

[Minitiger]

The thing about soil mixing is that you really won't know how well you did untill after the grow. I ruined a good harvest because of nitrogen toxicity. Play it safe and don't worry about the ratios now, what is done is done. But I would cut that soil before use. Best of luck.
Peace

Thanks for your response. I did add more of the base soil mix two days after I initially mixed the soil and additives. Do you think that'd help? Also, what do you mean you "ruined a good harvest because of nitrogen toxicity"? Do you mean the harvest looked good and you pulled a decent amount, but the buds smoked crappy because of too much nitrogen? Or did your plants fry? Just wondering....

 

[Minitiger]

Get a soil testing kit from a hardware store and figure out where your levels actually are. Dirt cheap and accurate

Thank you! That's a really good idea, didn't even think of that.

 

[Minitiger]

It is?

Isn't it? Am I wrong here? I've been reading about this for literally five years, to the point where I was paralyzed with indecision haha. Just decided to go ahead and do it how I thought I wanted to do it, learn from my mistakes and get better (hopefully). There's sooooo much conflicting information, different opinions etc etc that things can get confusing sometimes....

I also don't want to waste kick-ass genetics like Goji, ya know?

 

[Bulldog11]

The greensand I use has an NPK value of 0-0-3. No nitrogen.

 

[Minitiger]

The greensand I use has an NPK value of 0-0-3. No nitrogen.

Yep, you're right, so is the greensand I use, my bad. But it is very slow-release, right? Do you think that adding 1.5 times the amount the soil mix recipe called for will screw me further down the line?

 

[ShroomKing]

Thanks for your response. I did add more of the base soil mix two days after I initially mixed the soil and additives. Do you think that'd help? Also, what do you mean you "ruined a good harvest because of nitrogen toxicity"? Do you mean the harvest looked good and you pulled a decent amount, but the buds smoked crappy because of too much nitrogen? Or did your plants fry? Just wondering....

It was a small harvest. And the buds had to be long cured before they smoked smooth.

 

[NaturalTherapy]

Greensand is for slow release potassium and other micronutrients

Yep, you're right, so is the greensand I use, my bad. But it is very slow-release, right? Do you think that adding 1.5 times the amount the soil mix recipe called for will screw me further down the line?

Only use greensand if you are reusing your soil after each run. Otherwise there are better options (langbeinite)

 

[Minitiger]

It was a small harvest. And the buds had to be long cured before they smoked smooth.

Ah, ok, I see. Do you think the nitrogen toxicity was caused by what you put in the soil mix initially, before you even let it cook? Or was it because you added something or things during the actual grow that were too high in nitrogen?

Sorry for all the questions, just trying to get a handle on this. I've been lurking here for a while, reading thread after thread after thread and finally decided to join in on the conversations haha. Everybody's help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Minitiger]

Greensand is for slow release potassium and other micronutrients


Only use greensand if you are reusing your soil after each run. Otherwise there are better options (langbeinite)

Yeah, I was planning on reusing my soil mix. Trying to be as sustainable and green as possible. Plus, it just makes sense. Thanks again for the advice re: the soil test kit. Definitely gonna pick one of those up before I use any of my soil.

Still wondering about incorrect ratios whilst initially mixing my soil, though. Do you think that too much of a few different amendments will screw the cooking process? Or will everything eventually even out, as long as I give it enough time?

 

[donmekka]

Bro what's you recipe? Kinda hard for anyone to tell you if your ok with out knowing your mix. Tell us what your putting in a cubic foot.

 

[Minitiger]

Bro what's you recipe? Kinda hard for anyone to tell you if your ok with out knowing your mix. Tell us what your putting in a cubic foot.

Two gallons each of Fox Farm Ocean Forest, perlite, EWC and coco, amended with the following:

1.5 cups 5-5-5
Half cup greensand
3/4 cup ground oyster shells
1 cup crushed oyster shells
1/2 cup powdered dolomite
1 3/4 cup pelletized dolomite
1/4 cup blood meal
1/4 cup bat guano 9-3-1
1/2 cup feather meal
1 cup fish bone meal
1/2 cup bulb food
1/4 cup powdered soft rock phosphate
1/2 cup powdered gypsum
1/2 cup kelp meal
4 cups composted steer manure
1/2 cup Azomite granular
1 cup granular humid acid
1 cup alfalfa meal
1 cup organic rice

It's the Rev's aka rolanterroy soil mix. I've read all of the criticisms about this soil mix and I realize, even with my noob brain, that a lot of the ingredients are redundant. But I figured I'd start using his way and make it simpler over the course of my grows, if I need to. Trial and error etc etc. Also, like I said, I plan on recycling my soil mix, so adding things like greensand makes sense to me.

I know I didn't overdo it on the steer manure or the guano. Those were some of the last things I added, after I thought I may have added too much of a few amendments. Pretty sure I didn't add too much of either form of lime, nor the blood and bone meal, as well.

Thanks for responding, btw. Like I said, totally new to organic growing, been reading books and books and thread after thread on organic growing in general and organic growing re: cannabis specifically, to the point where I was wracked with indecision and just said,"F it, I'm doing this now and if I mess up, I mess up." Didn't think I'd mess up this early in the process, though hahaha!! And, like it said, I did make a new batch of soil using the proper ratios two days after the initial soil mix, so I'll have that to use in a few weeks anyway.

 

[SpiderK]

what did you do with the soil after the first mix ? let it sit on tarp or in a bucket ? did you turn it over after ten days, remixing or just let it sit ....... ? was the soil moist or dry ?

how long did it sit before you used it ?

 

[donmekka]

Wow quite the combo....so you base is about 1 cubic foot. If you only went over on the kelp oyster shell and gypsum I'd say that would be the least of your worries.

 

[Minitiger]

Wow quite the combo....so you base is about 1 cubic foot. If you only went over on the kelp oyster shell and gypsum I'd say that would be the least of your worries.

Yeah,a little more than one cubic foot. But I did add another gallon each of Ocean Forest, coco, EWC and perlite two days later, mixed it thoroughly and am letting it cook as we speak. So really the mix is almost two cubic feet. Gonna let it cook for at least two months, just to be safe. Or could I use it sooner?

Also, if the kelp, oyster shell and gypsum are the least of my worries, what would be the most of my worries?