Post your Organic Soil Mix

[Dopegeist]

Y
eah ,,green sand takes 5.bloody years to even START break down eh:)lol.maybee caps bennies will reduce it to?mmmm? 4 yrs:)lol

"The benefits in plant growth sometimes observed following greensand application
are likely not due to nutritional benefits, but from changes in soil physical properties."
http://ucanr.org/sites/nm/files/76652.pdf

 

[Dopegeist]

Once again, I'm going to politely disagree. This is your experience with Home Depot's Peat (which isn't actually home depot brand, but ok w/e). My guess is you didn't aerate it enough, or had some other issue going on. Mine don't have any problem with the organic peat from Lowes or HD. I have seen many growers do amazing grows with this peat, and I myself have had great grows with it. In fact, I had more problems with Promix compacting (since it's chopped and heated for shipment).

Got my peat for the OD from WallyWorld (same as HD probably). Just added to the 'topsoil' and manure to give extra tilth and balance pH of topsoil.

Worked f'ing great. $10 got me as much peat as in a $40+ bale of sunshine...

It's the archer, not the arrow.

 

[Dopegeist]

plants that I grew in hd peat alone as the main base were smaller and yellower that in sunshine or promix brands.

Well, considering straight peat versus...
Sunshine #4: "Made with Canadian Sphagnum peat moss, coarse perlite, starter nutrient charge (with Gypsum), dolomitic limestone, and long-lasting wetting agent."
Promix: Pretty much the same, even some come innoculated.

I would think the peat base alone would be a problem. For many reasons, not the least of which is peat moss has a pH of around 4.5 (+/- 1.0)...
So yeah...

 

[Dopegeist]

Roots soil is infested ATM with ROOT APHIDS

That or fungus gnats...Been years now they've been having problems.

But since this is the Organics forum, no one is buying that shit anyway...
Right? Just compost, peat, humus, nutes and oyster shell they are..All of them.

 

[oregonized]

Alpaca poo and rabbit poo are both usable right away, no sitting.

HD has Alaskan Peat Moss bales in the PNW area at least, advertised online it was supposed to Sunshine bales.....guess it is a regional thingy ma bob....:)

 

[ssteely71]

I have a recipe that I've borrowed from another site and changed it very little:
I have not tested this recipe fully. It is posted as a reference and for comments.
Im currently using it in my grow. So far it has corrected deficiencies that were in my seedlings and has cause no burn.

"Base and Seedling Mix"

4 parts Pro Mix BX or HP/ or FFOF or FFLW or VermiFire
2 parts BigCity Hydro Indoor Premium Mix
2 parts perlite
2 parts earthworm castings
*1 cup Powered Dolomite Lime per cubic foot of above mix

If you use a 3 qt. saucepan as “parts” in the amounts given above, it equals about 1 cu. ft. of soiless mix. I use a 3qt. pan and it work perfect.

This is a base and will be used for seedlings in future.

Then add to your seedling base/mix:

1/4 cup Blood meal per cubic foot of soil mix
1/4 cup Feather Meal per cubic foot of soil mix
1 cup Bone meal per cubic foot of soil mix
1/2 cup kelp meal per cubic foot of soil mix
1/2 cup of Jersey Greensand per cubic foot of soil mix
1/4 cupBlack Gold per cubic foot of soil mix

Mix all the dry nutrients into the soiless mix MIX well and wet it, but don't soak it. Use Liquid Karma and water @ 1 tbs./gal. Stir and mix it a few times a week for a week or two so the bacteria can get oxygen and break down the nutrients and make it available. And don't let the mix dry out for the first two weeks, keep it moist and add water as needed. It'll also have time to get the humic acids to get going and the dolomite lime will be better able to adjust the pH of your mix.

You can just add water till harvest in theory. But I will be using benificial bacteria and fungi teas /additives throughout grow.



Credit to B4M and LC at ICM.

 

[Patanjali]

Get rid of the feather meal. This is a non food crop product and therefore is not under the same regulations (I don't like blood or bone meal either - maybe some fish bone meal if anything).

Imo the source of your EWC and humus materials is of utmost importance. If it comes out of a bag, you are already behind the curve. And personally, I would not want to see FFOF or FFLW anywhere in the mix, and get rid of anything with the word hydro in it. I'm not a fan of lime, especially dolomite, but I realize some people like to use it.

Just my quick 2¢
P-

 

[Seamaiden]

Did you know that feathers are 85% protein?

 

[ssteely71]

Did you know that feathers are 85% protein?

I did not. I got the feather meal as a slow release for N.

 

[Patanjali]

I did not. I got the feather meal as a slow release for N.

Trade that feather meal in for a little neem meal and some crab meal. You'll have plenty of N and a good defense against bugs. Some activated biochar wouldn't be a bad idea either.

Not that I know anything, but my current mix per cu ft is:
1/2c neem meal
1/2c crab meal
1/2c kelp meal
1/4c fish bone meal
4c glacial rock dust

Base mix is:
33% peat
33% compost/ewc
33% aeration

I don't have any problems with N through flower. ;)



Peace!
P-

 

[Seamaiden]

I did not. I got the feather meal as a slow release for N.

I learned that when I was trying to figure out why my cats SLAUGHTER and eat ALL feathers within their reach. Suddenly made some other things make a whole lotta sense.

Patanjali, won't the crab meal be introducing a lot of CaCO3, though? IIRC you won't have that issue with feather meal. I question it because my source water is extremely high in carbonates. I'm interested in using things like feather meal because they're an agricultural byproduct (and I've got a few birds m'self).

 

[Patanjali]

Hey Seamaiden, I don't know about a lot of Ca. Some for sure, nothing I would spend anytime worrying about. Keep in mind I don't use lime.

I don't want stuff from the slaughterhouse in my soil mix (that includes blood meal). To each their own. Also, I don't worry about N in my flower mixes. Actually, I don't really pay much attention to NPK at all...

 

[Dopegeist]

This is my first time so I guess everything looks great to me. Lol but someone reached out to me and sent me ideal420 soil. I just put 4 seedlings of venom OG in it but the soil is hard as fuck and it seems like it doesn't like to accept water. I know that sounds super stupid but when I water it the water literally sits on the soil for a minute.

First off, not dumb, but you may wish to in the future post these as your own thread.
Go to
https://www.thcfarmer.com/community/forums/organic-soil.31/
and you will see a green box near top center-right of page that says 'Post New Thread'.
A catchy title helps, sometimes.

They are drying out so much that there is no water there to moisten the fibers. Think wet fibre rope versus dry fiber rope. The dry is rock hard, the wet is pliable. Your new soil is probably over 50% fibre (coco and peat moss) http://www.ideal420soil.com/ideal-420-soil/
Or a tee-shirt. When dry water will bead off it, once wet however, she can pour pitcher upon pitcher on that shirt and it flows right through.

Easiest way is to water each pot multiple times, for less time. Go through wet the surface till it takes, then go back and do more, adjust amounts/frequency as needed. Basically you are just rehydrating the medium so it will take water again.

Also a layer of mulch will do lots to keep that moisture in the container.

 

[Dopegeist]

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.

Or they were having a rager, then the rains came. Probably more apt to have char than ash in a wet region...Then just be a matter of time before an acute society picks up on the benefits and scales it.

 

[caveman4.20]

This Beautifull stuff right here has biochar and rice huls first run but I love the sound of the ingredients

 

[oregonized]

I love neem, but buying from a source nearly 10,000 miles away kind of defeats the purpose of organic principles, imho. Neem isn't sustainable and it will continue to get more and more expensive.

We have weeds right at our feet, that will do the job amazingly! Bet on it. Even in the concrete jungle.

Vetch, clover, alfalfa, mung beans, other wild peas will all provide a source of N.
Stinging nettle and comfrey too.

 

[Patanjali]

I love neem, but buying from a source nearly 10,000 miles away kind of defeats the purpose of organic principles, imho. Neem isn't sustainable and it will continue to get more and more expensive.

We have weeds right at our feet, that will do the job amazingly! Bet on it. Even in the concrete jungle.

Vetch, clover, alfalfa, mung beans, other wild peas will all provide a source of N.
Stinging nettle and comfrey too.

Hi Oregonized! Are you a closed loop gardener? What do you use for aeration? Any peat, coco, crab meal, kelp meal?

 

[Seamaiden]

Best and simplest would be worm castings + molasses + aeration.

 

[burn4me]

I was just looking around for simple yet effective act. And wanted to know if i add seabird crap (high N right?) To tea if thats a good way to stay away from using ff trio on my ffof soil. Sorry if this is wrong spot for questions. Just seen your post thought id ask. Tia

Edited
And switch high N for high P in flowering?

 

[Patanjali]

There is a difference between an ACT compost tea and nutrient teas. Seamaiden nailed it, EWC+moleasses+aeration=ACT. The more ingredients you add to an aerated tea, the more likely it is to go anaerobic, and the slower you will multiple your microbes.

I would recommend leaving the bird and bat poop out of your mixes. Then again, I wouldn't buy anything from Fox Farms either. Just my 2¢.

Peace!
P-