Post your Organic Soil Mix

[Purpletrain]

I use RO water. Nope, nothing else needed, although I have experimented with two feedings of powdered BudSwell. I did not notice any difference in the final outcome. FWIW, I have been using Sunshine Mix as of late because it's what's easiest to come by at the moment. Also, I forgot to mention that I often supplement the mix with a bag of perlite to offset the worm casts, which tend to make the mix a bit too heavy.

Thanks to those who commented on my post. In general, I am striving to both simplify and improve this mix. For example, I am not 100% sure that I need blood meal, as the steamed fish bone meal contains a fair amount of nitrogen. In any case, somebody mentioned that I may be using too much lime, and that very well could be the case given that Pro-Mix is already limed. Another consideration raised by the same individual is that lime may be high in heavy metals. I am not saying that they're wrong, but I have not found any data suggesting that this is the case. Any such info would be greatly appreciated. The State of Washington hosts an excellent database in regards to this subject. I find it fascinating that different brands of the same ingredient, take kelp for example, contain very different levels of heavy metals. I was pleased to find out that the brand I favor, (Epsoma), tests favorably.

BTW, "my" mix is just my spin on the Vic High / BCGA mix. I know that SubCool has riffed on this mix too, although he has proceeded in the direction of greater complexity. I have no idea which approach is superior...lol

I think that Purpletrain might be on to something with his septic system microbes. They are OMRI certified, and check out this quote from the Byo-Gon webpage:

"In addition to its remarkable ability to treat septic systems and clean drains throughout the home, Byo-Gon PX-109® Organic is a powerful and safe stimulant for the home garden composter. The organic solution speeds the process of composting, which makes the home compost pile more efficient and increases the benefits to the home gardener."

I may have to add a bit of this into my organic equation...

I also love Purpletrain's soil building methods, although they would be difficult in my situation, as I am an urban/apartment dweller. And finally, I did not know that an EC meter could be used to gauge the "potency" of an organic mix. Thanks for that!

Don't kid your self a good ec / ppm meter and a ph meter should be the first investment for any person thinking of growing it comes in handy for everything .
Like for what i just used it for , its great for teas , figuring out how much plants are actually eatting, possible other issues

TBH all you need is 2 totes one is compost bin and another is worm bin and your set apartment dwelling or room rentals etc
i do not use by gon but wanted to post it to show that something simple and as well rona / homedepot purchase and rather affordable compared to online beanie prices
Everything has become a real marketing scam as well as many claims and no peered reviews a person has to really think before getting trapped into the game

 

[phrank monklin]

Don't kid your self a good ec / ppm meter and a ph meter should be the first investment for any person thinking of growing it comes in handy for everything .
Like for what i just used it for , its great for teas , figuring out how much plants are actually eatting, possible other issues

TBH all you need is 2 totes one is compost bin and another is worm bin and your set apartment dwelling or room rentals etc
i do not use by gon but wanted to post it to show that something simple and as well rona / homedepot purchase and rather affordable compared to online beanie prices
Everything has become a real marketing scam as well as many claims and no peered reviews a person has to really think before getting trapped into the game

I ran a bunch of hydro stores, and you're right - too much hype. I always liked the super soil because it meant less trips to the grow store!

I may have to give your methods a try. I have access too "river bottom" soil that is very rich. Always been interested in worm farming. Do you have problems with flies? If it turns out better product than the super soil I will switch. No ego here, just want the "best" cleanest product.

I never bothered with "bennies" as I always assumed that the super soil was rich with microorganism from the worm casts..? It always grew "fuzz" during the time it was aged.

Saving up for the meters!

It is good "talking" with you!

 

[Underthesun]

I kindly disagree about ppm meters if you are using worm castings, teas and a good organic soil mix. I'd save that money you would use for meters and start worm farming, then meters won't matter. I mean your plants will be kicking ass with good castings and good soil and you won't give a shit what your ppm's are. Seriously, you will not care.

Best time to start worm farming is yesterday, the sooner the better. Outdoor bins produce more quicker, indoor bins are great if you can't have outdoor ones. If you keep your carbon, N ratios in check, moisture levels in check and don't over feed your worms you won't have a problem with any flies. It really is easy if you follow simple steps. But seriously, outdoor bins produce big time, and bugs aren't an issue then, most of them help break down the compost faster.

 

[Underthesun]

@Purpletrain, I'd like to hear what you think. With the ppm meter, what are you trying to measure and what what would you change when you have a highly organic living soil? I would assume lots of organic matter and nutrients that will be available in the future once broke down is not measured with the meter. Just curious on how you can use a PPM meter for an organic soil?

 

[Seamaiden]

Don't kid your self a good ec / ppm meter and a ph meter should be the first investment for any person thinking of growing it comes in handy for everything .
Like for what i just used it for , its great for teas , figuring out how much plants are actually eatting, possible other issues

Uh... you do realize that you're not really measuring those organic teas accurately using that meter though, right? I mean, yeah, you're measuring something, but it's not an accurate way to measure organic molecules. At all.

 

[Purpletrain]

PPM meter comes in handy for pretty much anything
I have worm farms but that has got nothing to do with ppm

So lets break this down parts per millon is just a indicator allowing you to keep things nutrient levels teas pretty much anything you can make into a liquid

Teas can burn the hell out of anything i have made teas that stopped the ppm reading over 2 so in other words 2000 + parts per million
and why so many mention watering your teas back to like 3 cups of water to 1 cup of tea pour a pure tea into your soil is looking for trouble
If you do not have a ppm meter or Ec your guessing that an be deter mental to plants health
wouldn't you think ???
when do you know your compost is ready to go into your soil /???
when we throw scraps veggies the decomposition process begins new microbes start ph fluctuates this is why you read in organic soils expect a downward health trend at the beginning when everything establishes
with having a ph meter i can now guage when my compost is ready with ph stabilizing like above picture i posted
there are many benifits having a ppm and ph meter
for instance coffee grinds you be shocked even at the level of parts per million you an get it up to

For me its just a guage that allows me to run my organic gardens on a tighter ship

 

[Seamaiden]

PPM is a calculation made by converting an EC (electrical conductivity) value. Things like worm castings aren't conductive, so how can they be measured? Things like molasses are highly conductive, so their measurements are misleading. I've fed plants mixes with sugar in it that were reading over 3,000ppms (can't recall the EC), yet nary an issue.

Btw, learn to read by EC and you'll experience fewer mistakes.

I've looked as deeply as I can into how one would best quantify and qualify measurements of organic compounds and molecules, and after querying many scientists via my old reefkeeping connections, the long and the short of their answers was this--you have to have a meter for each type of molecule you want to measure. Measuring EC, and thus ppm and TDS, is measuring electrical conductivity only, and salts are what will be most accurately measured. This is entirely different from measuring pH.

So, I'm with @Underthesun here, spend your money elsewhere if you're growing using organic methods. For example, spend your money on an NO3 meter. Or a refractometer to measure plant sap (if you can get any!). Or a good air pump if you're making a lot of aerated teas. Or a good tank sprayer!

 

[Underthesun]

PPM meter comes in handy for pretty much anything
I have worm farms but that has got nothing to do with ppm

So lets break this down parts per millon is just a indicator allowing you to keep things nutrient levels teas pretty much anything you can make into a liquid

Teas can burn the hell out of anything i have made teas that stopped the ppm reading over 2 so in other words 2000 + parts per million
and why so many mention watering your teas back to like 3 cups of water to 1 cup of tea pour a pure tea into your soil is looking for trouble
If you do not have a ppm meter or Ec your guessing that an be deter mental to plants health
wouldn't you think ???
when do you know your compost is ready to go into your soil /???
when we throw scraps veggies the decomposition process begins new microbes start ph fluctuates this is why you read in organic soils expect a downward health trend at the beginning when everything establishes
with having a ph meter i can now guage when my compost is ready with ph stabilizing like above picture i posted
there are many benifits having a ppm and ph meter
for instance coffee grinds you be shocked even at the level of parts per million you an get it up to

For me its just a guage that allows me to run my organic gardens on a tighter ship

I don't claim to be an expert and I'm here to learn more than teach anyone anything...since I don't feel like I have as much knowledge as some on here. But I don't want people going out and spending $$$ on unescessary items.

As far as teas burning my plants, I guess it depends on what type of teas we are talking about here. My AACT teas won't ever burn anything, not even a seedling at full strength. Its just 2 cups EWC, 1/2 cup molasses to every 5 gallons, brewed for 24-48 hours. No way of burning anything with that. All my nutrients were either premixed in my soil, topdressed, or in my compost that I top dress. I can easily tell when my compost is finished as well, just by feel, looks and smell. Its pretty easy. And if its not totally finished (which I'm pretty sure hardly anyone's ever is) I'm thinking its just feeding my soil and worms that are already in my beds.

I really can't ever see myself buying a ppm meter, it would just sit on a shelf since I wouldn't have a clue what any of it meant with my organic grow.

 

[Hyman]

I'm going to build a soil for my up coming grow and want some feedback let me know if I need to take or add anything to it:

1 gal Worm Castings

½ gal Coconut Coir

½ gal Perlite

½ gal Cow Manure

½ gal Chicken Manure

1 gal Mushroom Compost

 

[Homesteader]

@Hyman I suggest more of a base. Add more coir or go with some peat but I think you need more of one or the other. some kelp would be good if you can get some. If you go peat, I doubt it will be enough to need lime but make sure you check your PH after. Looks good though. Your manure?

 

[Hyman]

@Hyman I suggest more of a base. Add more coir or go with some peat but I think you need more of one or the other. some kelp would be good if you can get some. If you go peat, I doubt it will be enough to need lime but make sure you check your PH after. Looks good though. Your manure?

@Homesteader I'll take your advice on the coir, I have a good amount of it, and I do have some kelp. Cow manure from a friend of mine. I've built a soil from The Rev, I like it, just wanna try to build my own this time and compare the two plants. Thanks.

 

[Kalikush]

I think I've worked out a soil mix for my first run at 100%* organic, guess it depends on the question at the bottom but here's what I got so far:

1/3 (1/2 promix & 1/2 coco) + 1/3 organic rice hulls + 1/3 (1/2 Roots organic earth worm castings + 1/2 Malibu compost if I can find it and if not I'll use local nursery organic compost)

For each cubic foot of the above, I'll have these amendments: 1/2c organic neem seed meal, 1/2c organic kelp meal, 1/2c organic insect frass, 4c mineral dust ( 1/2 glacial rock dust, 1/6 organic oyster shell, 1/6 organic basalt, 1/6 of green sand) I also have some organic arctic humus to add, but not sure how much.

I'm going to inoculate all my seedling roots with Mycogrow Soluble from fungi.com.

I had a couple of questions about this mix, am I adding the correct amount of insect frass, arctic humus and green sand? Is glacial rock dust organic? I got this from BuildASoil but it doesn't mention being organic. Other suggestions to my mix are also welcome!

Oh ya, I have some gypsum too but not sure how much to add

Am I wasting my time if I'm going from Red Cups to 1gal to finish in 3gal smart pots? I heard that organic soil needs to be in large pots in order to be effective by just adding water. Speaking of water, I can't believe how much is wasted with an RO filter! Is buying distilled water really the only other option if I want live organic soil and we are in a drought?

 

[robomont]

im on 4 years of recycling organic soil in plastic 3 gallons and 5 gallons.started out with miracle grow and bat poo,added perlite a year later.to a 50/50 ratio,next year i expanded bulk with 6 cubic feet extra of peat.next year added 6 more cubics and 4 cubic of perlite.rabbit poo and castings at 4 cubics.this year straight rabbit feed 2 cubics,6 /1 lb bags of pinto beans,two whole watermelons.6 months later,bone meal,kelp,bat poo,fish emulsion,sprouted corn flour,sprouted barley flour,1 cubic total to a 150 gallons total soil mix.

 

[robomont]

Am I wasting my time if I'm going from Red Cups to 1gal to finish in 3gal smart pots? I heard that organic soil needs to be in large pots in order to be effective by just adding water. Speaking of water, I can't believe how much is wasted with an RO filter! Is buying distilled water really the only other option if I want live organic soil and we are in a drought?

ph of water dont really matter with organics done right.you can toss the ph meter.and sleep peacefully at night.

 

[jumpincactus]

ph of water dont really matter with organics done right.you can toss the ph meter.and sleep peacefully at night.

While your statement concerning organics done right and you can throw away your Ph meter is partially correct, I would say well yes most of the time. ....... But that decision would have to be based on the water source used for irrigation/feeding.

If the water used had a high level of alkalinity over time you would drive the Ph into dangerous levels in the rhizosphere/rootzone. :D But if the source water isnt over burdened with high alkalinity water then yes organics done right, doesn't require as much monitoring of ph as one would think. Please dont confuse alkaline water within Ph range of 7.0 and up with water that has high alkalinity.


Here is the link to the thread I posted some time back with put everything in perspective. https://www.thcfarmer.com/community...-effects-of-water-with-high-alkalinity.77509/

 

[robomont]

thankyou jumpin,i didnt know that alkalinity and ph were different things.just assumed they were the same.so yes you get alkali mineral builup if i understand correctly.as you are in the desert,i bet this is a big factor for you.i usually bust my root balls apart after harvest and let ma nature rain through my living soil.then recycle.this flushes soil pretty good while not losing alot of nutrients.throw n a littl fish mulsion and som molasses and im back in business.im basing my theory on a ginormous thread clackamas coot has.i rd the whole thing.some of comments i carried away from it were,ph dont really matter and yeast will supply you with most of the n it extracts from the air.after struggling for 20 years,i threw my hands up and said fookit and just started going totally organic and the ride has been almost bump free since.i took the kelp idea and threw that in along with some quano and my plants are the most healthy ive ever had.between coot and this site,ive really upped my organic game.but the biggest ever stress reliever was not worrying about ph ever again.i hate that meter and hope i never have to use it again.peace of mind.

 

[DonBrown93]

Second time "making soil". First time it was pretty basic.
That was the goal with this soil mix also.
Please, if anyone has any constructive suggestions, I am open.

15 gallons- Pro-Mix
6 gallons-Compost
2 gallons Rice Hulls
1 gallon Pearl Light
2.5 gallons-Worm Castings
4 cups-Blood Meal (12-0-0)
4 cups-Bone Meal (0-10-0)
6 cups-Bat Guano (0-7-0)
4 cups-Kelp Meal (1-.1-2)
3 cups-Azomite (Trace Minerals)
4 cups-Oyster Shell (PH)

 

[Kalikush]

ph of water dont really matter with organics done right.you can toss the ph meter.and sleep peacefully at night.

While your statement concerning organics done right and you can throw away your Ph meter is partially correct, I would say well yes most of the time. ....... But that decision would have to be based on the water source used for irrigation/feeding.

If the water used had a high level of alkalinity over time you would drive the Ph into dangerous levels in the rhizosphere/rootzone. :D But if the source water isnt over burdened with high alkalinity water then yes organics done right, doesn't require as much monitoring of ph as one would think. Please dont confuse alkaline water within Ph range of 7.0 and up with water that has high alkalinity.


Here is the link to the thread I posted some time back with put everything in perspective. https://www.thcfarmer.com/community...-effects-of-water-with-high-alkalinity.77509/

I was really concerned with chloramine and chlorine being in the water and the effects those would have on my living soil. I know I can bubble off the chlorine but I doubt the large scale organic food farmers use RO so could tap water be ok so long as it's not way out of range on pH or loaded with too many nasties? Tough to say what's in there without a lab water analysis..

 

[Kalikush]

Also forgot that I heard on a podcast that for organics to work properly, the pots need to be large. Does that mean if I use Coots style soil, I won't have great success in 2-3 gallon pots without lots of top dressing and supplemental teas?

 

[HydroGuy]

I'm new to organics and love the info in here! I have always done hydro or promix with house and garden. Would you guys think straight promix using biobizz almost every feeding would be more productive then amending your soil with some of the products suggested in here? I'm trying to find that happy medium between yield and that amazing organic flavor.