Heavily composted OR airy perlite rich soil mixes for accelerated growth?

[ethereal]

i always thought and still do i guess that the airier the medium the faster the growth...

for new starts where rapid root growth is needed obviously this holds true...a little 1/8 strength bloom tea, kelp, etc, to help em get goin gets the job done....u want a very light airy fast draining medium where maximum O² can get down there... hell, 'Jiffy' [seedling starter mix] is straight up perlite and vermiculite for a reason

anyway... 'slow' to veg strains {full-on/highly indica-dominant plants},
extreme indica dominant plants we're talking here -- the kind that branch out from the main stalk so close that it takes months from rooting/seed to take cuttings -- well... these are also the kind of plants that love their organics n heavy feedings to really take off in growth...

so...what i wanna know your opinions on...is,,,,,

A.would a heavier, 'tilthier' , well enriched (compost,dry ammendments,etc added), thats about 25% perlite and 75% organic matter, full of the nutes it loves (think: bubba kush), be BETTER to transplant to?

OR

B. would an airy, 'almost soiless' fast draining mix with less of what the plant requires for more vigorous gowth, be more suitable for specimens such as Bubba Kush, et al?

of course if one was to use a less-rich soil mix, it would require more liquid feedings... but if it has all it needs, element-wise, is O² really that big an issue?

im thinking a wider, instead of deeper medium may be best for these if one was to use a heavy mix...for sure... either beds or wide-mouthed cans...

what say ye? just lookin for opinions, experiences, etc... post up!

be weLL

 

[ethereal]

hey

hey

this quote, in response to a user saying that she's a heavy feeder and extremely slow to veg' is what got me thinkin into it nuff to start a thread on it...

bubba actually isn't that slow of a vegger once u get her down and give her what she needs, she goes through nice growth spurts if you give her alot of root space.

anybody? thoughts? :smile:

 

[ethereal]

well i guess ill have a conversation with myself [what else is new?]

i have found that adding some 'peace of mind' (organic pelletized mycos + plant food) into plain ole promix+perlite (some castings would be smart) makes for reallll happy plantalones

are we getting somewhere?

 

[ethereal]

i do realize container size has a lot to do with overall 'scale' of a plant.

eg: a plant in a dixie cup wont grow the same size [scale-wise] leaves, stalks, buds,
as one that was in the ground the same amount of time.
plant size is directly related to can size in that sense,
so maybe thats what t2u is referring to in his quote, above...?

the world may never know

bump!

 

[Guest423]

LOL...whats up eth? i'll talk with ya

i've tried alot of soil mixes with bubba in a bunch of different container sizes, actually with alot of indica and indica dom strains....since thats basically all i grow.

with the slower vegging plants that like alot of food i like to give them a more airy mix since it will dry out faster which equals more waterings....bubba and other indica strains always seem to have a boost of growth after waterings so the more u can give them the better.

also in like my quote above bubba and most indicas love their root space so that means u need bigger containers....and when u grow in bigger containers with heavier mixes it takes a long time for the soil to dry out for more watering....so bigger the container the lighter i try to go.

the base of my soil mix which i like most for bubba and other heavy feeding indicas is 1/3 sunshine organic mix, 1/3 earthworm castings, and 1/3 big n chunky perlite.....after that i add some myc fungi, liquid humus, ect, just depends what i feel like mixing in or have around at the time but my base mix stays the same.

the sunshine organic mix is basically the same as sunshine#4 except in the #4 they use an unorganic wetting agent...in the organic mix they use yucca as a wetting agent.

there's a nice amount of nutes in the organic mix and with the amount of castings i use...if your talking about bubba in general she'll pretty much take whatever you throw at her if u want to add additional nutes every watering or every other....just depends what kind of nutes and how strong your mixing them.

big n chunky perlite is the key...it really aerates your soil, gives mad root space, allows great drainage and drys your soil....which all equals more waterings even with bigger sized containers.

with the heavier kind of mixes and bigger containers you water and it seems like it takes forever for your next watering and thats when them slower style indicas just seem like they are sitting still.

if you water once a week for example with a heavier mix and bigger container, but can water twice a week with a lighter mix in the same bigger container you double your waterings...in a 1 1/2 - 2 month period thats another 6-8 extra waterings and probably another 6-8 nice growth spurts.

but i've had mixes in containers that took 10-14 days between waterings and mixes that could be watered 2-3 times a week in the same container size. the difference is like night and day then...same cuts off the same mom....the one i got the additional watering with was 3ft while the other was still stuck at 1- 1 1/2 ft.

 

[Mackawber]

Mike Mandala says heavy soil! No perlite, sand, etc. But I think he does approve of worm castings though.

I can't imagine growing in a heavily composted soil. I always use perlite but I'm willing to bet Mandala is right.

 

[ethereal]

mack, theres no doubt he is right about most things, mike knows his shit. but im sure as shit growth would be terribly slow with zero aggregate in the mix. bad idea IMHO unless u know what you are doing with soil. anyone new t the game should use ample perlite. gives ya more leeway i think. thanks for the responses fellers

 

[ethereal]

LOL...whats up eth? i'll talk with ya

i've tried alot of soil mixes with bubba in a bunch of different container sizes, actually with alot of indica and indica dom strains....since thats basically all i grow.

with the slower vegging plants that like alot of food i like to give them a more airy mix since it will dry out faster which equals more waterings....bubba and other indica strains always seem to have a boost of growth after waterings so the more u can give them the better.

also in like my quote above bubba and most indicas love their root space so that means u need bigger containers....and when u grow in bigger containers with heavier mixes it takes a long time for the soil to dry out for more watering....so bigger the container the lighter i try to go.

the base of my soil mix which i like most for bubba and other heavy feeding indicas is 1/3 sunshine organic mix, 1/3 earthworm castings, and 1/3 big n chunky perlite.....after that i add some myc fungi, liquid humus, ect, just depends what i feel like mixing in or have around at the time but my base mix stays the same.

the sunshine organic mix is basically the same as sunshine#4 except in the #4 they use an unorganic wetting agent...in the organic mix they use yucca as a wetting agent.

there's a nice amount of nutes in the organic mix and with the amount of castings i use...if your talking about bubba in general she'll pretty much take whatever you throw at her if u want to add additional nutes every watering or every other....just depends what kind of nutes and how strong your mixing them.

big n chunky perlite is the key...it really aerates your soil, gives mad root space, allows great drainage and drys your soil....which all equals more waterings even with bigger sized containers.

with the heavier kind of mixes and bigger containers you water and it seems like it takes forever for your next watering and thats when them slower style indicas just seem like they are sitting still.

if you water once a week for example with a heavier mix and bigger container, but can water twice a week with a lighter mix in the same bigger container you double your waterings...in a 1 1/2 - 2 month period thats another 6-8 extra waterings and probably another 6-8 nice growth spurts.

but i've had mixes in containers that took 10-14 days between waterings and mixes that could be watered 2-3 times a week in the same container size. the difference is like night and day then...same cuts off the same mom....the one i got the additional watering with was 3ft while the other was still stuck at 1- 1 1/2 ft.

ok so im seein bubba is fucking loving my super soilless mix with extra castings in a big 7gal wide mouthed can. the wide mouth allows for max o2 in the rootzone and they dry up fast as shit cuz the large opening. u should try them. hell i may try 50% castings 50% promix on bubba next time no added perlite if i use these wide mouths again. word the fuck up. love ya bro. keep it green

 

[ethereal]

fuckem. i think i will do 25% 'super lite' composted horse shit, 50% worm, and 25% P-mix. i forgot i had that horse and its the perfect situation for it i use it for outside shit usually indoors im gonna pasteurize it first to kill nasties n bugs cuz i get it at a nursery locally. its bagged but still.
next time ill have a chance to do anything in these wide mouths will be a bubba scrog in a new spot, which will be interesting im sure but wont be for a while here cant wait tho have u ever filled a screen of bubba? was it worth the wait?