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Is My Organic Mix OK?

chronic50s

chronic50s

Member
Waddup guys

Now this is my first organic grow for a while and im just getting back into the swng of things.....But this is what Ive gotten thus far concerning my mix:

70% Sphagnum peat moss
20% Perlite
10% Black Kow compost

I've got Blood meal which I'm going to mix in 1 tbs to a gallon of the mix, and I've got Bone meal which I'm going to add 2 tbs to a gallon of the mix

Theres no dolomite lime where im located so is there anything else you guys might recommend for keeping my PH stable, seeing as most of my mix is peat moss which is kinda hot?

Is this a good mix? and can i get by with just these ingredients? or do i need to buy some worm castings and kelp meal?

Chronic
 
J

JackTheGrower

Oh I like that...

I assume you are going for the natural living soil?

If so may I suggest getting some azomite ( minerals ) I found it to be important this year.

I'd also add some alfalfa meal...

This may seem silly and I am not saying do it but I like coffee in my soil. I mean real coffee not the grounds.. grounds are good but ... I like folgers for some reason...

So you can add all kinds of stuff...

For a living soil feeding is necessary. Not just liquids but solids.

What I like to do is take a soil mix.. Organic and put some in a bucket. The amount depends on the surface area your are covering.

To this I add materials like alfalfa meal, crawfords micronized compost, guano, coffee, shrimp meal and whatever I feel like.
Then I spread a layer on the top of my soil and water in....

So yes your mix is fine.. compost and perlite cool peatmoss? I really like peatmoss. It doesn't add much nutrient wise but ya know for MJ I like it.

I hope you get more replies. Everyone has something to add.
 
kush07

kush07

Member
Your soil will not hold nutrients very well. Peat moss and other non-soil products do not hold in the nutrients as well as soil does. They will hold some for a time but you will find yourself needing to do a few more feedings. Also, since you have some Black Kow in you area I would suggest getting their Mushroom Compost, white bag, because it works very well in conjunction with their Manure. Or if you are using their Mushroom Compost get their manure, yellow bag only option. Worm castings also offer many micronutrients and organisms that are extremely helpful. If you can get some I suggest that you do so. Also, dolomite lime is also labeled as garden lime and can usually be found in big 40 lb. bags at your local hardware store, such as Lowes, under that name.

Happy Toking :bandit:
 
J

JackTheGrower

This is not as safe as dolomite but I used crushed oyster shells this season.

That can handle a lot of acid like fish emulsion...

Again it's not slow and safe like dolomite but it isn't fast and hard like other limes.

Just thought to mention that cuz we deal with living soils.
 
J

JackTheGrower

Ahhhhh...

We all forgot to tell the man get some good soil or manure or other sources of microorganisms

Mix well... water and turn once a day keepint moist.
For about a week.
Then you can use it for your grow.

I suggest more compost then 10% too... say at least 40% with the minerals and alfalfa.

I see you are in Florida... Lived in Fellsmere between W. Melborne and Vero Beach myself many many many moons ago...

Would love to have some of that black humus one can find out and about there. :)


Just a suggestion
 
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S

Skunkface

Member
40%?? wtf

10% is fine, I wouldnt suggest going over 20%, as compost holds alot of water but not much oxygen. Too much compost makes for less than optimal soil structure.

And for the guy who said soil will hold more nutrients than peat.. that is incorrect. peat actually has a very good cation exchange capacity.

If yur not sure if you will be able to combat the low PH of peat accurately, you can buy PROMIX which is a peat based medium that already has the correct amount of lime added.
 
Suby

Suby

**AWD** Aficianado
Veteran
Hey c50,

that mix sounds fine, be carefull with the kow manure it can burn sometimes as manures a very rich but they are a fine substitute for compost or castings, they have alot of microbes and beneficial soil elements in them.
I would bump the perlite up to 30% and leave the manure at 10% but that's a very small detail.
Don't sweat the peat mix, with all due respect to the other posters there is no problems with using a peat type soil, Promix, Sunshine Mix, and others are almost 95% plus peat that's why they are considered soilesss mediums.
You need a solid source of K in your soil mix though, or you will need to feed them with liquid seaweed often to make sure they have enough for flowering.
Please do try to track down dolomite lime, it has become as essential as castings or perlite in my mix, they fix alot of problems that COULD occur down the road like calcium def. or mag def. not to mention ph lockout, if your water is slightly hard like the well water type then you should be relatively ok.

Peace
 
chronic50s

chronic50s

Member
Thanks alot for the suggestions......Ima try n find some dolomite lime this week......my plants are only a week old so they have a couple more weeks before i put them in the veg mix......

Also i have a bag of epsom salts to,,thats pretty much my only source for mag., but is that organic?
I mix it in mix water at 1/4 tsp a gallon
 
V

vonforne

You can order your lime online. Or get oyster shells, egg shells. Dolomite is not the only one to look for just the most prefered for its ca and mg content in the right balance for MJ. Garden lime, Calcitic are just a couple of others. If you are in a farming area HY-YEILD brand might be around. Its lime is top shelf and is in the powdered form.

You can get seaweed from the seafood dept in the store if no liquid seaweed is around. As Suby said you will need to suppliment your K source.
Also if you can get some worm castings. If nothing else just for a top dressing. It can be purchased online in 5 lb. bags. Or make your own. I swear by the stuff. I wont grow without it.

And your peat moss, the one I get has lime added as will yours. So, you might get by without the dolomite and just add the egg shells or oyster shells. You could suppliment the ca and mg with epsom salts but be careful it is a salt and does harm your microbes to a certian extent.
 
Suby

Suby

**AWD** Aficianado
Veteran
Yeah epsom salts are not organic, not by a mile, but it's better to have it on hand in case you have a mag def.
Anything that is a salt and dissolves into ionic form once mixed with water is not considered organic but it's alright to supplement, I''m not an all or nothing type grower, mostly organic is better than having someone go back to 3 part hydro nutes from frustrations after trying organics.
I'd rather cheat then let my plants suffer.
Hydro shops usually carry dolomite lime, they'll also have kelp meal which is a solid soil source of K.

peace
S
 
chronic50s

chronic50s

Member
Well I'm having trouble finding the products i need.......

Is there any good organic websites you guys could recommend?

And you say egg shells are a good PH stabalizer, is there a specific type of egg shells to use, or when im done eating some eggs can i just throw the shells in the mix? :joint:
 
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chronic50s

chronic50s

Member
Hey JackTheGrower, You say you lived in Florida?
Been here for 10 years and LOVE it!
Its always bright as hell here in Ormond/Daytona, which makes for good outdoor buddah.....The seasons coming up and i cant wait, its gunna be a good one...
As soon as i can find all my organic necessities they're going to compost till April 10....
.........Just waiting for a website

Chronic
 
Pablo

Pablo

Member
I was under the impression peat is mined and not organic . or is that in the UK only?
Also why talk of flushing in Organics? I didn't think that was possible either , as nutes are being made avaliable all the time with breaking down of matter .
I'm using Bio Bizz and i up my grow and drop the bloom in final 2 weeks with outstanding results. My plants pack on bulk and produce a oh so sweet smoke .
Much better than when i tried to "flush" and just starved my plants.
 
F

frater_indo

Member
I just studied this thread a little and have formulated my soil mix for transplanting before flowering. How does this sound:

30% perlite
10% horse manure
5% Dolomite lime
5% Timothy hay
50% Sphagnum peat moss

*2 tablespoons bone meal will be mixed into the bottom layer of each 5 gallon pot
 
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