Living organic soil from start through recycling

[W89]

the only issue i see here is one of order

optimally, the amendments should be composted in the compost pile then fed to the worms {aka; nutrient cycling}

however; as described your amendments would be in more controlled proportions and humic action on the amendments sitting in the EWC should not be forgotten

the reason I am doing it like this is so I can dose the nutrients.. other wise you dont know whats what....

my worms get fed all the reject shit from botanicals and sprout teas so they are going to have quite a bit of nutrition anyway, but atleast I can then add actual measured amounts this way and they will be well broken down

 

[canna woop!]

ants?

ants?

I was wondering if any one bothers dealing with ants in their home? I have read of using a straw filled with a mixture of boric acid and bacon grease to allow the ants passage while keeping domestic critters out. I have not tried this but it seems like a better idea than the chemicals.

 

[Seandawg]

Ants aren't typically a problem for me. But watch their trail, they could be farming aphids or scale.

 

[Toadstools]

Ants will indeed farm aphids

 

[ickyweed]

Im getting ready to mix 12 c.y. of soil and I have almost everything. What I was having trouble sourcing locally was rock dust and do not want to pay $500 for the amount I need. I have found a company that puts out a product called planters II trace minerals.

Its listed as a fertilizer so they don't supply complete analysis, just the 7 main ones. From reading about it a little I think I can use this stuff as its local and I need allot. Here is the most complete analysis I could find from a different source that retails their product.

1. Silicon 14.62
2. Aluminum 5.15
3. Sulfur 5.00
4. Calcium 5.00
5. Sodium 0.52
6. Magnesium 0.50
7. Iron 0.40
8.Titanium 0.22
9. Strontium 0.15
10. Potassium 0.09
11. Zinc 0.08
12. Carbon 0.03
13. Boron 0.02
14. Vanadium 0.02
15. Chlorine 0.015
16. Phosphorous 0.012
17. Barium 0.005
18. Nickel 0.002
19. Nitrogen 0.002
20. Molybdenum 0.0005
21. Cobalt 0.0005
ppm
22. Copper 165
23. Chromium 45
24. Rubidium 15
25. Lithium 15
26. Silver 12
27. Florine 3
28. Iodine 0.8
29. Manganese 0.01
30. Selenium trace

let me know if I can use this as my rock dust of if I should look elsewhere. Thanks in advance.

 

[BlueJayWay]

As long as you follow their rates:

Rates are as follows: 1 level handful per perennial plant - 1/2 cup per 1 to 5 gal sized shrub or rose - 6 heaping cups (5 lbs per 100 sq ft of bed area.

But I don't like how they say it is derived from rock dust and they don't say what type of rock. Either it's just rock dust and they want the comsumer to think it's special or they take something away or mix it with something else and have to label it as "derived from."

I'd shoot 'em an email and ask what the exact ingredient(s) are.....

 

[Swayze]

Has anyone here used Cocoa Bean Hulls as a soil amendment? I grabbed some to use in my new mix, 1/3 Alaska Peat, 1/3 Compost, 1/3 Cocoa Bean Hulls. They were cheap, 2cuft for around $5, very lightweight, and I wanted to try something other than perlite, lava rock, or pumice for the drainage and aeration portion. So far everything looks good, the mix is light and fluffy, and it holds quite a bit of water. I have two borage plants testing out the base mix now to see if it holds too much water. If not, I still have about 1/3 of the bag left and have been thinking about charring some to add in later.

If you've used Cocoa Hulls, how did you feel about using them? How long do they hold up before breaking down? Would you use them again? And any other pro's and con's.

Also, while doing some reading I came across this link about choosing soil amendments, http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/garden/07235.html

You can download in PDF form from the website. It's a nice little info sheet for choosing/using soil amendments as well as the structure they'll provide.

Thanks

 

[Durdy]

I've used the cocoa shells as mulch. As far as using them as aeration it would seem to me they would hold to much moisture, and would break down quicker than say pumice or lava rock possibly throwing off the quality of your soil structure over time.

 

[Swayze]

Thanks Durdy.

Would you know how they compare to rice hulls in terms of breaking down over time?

 

[Durdy]

Can't really say anything solid on that.

Anecdotally though I threw some rice hulls into my compost a couple months back and there doesn't seem to be any breakdown as of yet (my temps range between 120F and 140F)

I had an 18 gallon tote of cocoa husks that sat out in the rain, they got very mushy and started to mold out. Lots of worms found there way in there though, they seemed to like it.

Food for thought!

 

[ickyweed]

As long as you follow their rates:

Rates are as follows: 1 level handful per perennial plant - 1/2 cup per 1 to 5 gal sized shrub or rose - 6 heaping cups (5 lbs per 100 sq ft of bed area.

But I don't like how they say it is derived from rock dust and they don't say what type of rock. Either it's just rock dust and they want the comsumer to think it's special or they take something away or mix it with something else and have to label it as "derived from."

I'd shoot 'em an email and ask what the exact ingredient(s) are.....

I sent them an email but from the manufacturers website http://www.ussoil.net/company/operation it looks to be "highly metamorphosed fresh water evaporate of the Mississippian-Pennsylvanian geologic transition period" rockdust and sugar based binder to make pelets. Its omri listed so I dont think they could do much to it. on their website it says that they can only legally list " minerals with AGRONOMIC VALUE directly utilized by plants" because they listed as an OMRI fertalizer. Dont know what that means... also it says that there is no geological name for the ore.

 

[vonforne]

Here are some things I have found.

First, Agsil h 16. I plan on purchasing the powder and making my own liquid. I prefer to get the most from my money.


And the BioAg Humix instead of the BioAg Ful mag liquid for 30.00 a quart. I will purchase the soluble version for 12.00 for 100 grams to make 150 gallons of solution.

Has anyone else went this route?

 

[W89]

what castings are you sifting? i thot u just got worms the other day?

Sorry mate I missed this on.. Ive had worms for a few months now, i just ordered some more the other day. got 7000ish red worms, they got added to my euros

 

[dogfishheadie]

morning gents. i'm about to pull the trigger on the KIS nutrient pack as it's going to be a bit cheaper sourcing all the materials from one supplier as well as hearing some positive things about the mix over the past 400 pages or so. is there anything else you guys would add and or take away? here's what it includes:

KIS Microbe Catalyst, Gaia Green Canadian Glacial Rock Dust, Calphos Soft Rock Phosphate, Pacific Pearl Oyster Shell Powder, Sulfate of Potash (Sul Po Mag, K Mag), Alfalfa Meal, Fish Bone Meal, Crustacean Meal, Kelp Meal, Ahimsa Organics Neem Cake/Karanja Cake, Tera Vita SP-85 Humic Acid, Fish Meal, Feather Meal, Steamed Bone Meal, Natural Calcite, Mycorrhizae*, and Benefical Microbes.


I remember CC saying not to add the sul-po-mag directly into the soil, but rather to dilute it with a gallon of water and add it when finished? also I remember hearing some jokes about the feather meal as well? I want to do my part to support the local biz here rather than order a bunch of DTE / misc items from random vendors off amazon. as usual, appreciate the help!

 

[vonforne]

Drop the steamed bone meal and rock phosphate. Add some gypsum. Everthing else looks great!

 

[W89]

morning gents. i'm about to pull the trigger on the KIS nutrient pack as it's going to be a bit cheaper sourcing all the materials from one supplier as well as hearing some positive things about the mix over the past 400 pages or so. is there anything else you guys would add and or take away? here's what it includes:

KIS Microbe Catalyst, Gaia Green Canadian Glacial Rock Dust, Calphos Soft Rock Phosphate, Pacific Pearl Oyster Shell Powder, Sulfate of Potash (Sul Po Mag, K Mag), Alfalfa Meal, Fish Bone Meal, Crustacean Meal, Kelp Meal, Ahimsa Organics Neem Cake/Karanja Cake, Tera Vita SP-85 Humic Acid, Fish Meal, Feather Meal, Steamed Bone Meal, Natural Calcite, Mycorrhizae*, and Benefical Microbes.


I remember CC saying not to add the sul-po-mag directly into the soil, but rather to dilute it with a gallon of water and add it when finished? also I remember hearing some jokes about the feather meal as well? I want to do my part to support the local biz here rather than order a bunch of DTE / misc items from random vendors off amazon. as usual, appreciate the help!

I wish i had this kind of thing available to me...

 

[dogfishheadie]

von - thanks! also, i noticed you used bio char in your mix, looking at the "royal oaks" kind off amazon, red bag with yellow lettering...is that the same product? if so, seeing that they're briquets, did you need to break them down to size?

w89- i'll snag an extra kit, you just have to buy the plane ticket overseas and bring some of that lovely green you got going on and we'll call it a deal!

 

[W89]

w89- i'll snag an extra kit, you just have to buy the plane ticket overseas and bring some of that lovely green you got going on and we'll call it a deal!

sounds like a plan mate!

on another note, my comfrey root starts, started to throw out roots in the package they came in, I just re-planted them into 1l pots once they root them out and start showing some leaves I will chuck them outside somewhere, not figured out where yet tho..

 

[BlueJayWay]

Von - i like to use the Fulvic Acid - Fulpower - on a regular basis, waterings and foliars and cuttings/seedlings. Then once a week or 10 days i will use the TM-7 instead of Fulpower, which is Ful-Humix with the 7 main trace minerals added. Youre then getting the benefits of Ful-Humix Humic Acid plus some extra trace minerals.

 

[vonforne]

von - thanks! also, i noticed you used bio char in your mix, looking at the "royal oaks" kind off amazon, red bag with yellow lettering...is that the same product? if so, seeing that they're briquets, did you need to break them down to size?

Briquetts are not what you want.

You want this one from cowboy or this one from Royal Oak. Both are Lump charcoal. And for what its worth Cowboy has some very large chunks in their bags but both are what you will need if you choose to buy.