Mulch. Just do it.

[Scrappy4]

Great idea smoketrichs.....

 

[smoketrichs]

Well it's been a couple weeks so I thought I'd update. The cover's seem to be doing something. Water retention is much better, can get away w/ 2-3 days b/w watering now, opposed to the old 1.

 

[Veno.Amana]

it benefits many areas, the positive effects are far greater then the negative. imo


Veno.A

 

[Mud Man]

Gots me a nice coir mulch mat too... ,^^^^^^

 

[mad librettist]

living mulch: just... live it?

living mulch: just... live it?

Now that I've been running a living mulch for a while, I think I have learned enough to talk a bit about establishing and caring for a living mulch, which can be tricky in a low RH environment.

The system I'm about to describe also covers how to start cannabis seeds with the living mulch.

The first step involves sowing the starter mix, which should include equal parts white clover seed, azomite (or rock dust of your choosing), clay of some sort, and a mixed top dressing like bio-tone. If you have legume inoculant or mycorrhizae add that to your starter. Just before use, mix up 1 part starter and 1 part compost.

Broadcast your starter mix/compost nice and thick, then water it in, just before lights out. Water again in the morning, preferably with a mist or spray of water. Do this step right after mixing soil, or if it's no-till, 2 weeks before chopping. If you have supplemental lighting below the canopy, you can keep a perpetual version.

Once your white clover is established enough to create a moist surface, you can sow cannabis directly into it. Don't bother clearing a space, just drop it right in. You want to pop your seeds before sowing any crimson clover or chickweed, to keep them from competing. If those are already present, chop and drop them.

When your seedlings come up and you are sure you don't want more, it's time to broadcast some crimson clover and if you have it, chickweed. By now your white clover may start flowering. Remove anything shading your cannabis by pinching off its leaves (don't pull).

As the canopy fills in, your living mulch will probably start to die off, except the edges. So if you have any companion perennials, grow them as far from the cannabis as possible. If your cannabis is in the center, your yarrow should be on the edge. If you have the cannabis in a ring around the edges, keep your yarrow in the center.


In theory there may be different benefits depending on how you cycle the mulch. Flowering photoperiod for cannabis is veg for clover and vice versa. I'm currently exploring to see if the veg cycle can't be dramatically shortened by sowing cannabis seed during the end of the 12/12 period of the previous crop. By switching to a longer day after chopping, the seedlings below should veg normally, only earlier.

living mulch? INSIDE?!? why the hell not?

here are some examples from IC members:

mugenbao

Mad

Supuradam

tuinman -

This tree has been unfortunately in a container for way too long (no where to put it yet) and it was pretty much pure red throughout the leaves and putting out growth very slowly. On a lark I seeded it with clover - this is about 3 months later and I've lost track of how many times I've chopped the mulch back. It has about twice as much foliage as previously, the clover was the only change.

Let's see those living mulches, and those nice growth reports!

I am gonna try to compile what we know so far about living mulch candidates. corrections appreciated. updated jan 15 2012

microclover: this variety of dutch white clover is very hard to come by, but perfect for any size container. sow it thick. see dutch white clover for details.

dutch white clover: suitable for all but the smallest containers. White clover is a nitrogen fixer under the right conditions. It does a good job shading the soil and does not interfere with cannabis growth, rooting, or germination. Spreads by above ground stolons, and forms a mat of shallow roots. Can be used alone for increased bio-activity at soil surface, water management, and as green manure. Can host some of the same mycorhizae as cannabis. Tolerates some mowing if well established. In its first year it has a deep taproot. Expect it to behave as an annual indoors.

crimson clover: suitable for 5 gallon containers and up. tap-rooted annual. Forms a thick carpet that creates a nanoclimate from the soil surface up about 6 inches. Same compatibility with cannabis as other clovers. does not do well with mowing. Crimson clover flowers when the day becomes longer than 12 hours. Crimson clover loves warm climates and does especially well indoors.

chickweed - chickweed should be sown very sparingly in larger containers. great with crimson clover. perfect for chop and drop to feed your soil. This is my #1 non legume choice for a living mulch. Excellent partner for cannabis. Edible but bland.

chamomile - definitely harmless.

yarrow: yarrow seems to be a good companion for cannabis but does not do especially well under a full canopy. Plant it along edges where the light will get through, or consider supplemental lighting down below. Makes a great dressing if you cut yourself mowing your mulch.

purslane - harmless but does not do well under lights

squash: squash should be chopped and dropped as they shade too much soil. squash as a companion should be reserved for the very largest containers and outdoor cultivation in the ground
__________________

 

[DARC MIND]

chickweed,chamomile,clover
3+ gal containers, for the the chick,cham and clover worked wonders threw veg and cultivated in, once we flwrd, OD.
u can cut back and mulch the flwrs, to maintain while feeding the soil
hth

 

[mosstrooper]

chickweed,chamomile,clover
3+ gal containers, for the the chick,cham and clover worked wonders threw veg and cultivated in, once we flwrd, OD.
u can cut back and mulch the flwrs, to maintain while feeding the soil
hth

What does the chickweed do?

 

[mad librettist]

What does the chickweed do?

attracts dudeweed

 

[jaykush]

i like the plants that you can cut in the pot and drop on the spot. chickweed is one of those, chamomile and clover are also excellent candidates. repeatedly doing this builds beautiful rich soil even over a shorter time scale. and when you have had enough, all you need to do is drop enough mulch on top to smother the living mulch.

as long as your not taking the clippings out of the pot, your not depleting anything or stealing anything from the cannabis.

i prefer to have a scattered mulch that is living and decomposing.

attracts dudeweed

lol

 

[vonforne]

Great thread Dig. I will put this one up top.

V

 

[heady blunts]

nice! good move v.

sticky-worthy indeed

 

[DARC MIND]

What does the chickweed do?

accumulates nutrients,specifically Fe, Ca, K, P, Zn, Mn, Na, Cu, and Si (frm my notes)as OM & onced add to the soil, pretty much cycles them back,while building soil,like jay mentioned.
heres a neat read
http://hubpages.com/hub/Dynamic-Accumulators-for-Better-Soil
hth

 

[mad librettist]

two words: micro clover

or is that one word?

this stuff is really cool! I know a lawn or two that could use these guys. They grow so small the mower misses them. I am picturing a thick carpet.

to make sure I have rhizobium, I am gonna grab some dirt with clovers in it.

 

[C21H30O2]

so we now leaf mold is ideal but if we didnt start making some in 2008 what would be the best short notice mulch? straw? shredded cedar? newspaper?

 

[mosstrooper]

accumulates nutrients,specifically Fe, Ca, K, P, Zn, Mn, Na, Cu, and Si (frm my notes)as OM & onced add to the soil, pretty much cycles them back,while building soil,like jay mentioned.

Fantastic, and the clover fixes nitrogen, not sure about the chamomile.

I like the idea of chickweed in my weed, most gardeners hate it, but actually it tastes really good, and is a very reliable winter vegetable.
Though i do appreciate that you need to recycle it to get the benefit in a grow. I have plenty in my garden and my greenhouse, seems to tolerate dry conditions well too.

Do living mulches help to keep the top of the soil moist, mine is almost always bone dry (i water from the bottom). Do you have any pictures of how this looks in a 3gal pot?

two words: micro clover
or is that one word?

I suspect it would be hyphenated

 

[DARC MIND]

so we now leaf mold is ideal but if we didnt start making some in 2008 what would be the best short notice mulch? straw? shredded cedar? newspaper?

the best imo would be free but a diversity of material;texture,nutrient content,size,ect

some may consider growng borage,comfrey or other broad leaf accumilators/weeds,layer with straw & or newspapr above
some cities give free mulch, witch is usually some kind of composted wood shreds,HD,lowes ect carry them for some $ (red wood,cedar ect) coco chips & cocoa hulls also work well too

also u can collect leaf litter and just process it;wood shredder,lawn mower,blender

doesnt inoculate your media like yrs old leaf mold but does the trick
hth

 

[OPT]

I seen these Bark chips type shit bagged up at home depot the other day, would this be good to put on top of my organic mix in my indoor pots?

OPT

 

[Dignan]

I seen these Bark chips type shit bagged up at home depot the other day, would this be good to put on top of my organic mix in my indoor pots?

OPT

I say yes and have had excellent results using that bark mulch (assuming we're talking about the same brand and type... don't buy anything with any additives, colors, etc.).

But others here say don't do it because the microbes will go to work on the bark mulch and in the process consume a lot of N from your soil, robbing your plants.

That has not been my experience at all.

Do not mix the bark mulch into your soil. Put a 1" layer on top and then at the end of the grow, remove all of the bark mulch, and THEN dump the soil into your soil bin.

 

[OPT]

Dignan, thanks for the prompt response!

OPT

 

[heady blunts]

Do living mulches help to keep the top of the soil moist, mine is almost always bone dry (i water from the bottom). Do you have any pictures of how this looks in a 3gal pot?

they should help.

i have a couple areas that are yet to be cultivated in my garden plot. the bare ground dries up quickly, and even cracks, but around every cluster of clover is a nice moist area.