Tutorial Organics for Beginners

[Hitman24]

Sorry man i didn't want to be pedant with you, i apologize, i thought there was a minimum amount of soil (using food recipe #1) to set for each plant related to the period it will stay out. Something like "if you have it out for four months (2 vegs + 2 flowering) you have to set at least 100 gallons of soil, for five months 150 etc etc"
Thank you man and sorry again

 

[Luther Burbank]

Hitman, my advice is that indoor and outdoor soil mixes are radically different. Indoors we're building from scratch. It's a blank canvas and we build with peat, aeration, and organic matter. Outdoors what you amend with truly depends on what type of soil you have and what is in it. Are you on clay, sand, loam? A combination thereof? They all determine what your soil needs. A soil test from your local farming extension is a must-have. It'll allow you to have a documented starting point. From there we can begin the work of dialing in.

 

[Luther Burbank]

I've another question.
What matters if i can't areate my tea? is it usable the same as a fertilizer? For the outdoor i store water in a 50 gal tank and i give 20 gal of water every time. In my backyard there are no plugs where to plug any airpump so is not possible to areate tea. The only thing i could do is to stir it a few times before i feed the plants, or make a concentrate of the 20 gal tea in a 5 gal bucket where i could areate it and then mix it whit the rest of the necessary water in the tank.
What am i supposed to do guys?
Thanks
Peace

If you can't aerate I'd say don't bother long brewing or trying aact. You're missing out on the aerobic microbes. I doubt the anaerobic guys will have much luck in the soil outdoors, so they probably can't harm too much, but it seems like unnecessary work.The later idea of brewing smaller elsewhere and then upsizing may work. I'm not an avid aact user though.

 

[Hitman24]

Thanks luther, as for the amount of soil i was thinking to prepare thanks of a certain volume and put in LC's mix 1 with food recipe 1 (so no use of my native soil at all).
My question was the minimum size of the thank in order to give the plant enough food and space in order to avoid food deficiencies and have a healthy plant.
Do you see the point dude?

For the tea i'm goind to brew it concentrate in smaller buckets and then add the rest of the amount of water and give it to the plants (some numbers, if i give 60 liters i brew 20 liters of tea with the amount of worm castings, molasses etc for 60 liters and then add the other 40 liters before i feed the plants)
I think it will work the same, or i'm wrong?

 

[JediMasterVon]

To you old man! Soil is the foundation, teas and folairs.

Keep it green and mean.

V

 

[Luther Burbank]

Hitman, is there something lost in translation? You used the word 'thank" twice above in a way I don't understand. Are you planting in ground in mix then or outdoors in containers?

 

[rik78]

thank = tank = container = pot

 

[Luther Burbank]

Having tried 10g this year outdoors with some rich soil, I'd not advocate anything less than a 20g smartie. Or if you want less soil roll the sides down - wider is better than deeper for cannabis. The problem is they'll take whatever you give them. I'm pondering right now whether a person should use a milder soil if they're growing in smaller containers. I'm definitely of the opinion of pinching back and keeping a container plant smaller than it wants to get. It *will* outgrow the means of its container and when that happens you have to deal with the issues of rootbinding and not enough food for the plant.

 

[BurnOne]

Hitman, my advice is that indoor and outdoor soil mixes are radically different. Indoors we're building from scratch. It's a blank canvas and we build with peat, aeration, and organic matter. Outdoors what you amend with truly depends on what type of soil you have and what is in it. Are you on clay, sand, loam? A combination thereof? They all determine what your soil needs. A soil test from your local farming extension is a must-have. It'll allow you to have a documented starting point. From there we can begin the work of dialing in.

Yes, exactly what I was trying to say.
Thank you LB.
Burn1

 

[Hitman24]

Sorry guys my first language is not english so i make some mistakes. When i talk about tank i mean container (or pot).
It seems hard to explain my idea xD try to set a direct question.

In outdoor,if i use a 150 gallon containers (filled with LC's mix #1 with food recipe #1) for each plant,put them in these containers at the beginning of may and harvest in mid october, do you think, according to your experience, that plants will have enough rootspace and foods to reach the harvest or maybe there will be some deficiencies?

 

[BurnOne]

If there are deficiencies, supplement with teas, top dressing or foliar spraying. Guano teas are good for nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium depending on which guano you use. Alfalfa and dried blood teas are good for nitrogen. Kelp meal teas are good for potassium. Neptune's Harvest 2-4-1 fish is good for phosphorous.
Many options out there. You'll be fine. Just make sure you diagnose the problem properly. Waiting a day or two to think about it and study here will seldom cause a plant or crop to fail.
Patience is the most important ingredient. Some look for an immediate improvement and when they don't see one within a few hours or a day they add twice as much which actually does four times as much harm. Go lightly when making changes and let the plant tell you what it needs.
This aint rocket surgery.
Burn1

 

[dank.frank]

Again, Hitman - you are asking questions that have variables...

How big are the plants going out? Are you putting 3ft plants out in May or rooted clones?

How much DIRECT light are they getting? Is it full sun all day or do they get early morning / late evening shade?

What if you happen to over-water and choke out the roots when they are small?

The list of variables could go on and on and on...these are just examples - and it all plays into how big your containers need to be / how big the plants will ultimately get.

--------

The best way to approach it is not to say, "I want to yield as much as possible", because to an extent that is what everyone wants, but it isn't really practical in the sense of proper planning. What happens if you grow 10 ft trees that yield 3 lbs each and you only have room to dry a single pound???

You have to be able to determine where your limitations are - and what you can RATIONALLY expect to handle from a production stand point - before you ever decide how much soil you want to plant in.

-------

Personally, I've got two ladies outside this year - that I hope to pull an ounce from each. Just kind of playing around - BUT, I know that is all I expect, so I'm only putting them in 5 gallon holes. 3 gallons of heavily amended soil mixed with two gallons of the top soil section of the dirt I dug out to make the holes - simply to keep local soil fauna in play.

And I know, that 5 gallons this way is more than enough, to supply what will be at the very most 3ft tall plants, all they need.

------

What I am saying - is you are the only one that can make the determinations necessary to TRULY answer the questions you are asking.

What you really seem to be asking is: "Do the soil mixes on pg 1 work?" - the answer to that is a simple yes. How well they work depends on how well you implement them into your necessary parameters...



dank.Frank

 

[Hitman24]

guys thank you for keeping pacience with my noobness xD

I try to give you more informations. I don't think "i want to yield as much as possible" but "i want to yield the most natural and organic pot i can". I know that the bigger the pot is, the bigger the plant gets.
I will put in the containers seedlings of about 1 e 1/2 month old in mid may and reach the arvest maybe in mid october, so five months will have to be spent in containers by plants.

they'll have full sun all day from sunrise till sunset every day (except cloudy days obviously) and water when they need.
My problem was about the availability of nutrients till nearly the harvesting because is easy to overfeed the plants when using chemical ferts or organics too if they're too much so causing growth problems to the plants.

When i came to know about organics i fell in love with the possibility for the plant to get all that she needs in the right proportions from a well ammended soil thanks to benefical bacterias without the need of extra feeding, so i've decided to try it with the recipe at page one, and my question started from there because i haven't already read something about outdoor using these mixes.

dank frank you said you have plants in 5 gallon holes filled with rich in nutes soil mix, now i think that amount won't have enough nutes for five months the plant is staying in there, but there have to be a X amount of soil that contains the necessary nutes to feed a plant for five months. My question was about how much is that X amount so i can set that amount and give only plain water and, if needed, supplement some deficiences with a tea.

i can give you all the informations you need to know to determinate that X, just ask and i'll answer dudes

 

[Billsharp]

Thanks BurnOne for this thread, I have been growing in coco drain to waste, and am switching over to organic, This info has helped me understand organic much better

 

[Pancake5765]

I am on my second round of soil now with LC's mix #2 and the fert mix #1. I have to say for me it has been amazing and quite inspirational. Watching my organic plants keep pace and then start to outperform the LucasFormula plants, quite a potent message to the power of soil life and organic/permaculture practices.

Thanks to everyone who helps keep this thread going for all of us intro organic noob-boobs !


Can you tell the organic plants left or right ? The bottom right plant is not on stilts like the bottom left Give her a 18" handicapt.

 

[MrTea]

Thanks BurnOne for this thread, I have been growing in coco drain to waste, and am switching over to organic, This info has helped me understand organic much better

And don't forget, if you can't find the ingredients one page 1 or don't want to use some of them (I know I prefer others) there are plenty of good substitutes out there i.e. bone meal/fish bone meal, peat moss/alaskan hummus, perlite/pumice, etc. It's really hard to go wrong no matter how you choose.

 

[BurnOne]

guys thank you for keeping pacience with my noobness xD

You Sir are the very reason why we are here.
Burn1

 

[dank.frank]

but there have to be a X amount of soil that contains the necessary nutes to feed a plant for five months. My question was about how much is that X amount so i can set that amount and give only plain water and, if needed, supplement some deficiences with a tea.

i can give you all the informations you need to know to determinate that X, just ask and i'll answer dudes

That "X" amount is what is listed on page 1. Follow the recipes...they are made so that a plant gets what it needs during it's entire life cycle...

If you are planting in 150 gallons - and starting of with a 8" vegged seedling in May - you are going to have plenty on nutrition...and plenty of root space.

The biggest thing you will want to watch is not over watering when putting small plants in large spaces.

Should easily have 8ft trees by the end of the season...



dank.Frank

 

[Arthritis_sucks]

You Sir are the very reason why we are here.
Burn1

 

[Hitman24]

Hi guys i have a question about ACT. is it ok to brew 20 gallons of tea using a 5 gallon bucket filled with the amount of worm casting and molasses necessary for the 20 gallons and then add the other 15 gallons of water before watering?