Tutorial Organics for Beginners

[FireDancer]

Thanks I've used it in the past for pest control, I am assuming just a little bit top dressed would be good for silica....how much would you do?

Well, I use it primarily for silica and I add it right to my mix, along with my other amendments. I mix up big batches in a 54 gallon Rubbermaid container and use 2 cups of it.

 

[Luther Burbank]

Re:silica I've always used greensand in my mixes, which has a higher amount of silica than basalt. I've never been clear on the solubility of silica in soil mixes as opposed to outdoor soil, but my plants receive sprays of Ag-Sil for a foliar silica source. Studies have shown the benefits of the silica spray only continue as long as you're spraying though - I'll try to dig that source up if anyone cares enough. For some reasons when you stop spraying silica the benefits don't continue despite the silica you sprayed still being present inside the cells.

 

[snufkin]

I am planning on a new soil mix from the ingredients I've got locally available and would like some comments on it before mixing everything up.

The soil mix would be 1/3 old used soil, 1/3 compost and 1/3 sphagnum and the added goodies:

3 tbsp bone meal / gallon
1-2 tbsp kelp / gallon
3 tbsp chicken manure / gallon
3 tbsp birch ashes / gallon
1-2 tbsp diatomaceous earth / gallon

maybe some coffee grounds, ground egg shells etc?? just something easily found to diversify the mix. Plus mulch on top.

Does that sound about right to start with?

I also might get my hands on some EWC.

Anyone care to give thumbs up for this recipe before I start mixing?

 

[Mikell]

Looks a little alkaline (though I don't see any liming for the sphagnum), heavy on bone meal and light on perlite/aeration (depending on used soil).

Perhaps someone with more experience or having used a similar mix can chime in?

 

[MrTea]

More kelp, more and more kelp. You are lacking a bit in potassium if using so much phosphorous from the bone meal and chicken manure for nitrogen. Looks like your plants will pitter out in mid to late flower with those ratios. Double or triple the kelp.

 

[snufkin]

Looks a little alkaline (though I don't see any liming for the sphagnum), heavy on bone meal and light on perlite/aeration (depending on used soil).

ground egg shells could be used as liming right? but how much would be enough? i was thinking the sphagnum would be good for aeration but is this wrong?

More kelp, more and more kelp. You are lacking a bit in potassium if using so much phosphorous from the bone meal and chicken manure for nitrogen. Looks like your plants will pitter out in mid to late flower with those ratios. Double or triple the kelp.

I'll go with 5 tpbs / gallons of kelp then.

Thanks for your time!

 

[Midnight Tokar]

ground egg shells could be used as liming right? but how much would be enough? i was thinking the sphagnum would be good for aeration but is this wrong?



I'll go with 5 tpbs / gallons of kelp then.

Thanks for your time!

In my peat mix I use 5 parts Peat moss and 3 parts rice hulls (I used to use Perlite at same ratio but prefer rice hulls now) and 2 parts EWC.
If you can get it I'd also add Neem Meal to the mix as not only does it add some NPK but it also deters critters. I use 1 TBLS. per gallon of mix.

 

[MrTea]

In my peat mix I use 5 parts Peat moss and 3 parts rice hulls (I used to use Perlite at same ratio but prefer rice hulls now) and 2 parts EWC.
If you can get it I'd also add Neem Meal to the mix as not only does it add some NPK but it also deters critters. I use 1 TBLS. per gallon of mix.

Have you had success with this mix? Seems way too low on the EWC.

 

[Midnight Tokar]

Have you had success with this mix? Seems way too low on the EWC.

Yea, I' just finished the 3rd grow from the same mix and it was the best harvest of the lot and with much more resin production.
I also amend with:
Bone Meal, Blood Meal, Kelp Meal, Espoma Garden-tone, Soft Rock Phosphate, Fish Bone Meal, Crab Meal, Neem Meal, Diatomaceous Earth, Alfalfa Meal and Dolomite Lime.

 

[vitamingreeninc]

2 questions after doing research leading up to this build.
1. If I got azomite and wanted to add it to the amendment recipe #1 using greensand and everything else, how much would I put per cubic foot?

2. Mulch-why don't people use perlite? A mulch/wick smartpot seems perfect...or don't they?

 

[MrTea]

2-4 cups of trace mineral per/cf. If using azomite and greensand go with a ratio of 1:4 azomite to greensand. Azomite is known to react with humic/fulvic acids in larger quantities and will chelate aluminum and possibly other metals into your soil and thus go into your plants which you will then smoke. Less is more when it comes to azomite as Aluminum toxicity is no bueno!

 

[dank.frank]

I wouldn't use more that 1/2c per cu ft of azomite - and then use something like glacial rock dust (or other rock dusts) for the rest of the minerals.

Azomite is mostly silica - 60%+ - if I remember correctly (being too lazy to look at the minute)

As far as ground egg shells go - they can be used as a 1:1 replacement of liming agents - but they must be VERY FINELY ground...like flour. Then they can act as a liming material for up to 54 months without a decline in use. (think it was Purdue who did the studies on this)

However, with egg shells, they have a inner membrane on the shell - that you REALLY should take off...and it's a pain. Otherwise, you risk contaminating your soil with salmonella. The best way I've found to get the membrane off is boiling the shells. Some people like to bake the shells until slightly browned before grinding to a flour - I've never personally tried baking them to see if there was any difference.

I've been playing with egg shells for about 3 years now with some success and some failure....still on the fence as to the practicality of it.



dank.Frank

 

[snufkin]

ok then, I reduced the bone meal and chicken manure to 2 tbsp / gallon. and the egg shells I got ready and powdered but the membrane wasnt removed from them so guess Ill sterilize them, one site suggested that 30min in 100'C would be ennough to take care of the salmonella, will give this a try.

the neem meal means specifically neem seed meal? if so, thats something I cant get my hands on but I found alfalfa meal and grounded flax seeds, are these possible substitutes for the neem meal?

thank you much for your inputs, dank.frank, mikell, mr.tea, midnight tokar!

 

[snufkin]

Oh yeah, and anyone got experience growing in 15-20 gallon pots? found few threads about it but it seems to be very rare indoors. Is there a reason for this other than the long veg time? The idea is gradually move into a 5 gal pot and transplant from there to the final 15/20 gallon container.

 

[Ph-patrol]

I have bin steaming my egg shells and then pulverizing after they dry.

 

[Luther Burbank]

Snuf: I really wouldn't worry about the salmonella issue. Neem meal does refer to neem seed meal - neemresource.com is the best place. Alfalfa would offer some of the same nutrients but would also be much higher in N and does not offer the fungicidal or pesticidal benefits that neem meal does.

I haven't seen many 15-20 and think it'd be troublesome to transplant from 5 up. Larger soil containers have a benefit of drying out slower and sustaining more diverse life. Ten is a good balance and I think if you're going bigger than that you might as well do beds indoors that multiple plants can go in.

 

[ambertrichom]

Glad to stumble in here. A friend suggest i use happy frog but seems pricey any suggestions?

 

[ambertrichom]

Probably not the best place to ask assuming you guys are biass, but can anyone tell me why everyone has been suggesting i go organic oppossed to coco?

 

[Snype]

I'm trying to come up with a indoor mix for 5 Gallon Pots with 25 plants per 4,000 watts. I want to be able to just add water. I'm also looking for flavor so I'm hoping I'm not over doing it with the ratio and ingredients. Does anyone see any problems with this mix:

1 bag FFOF (11.2 Gal)
EWC (1.5 Gal) - http://www.fixitfarmmaine.com/product-information
Chunky Perlite (2.1 Gal)

Base = 2 Cu Ft

Fish Bone Meal (2 Cups) http://www.groworganic.com/fish-bone-meal-3-16-0-6-lb.html
Blood Meal (1 Cup) Local
Kelp Meal (1 Cup) http://www.groworganic.com/kelp-meal-5-lb-box.html
Alfalfa Meal (3/4 Cup) http://www.groworganic.com/alfalfa-meal-5-lb-box.html
Dried Molasses (3/4 Cup) Amazon
Ahimsa Organics Neem Cake (1 Cup) http://www.neemresource.com/NeemCake.html
Azomite (3/4 Cup) Local
Oyster Shell Flour (2 Cups) http://www.groworganic.com/oyster-shell-lime-50-lb.html
Gypsum (1/2 Cup) Local
Diatomaceous Earth (Fossil Shell Flour) (1/2 Cup)http://www.bulkherbstore.com/Diatomaceous-Earth
Sul-Po-Mag (3 TB) Amazon
BioVam (1 tsp) http://www.tandjenterprises.com/CCPRO/Category/BioVam-Products
BioAG Vam (1 tsp) http://www.greners.com/i/nutrients-additives/BioAg-VAM.html

 

[Abja Roots]

I'm trying to come up with a indoor mix for 5 Gallon Pots with 25 plants per 4,000 watts. I want to be able to just add water. I'm also looking for flavor so I'm hoping I'm not over doing it with the ratio and ingredients. Does anyone see any problems with this mix:

I ran a just add water mix a few years ago, and for ease they can't be beat. I even experimented with using it for a second cycle, and it actually performed pretty well without re-amending the soil. The quality was actually pretty nice as well. It was based on a modified version of Burn's original recipe if I remember correctly. I'll be interested to hear what others have to say about this recipe. Thanks for sharing Snype!