Outdoor soil mix

[spectrum]

this summer has been brutal to my outdoor plants.. high temps and long droughts without rain. i've learned alot from my first outdoor attempt, and have a pretty good idea how to do next years crop. only thing is, i need to find a good soil mix. one that can retain water, and have plenty enough nutrients to sustain the plant all the way to harvest.

i have a couple ideas. at first i thought of trying out the moonshineman mix..but then i read that MSM mix has a ultra-sensitive watering schedule. my current plan is to mix Black Gold All Organic, with chunky perlite, polymer crystals and some Peace of Mind (dont know which PoM..any suggestions?)

the most important thing for this mix is water retention, and nutrients. simplicity would be nice also. this mix is for 10gal growbags & sterilte tubs.

'ppreciate any comments/suggestions
thanks

‡SpeCTruM‡

 

[Tirs]

Try a peat moss based mix. Peat holds 30x its own weight in water. If you can get pro-mix bx then you should be in a really good position. I would add a good amount of water polymers to it, about 10% wormcastings and some type of dry complete nutrient, I use espoma's products with guano added with great success. In areas with high animal activity avoid any animal byproducts though ie fish, blood meal and bone meal.

You can check out my outdoor grow if you want, the plants are in 15 gallon grobags with my own peat moss mix. If you are going to make your own mix I can give you one tip I learned the hard way, make sure to add vermiculite since it aids the peat in rewetting.

 

[Suby]

60% ProMix HP + Mike
30% vermiculite
10% worm castings for micros and BB

To each gallon of this mix I add:

2 TBS/gal dolomite lime
1 TBS/gal blood meal
2 TBS/gal bone mean for P (flowering mix only)
1 TBS/gal kelp meal


Substitute my usual perlite for vermiculite which keeps it airy but retains alot of moisture, crystals are also a good idea.
You can also dig deep and put a sheet of plastic under the plot, it will keep rain water from seeping too fast, have a few holes in it to drain though.
If critters are a factor substitute the blood and bone meal for guanos.

Peace
S

 

[Dignan]

You can't go wrong with either of these fellas' suggestions, but I'll also point to my outdoor soil mix, which is very similar. Click on my Outdoor thread in my signature. I think it's on the first page somewhere.

I grow in the high desert... intense sun, very low ambient humidity and very little rain. This mix has been great. I'm growing in containers this year and my only problems have been when I went too long between visits.

Coco is a great addition, as is peat, and the polymer crystals are great, IMO. There's a great polymer thread in the Outdoor Forum.

Don't forget to innoculate the medium with myco-fungi... the fungi "reach out" into the soil beyond where the roots are able to reach and "pull in" moisture, delivering to the plants.

 

[the undertaker]

if you are using blood/bone meal, it is a good idea to line your holes with chicken wire, because depending on where you live there are alot of little rodents that like to dig in it because they think they will find food.

the water polymer crystals are a good bet, they are in my soil mix right now.

 

[spectrum]

wow thanks guys! K+ to all!!

i think i will try to avoid the blood/bone meal. i dont know if they put it in Peace of MInd ...i know theres mycorizzi-fungi in it. is it a big deal if i use perlite instead of vermiculite? also where can i get PROMIX at? i hope its not the same thing as that Premier peat moss at WalMart...i had a bad experience with that stuff. it was filled with bugs and had a shitload of woodchips in it.


here is Dignan's soil mix....for all other curious Outdoor IC'ers

My Outdoor Mix this year:
50 gallons total...

20gal/3 cu ft Peat (40%)
10 gal Black Gold Organic Potting Soil (20%)
10 gal Perlite (20%)
5 gal Compost (10%)
5 gal Worm Castings (10%)

amendments:
10cups Bone Meal
5c Blood Meal
4c Kelp Meal
2c Lime
2c Crushed Oyster Shells
1c Epsom Salts
1c Polymer Crystals

 

[SpacemanSpliff]

It's all about the Roots Organics potting soil... I've done side by sides with it and Foxfarm Ocean Forest, and it's definitely much better.

 

[Suby]

I think vermiculite is a much better choice than perlite if you are trying to conserve water yet trying to keep the soil from compacting.

S

 

[Dignan]

I think vermiculite is a much better choice than perlite if you are trying to conserve water yet trying to keep the soil from compacting.

S

I did actually alter that soil recipe of mine for the second half of the batch and switched the 20% perlite to 10% perlite and 10% vermiculite. Haven't noticed any difference between the two in terms of water retention, but I do think vermiculite is a better choice.

Dig

 

[Relik]

Sorry for the late input, I believe there are some good recipes here. I would like to second the use of coco, and also point out that when I use perlite in an outdoor soil mix, I try to mix less of it in the top part of the mix, in order to prevent excessive aeration and drying. If I can I topdress with compost (which I already use in my mix, sometimes up to 40-50%, I've even tried pure compost) as a mulch, it really helps and I find it gives a nice kick to the plants.

Best of luck

 

[jaykush]

one word...mulch....and at least 3-4 inches. your soil will stay cooler and moist longer.