Perlite and beyond: the pros and cons of various drainage and aeration amendments

[Clackamas Coot]

Hey coot,,That and the fact that I have a soft spot in my heart for slutty Jersey chicks. lol!! you too?!? Never want to go back to jersey if i don't have to but gotta luv those bimbos.lol

Heh - 'da Joisey Shore'

Days of future passed..............

CC

 

[Clackamas Coot]

Awesome thread guys....

CC...got a question for ya....

Where do you buy your pumice from? I live in Vancouver and this thread has got me thinking pumice and rice hulls...

Also...where can I get rice hulls? =)

Here's the price list from Concentrates so you can peruse what they have available and the pricing.

HTH

CC

 

[guest2012y]

Here's the price list from Concentrates so you can peruse what they have available and the pricing.

HTH

CC

They even sold me a Concentrates T-shirt.... for ten bucks it's pretty hip.

 

[Clackamas Coot]

They even sold me a Concentrates T-shirt.... for ten bucks it's pretty hip.

LOL - I got one also!

 

[Corpsey]

i love you guys, smart and funny to boot.

keep the info coming

 

[guest2012y]

LOL - I got one also!

Since it's cotton it'll break down eventually,and whilst waiting for that to happen I can incorporate it as a barrier between the holes in a pot and the soil,thus improving the water retention of the pot and aiding in the control of soil coming out the holes when I'm done wearing it...........
Awesome dude....LOL

 

[Aksala]

LOL my first post didn't go through...so i was like...fuck that...not gonna retype all that...

Then bam..both through...anyhow...weird. And thanks.

 

[Aksala]

Also...I have a shed so the 50 lb bag stuff isn't a prob....

The last bag of perlite I got was taller than my wife.

 

[SativaHybrid]

It should be noted that if you live near microbreweries that this could be the cheapest source of rice hulls.. The local hydro store charges $20 for a 50lb bag but the microbrewery down the st sold me a 50lb bag for $6. I have been experimenting with replacing many of my "nute company products" with more logical solutions. Scoria, rice hulls, and DE all have shown great preliminary success as a perlite replacement for me and all three have multiple uses. A little off topic but look into crusher dust it is rock dusts but far cheaper. It's a waste product of gravel pits and if located in the right area can be as mineral rich as any ag related rock dust. Locally the gravel is from glacial deposits with some crusher dust having well over 50 trace elements. Not to mention at $14 a cubic yard the shit is a steal.

 

[Clackamas Coot]

It should be noted that if you live near microbreweries that this could be the cheapest source of rice hulls.. The local hydro store charges $20 for a 50lb bag but the microbrewery down the st sold me a 50lb bag for $6. I have been experimenting with replacing many of my "nute company products" with more logical solutions. Scoria, rice hulls, and DE all have shown great preliminary success as a perlite replacement for me and all three have multiple uses. A little off topic but look into crusher dust it is rock dusts but far cheaper. It's a waste product of gravel pits and if located in the right area can be as mineral rich as any ag related rock dust. Locally the gravel is from glacial deposits with some crusher dust having well over 50 trace elements. Not to mention at $14 a cubic yard the shit is a steal.

SativaHybrid

From what I understand, the rice hulls are used to filter the beer at some point of the processing but I couldn't tell you when it's specifically used. But like you mentioned, these spent hulls are usually pretty cheap from the micro-breweries.

CC

 

[SativaHybrid]

Yeah they told me it was used in certain beers to stop the mash from sticking to the walls of the container.

 

[jaykush]

coot yea id say the bag is about 50 lbs.

The local hydro store charges $20 for a 50lb bag but the microbrewery down the st sold me a 50lb bag for $6.

20$ fuck thats a rip, good thing you found another source.

A little off topic but look into crusher dust it is rock dusts but far cheaper. It's a waste product of gravel pits and if located in the right area can be as mineral rich as any ag related rock dust. Locally the gravel is from glacial deposits with some crusher dust having well over 50 trace elements. Not to mention at $14 a cubic yard the shit is a steal.

when i lived in socal i used to get a truckload for 2-3$. and like yours its a waste product from there crushed river rock for landscaping. so it contains many different types of rock = many minerals.

I have been experimenting with replacing many of my "nute company products" with more logical solutions

good job on that, and trust me you can replace EVERYTHING the hydro store offers. and actually come up with more on your own.

 

[mad librettist]

another long term aeration method for those who grow outdoors in the ground, or in large pots is ramial chipped wood. or wood from the fungal compost pit. preferably hardwoods or some softwoods. it takes about a year with ACT or BIM inoculation to get the soil going, but once its going it GOES. its basically chipped wood that is mixed in the soil, simple as that. i have personally experimented with it and grew great plants in high clay soil only amended with RCW and left to rest for 6+ months. inoculated with local BIM culture once.

this also gives you a great start on building soil in the long run. the part that turns most people off is letting the soil sit and rest for so long.

Jay, I was just rereading, when I noticed your stealth attempt to get stoners started on Hügelkultur.

Right on!

 

[Stankie]

Reading JK's post, I agree that adding composted wood chips helps. Last grow I used compost that still had chunks of wood in it. This grow I didn't. My current grow I only used EWC and just 'feel' something missing. My plants still look good . . . but I will add some composted wood chips next round for sure!

 

[jaykush]

Reading JK's post, I agree that adding composted wood chips helps. Last grow I used compost that still had chunks of wood in it. This grow I didn't. My current grow I only used EWC and just 'feel' something missing. My plants still look good . . . but I will add some composted wood chips next round for sure!

i use raw chipped wood, but let the soil sit for months on end before even thinking of planting anything. in the long run though its goodness for sure.

 

[Clackamas Coot]

Just in case anyone's interested, the 3 largest producers of rice in the USA are California, Texas and Louisiana. If you live in or around these states then rice hulls will probably be more easily sourced than if you live in upstate New York for example.

HTH

CC

 

[mad librettist]

Perlite and beyond: the pros and cons of various drainage and aeration amendments

Just in case anyone's interested, the 3 largest producers of rice in the USA are California, Texas and Louisiana. If you live in or around these states then rice hulls will probably be more easily sourced than if you live in upstate New York for example.

HTH

CC

upstate ny has plenty of "u-brew" places. they have rice hulls for home brewers.

 

[Wolverine97]

Snooki

Snooki

That's beautiful, man. Comments like this are why I'm moving homebase over here, instead of RIU.

CC1

I usually have a bag of rice hulls sitting around. I like using them in the worm bins in particular and I usually add a few handfuls to the soil mixer. I've never really thought about them as an aeration amendment per se but obviously that's the benefit they add to the worm beds, i.e. aeration.

The aeration benefit aside, it appears to me at least that there's other things going on. Let's say that you add a couple of handfuls of rice hulls to the soil starting with the veg cycle and you've included them each and every time you've re-potted the plants into larger pots. Or however you got to your final pot for the flower cycle.

By the end of the flower cycle you'll notice that most of the rice hulls have begun to break down from microbial activity meaning that they're adding 'something' to the soil so that the benefit extends beyond the aeration aspect.

Something like that. They're definitely inexpensive. Good solid product. Nice amendment to your soil regardless of the initial intent/purpose.

BTW - I've been following Snooki on Facebook. She said something really profound yesterday about war which is why I am so enthralled with her political views. That and the fact that I have a soft spot in my heart for slutty Jersey chicks.

Last Monday my favorite pop idol, Snooki Polizzi attended the Washington Auto Show and while there she participated in a political discussion as hard as that is to imagine on any cogent level.

She said that former President George W. Bush ("Landslide Smirk") was 'pretty cute for an old man" and went on to discuss how she'd handle being Commander in Chief.

Politico magazine asked Snooks what she would do if she were president for a day and she told the crowd "I'd probably stop the war and that's serious. I'm not trying to be a beauty pageant girl bur war is not cool at all"

Snooks wasn't content to limit her comments to hardcore issues such as war and other 'icky stuff' - she also weighed in on Senator John McCain with this: "I’ve really only talked to John McCain, and that’s because I mentioned him on my show. How, you know, he probably wouldn’t do tan taxing because…he’s pale"

You can probably understand why I've become such a devotee of her as a future political star in addition to her taxing role as a reality TV star. I could see her teaming up with former (and part-time) Alaska governor for a presidential run in 2012.

"Mama Grizzly & Jersey Fat Ass"

CC

 

[mad librettist]

CC, I hesitate to invite abuse on myself...

but could you talk a bit more about rice hulls in the worm bin? I am picking some up tomorrow. do you soak them first? do they break down in one cycle? etc...?

 

[mad librettist]

Just in case anyone's interested, the 3 largest producers of rice in the USA are California, Texas and Louisiana. If you live in or around these states then rice hulls will probably be more easily sourced than if you live in upstate New York for example.

HTH

CC

local homebrew place sells them for 1.50 a pound. I suspect that is a tad expensive?