question about humus...

[Guest]

i know that earthworm castings contain humus. i also found manure w/ humus at my local home depot/lowes.
can i substitute the manure/humus instead of castings?
i mix alot of soil and blow through the castings very quickly.
since this manure is way cheaper i was wondering if i could use it to be cost effective.

p.s. i use burn one's recipe:
6 parts pro-mix
2 parts perlite
2 parts EC

 

[Guest]

yes, you'll be just fine doing that

and you can always add un decomposed organic matter to the top of your soil and worms will come to turn it into castings...i find that transplanting worms helps to start off a new location

 

[3BM]

Hey Thor:

Here is a defiinition that might help:

First off, in earth sciences "humus" (see http://www.suprahumic.unina.it/) is any organic matter which has reached a point of stability, where it will break down no further and might, if conditions do not change, remain essentially as it is for centuries, or millennia. Second, in agriculture, "humus" is often used simply to mean mature compost, or natural compost extracted from a forest or other spontaneous source for use to amend soil.

So humus is decomposed organic material (plant or animal) which has reached a stable/mature condition, or said another way humus is the final product of decomposition. Worms sustain themselves by eating bacteria which develope on decaying organic matter. They excrete the digested material in a concentrated form. Worms do an especially good job of concentrating nutrients in thier castings, they also consume and thus excrete bacteria rich material. Adding organic matter to soil is important since that material will sustain a population of beneficial microbes, but the microbes dont care if its cow or worm crap.

Practically speaking, manure and castings are interchangeable in the sense you describe. However, the NPK of manure and castings are different. Castings typically contain the remains of dead worms and their eggs which are very high in N, and so they are listed as 1-0-0. Manure is usually more balanced like .5-.5-.4. Both will sustain populations of beneficials, and both will innoculate a mix with microbes (not to mention supplying a host of microN).

You said "I mix a lot of soil", do you reuse the soil? Remixed soil will cut down on waste and will extend your soil resources further. I have a 55gal container where I mix soil devoted to composting leaf matter and stems. Every bit of trim and leaves (not bound for the hash pile) goes in there along with some reclaimed soil. I turn the bin regularly and within days the material breaks down completely. This soil increasingly becomes humus, and when it comes time to remix soil I have a ready supply of top notch compost free of charge. Hope that helps, have a good one!

3bm

 

[vonforne]

That was a great link 3BM....as always.

V

 

[Guest]

im new to organics, but i never reused my soil before. i wouldn't know how to go about it. im sure if i actually looked around in here, id find a link. i was reading on how to make a worm bin, but i dont know if id go that route, but you never know. im just looking for pointers and what not at this time. im sure i will get into composting and things. i have a wooded area behind my house that i have been throwing my dirt waste into. im sure that will be composting now that the weather is warming up a bit, but wouldn't it bring pests into my indoor grow?
i have been doing this organic mix with all my new clones and let me tell you, i have been missing out on the jackpot medium for far too long!
the little ladies have really taken off and they are very lush. i feel like my first 1 1/2 of growing was just time wasted.
but you live and learn i guess!

 

[theFLINTSTONERS]

for the record . . . if your soil mix has much peat in it . . . peat is chock full of humus . . .

i feel like my first 1 1/2 of growing was just time wasted.
but you live and learn i guess!

no time is truly wasted as long as you learned from the experience . . .

 

[vonforne]

^^^^^^^^

 

[BurnOne]

Humus=Humic Acids.