Terra Preta - Dark Soil - Experiment

[xmobotx]

yeah and every year there's the big discussion about whether the grass burners should be able to fill the sky w/ smoke for the allergic to endure

NTM we're talking about centuries old ancient practice in the thread

when the soil grows itself that kind of sounds like sustainable to me

 

[phildea]

Thanks guys.

I figured that because i only used a few cups of the charcoal and added them to my soil and then mixed that again with the coco and perlite it would be ok for my seedlings... I think it was just too much for the maroc/paki and trois.

Also the maroc/paki looks more like a sativa?! It defo has thinner leaves anyhoo...

I do think i overwatered and maybe released too much ferts... I am gonna leave them to dry out a bit and take it from there.

Jah love

Try leaching the nutrients out by flushing them through to dilute the nutrients,like you said its a bit strong for small plants i had the same trouble i made some biochar and soaked it in miracle grow diluted overnight then drained it now i add about 10% to a 15 litre tub and hopefully it will act like a slow release fertiliser, still experimenting, the biochar is full of microscopic cavitys and this is where the nutrients are stored allong with water hope this helps Phil.

 

[ixnay007]

where did i mention its like glass?

i said fired clay is porous. just like char.

It says in the pdf: http://www.acresusa.com/toolbox/reprints/Feb07_TerraPreta.pdf That the clay was unfired...

I'm only like 13 pages into this thread though

 

[SilverSurfer_OG]

I like the idea of oyster shells. There are plenty not too far away strewn on the beaches. Crushing them sounds like a chore... if we char em and then crush em will the calcium level be the same?

Heres a nice pic from my biochar garden

 

[onegreenday]

The slash & burn is considered poor ag practice now.

The land quickly loses it's nutrients and the farmers move on to another area to cut, slash & burn, destroying more forest.

I just read the cutting in Amazonia was reduced a little last year.

Maybe it's not so new or rare. For years (before the AQMD), asparagus growers burned their top growth in the late fall or winter. My friend who still grows the stuff tells me that back in the day before the government stop and regulated ag burning, his crops were always bigger and earlier the following spring. There is also the slash and burn technique in the amazon rain forest that everyone bitches about but produces great results for the farmer.

 

[onegreenday]

biochar on the market

biochar on the market

Black Pearl Biochar on the market.

http://grotek.net/products/guide/product.asp?code=backpearl

http://grotek.net/products/guide/sellsheets/backpearl.pdf

 

[carpster]

you ever use benefisia fungi in you soil read this 10 to1000 percent mor yeald...
http://www2.mailordercentral.com/fungi/
then go to thier home page and educate youself...not tryin to tell you what to do but my dad swears by this shit...

 

[SilverSurfer_OG]

Yeah thanks for the input carpster. I have tried mychorzial fungi bags and they seemed to grow but no noticable benefit except when used in a obbt (bio-box) setup.

To be honest i think a good bag of mushroom compost is better value and easier to obtain.

I cant order fungi except in Oz because of import laws.



ps Gonna start making some more char soon. Got lots of holes that need dug...

 

[idiit]

i heard about terra-preta on npr 3 years ago. did some google searches and saw a study that reported melons grew bigger, smelled better and tasted better with the addition of charcoal to the soil so i tried it out sorta. my mj yield has signicantly improved over previous years and the smell and bud formation has significantly improved. jury is still out on potency improvement. i just take a sledgehammer to some quality hard charcoal and put an open handful in each hole. pretty dramatic improvement over past results without the charcoal additive.

 

[Clackamas Coot]

Bone Char

Bone Char

JayKush

I found a source for bone char and there are a couple of forms that it comes in. Any thoughts?

Besides the bone char any thoughts on the bamboo charcoal?

Thanks for any help!

CC

 

[jaykush]

looks pretty good to me coot.

those giant pumpkins in the biocharplus link are crazy!

 

[xebeche]

I should have some accidental information at the end of summer. Had to move outdoors. Started with some girls that had been under 12hr for a couple weeks, but one of the holes I dug hit an old fire pit on accident. Made me think of this thread, so I will post any noticeable results. It isn't exactly a decent scientific study, but there may be something worth noting.

 

[MrFista]

OK, who is using pre-char-amended worm castings for teas?

And what are the results in comparison to normal teas?

All I'm looking for is that they are equal, that the char doesn't screw the process up somehow.

I'm very particular about my teas worm bin. The teas are outstanding and don't want to mess with it. Perhaps I should just keep adding char to the big worm bin.

 

[pseudopod]

What to do with bio-char marinade?

What to do with bio-char marinade?

My inclination is to add the kelp water I've soaked my char in back to the soil mix. Is there any reason not to do this?

 

[jaykush]

not at all go for it. just make sure its not too strong.

 

[3rdEye]

More great info. I had heard mention of this stuff before but nothing useful to convince me to use it and now seeing all you growers adding your weight to the discussion i am going to have to try some of this out.

great thread

 

[City Twin]

JayKush

Besides the bone char any thoughts on the bamboo charcoal?

CC

Bamboo charcoal is sure interesting stuff. The IR re-radiating proprieties alone are enough to start an argument.

 

[Dignan]

Sorry guys-

I have searched the thread (quickly) and can't find recs for a brand of store-bought. Have you all established a favorite? (I know many of you make your own, including jk, of course.)

Thanks-

Dig

 

[jaykush]

i have used lizzari, red oak, cowboy, and a few other natural hardwood char along with what i make myself. the biggest benefit to making your own is you can reduce the size of the char material before you char it. for example its much much much easier to send some branches through a chipper to reduce the size rather than to char the sticks and pound the char to a smaller size meanwhile loosing all that char powder to the air. really as far as store bought char all it needs to be is 100% natural char. lump charcoal is usually what it is. like 10$ for 20lbs. sometimes its on sale. few weeks ago on the 4th the local hardware store had two 20 lb bags for 8$. so i got 4 bags.

 

[Dignan]

What's the method for pulverizing store-bought char?

Living in the high desert where the mere word "wildfire" makes people draw poopoglyphs in their boxers, I'm not keen to burning anything in my yard, on the same property where my cannabis garden grows.