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Topsoil in the mix.
- Thread starter VerdantGreen
- Start date
Im very happy with the results so far from my attempt at a more soil rich medium.
1/3 screened top soil
1/3 homemade compost/vermicast
1/3 recycled coco, perlite, biochar, compost
1/3 screened top soil
1/3 homemade compost/vermicast
1/3 recycled coco, perlite, biochar, compost
V
vonforne
I have time off from work this weekend so I am out to the local wooded area where I live to collect about 20 gallons of forest litter and or native top soil in preparation for an up-coming soil mix in my never ending quest to improve my indoor soil quality.
V
V
You should see the plants from my old medium vs the new topsoil heavy one. They are all clones from the same momma and hooked up to blumats outdoors. The old mix plants are going very yellow from lack of nutrients, especially nitrogen. Been giving them all regular comfrey, kelp, worm, barley soaks/tea and the like but not enough. The ones in top soil mix (as you can see) are uniformly green, green, green! 
Off to buy some lucerne (alfalfa) horse pellets for a quick soak/bubble and N fix before they get too far into flower... halfway at least but they need some love.
Off to buy some lucerne (alfalfa) horse pellets for a quick soak/bubble and N fix before they get too far into flower... halfway at least but they need some love.
topsoil, good black loam, is where it's at.
I got so lucky when I found out the trucking co. my brother-in-law operates delivers true topsoil for $80 a truck load...and those trucks are huge... 12 yards
he's got hard-pan, beach sand, topsoil, even pond soil. limestone, aggregate... you name it he has it. he was trying to get me to buy a truck load of broken up asphalt.... for my drive way...
trucking companies do more than just logistics, might be a good source for some to find quality topsoil w/o the bag in box price.
I got so lucky when I found out the trucking co. my brother-in-law operates delivers true topsoil for $80 a truck load...and those trucks are huge... 12 yards
he's got hard-pan, beach sand, topsoil, even pond soil. limestone, aggregate... you name it he has it. he was trying to get me to buy a truck load of broken up asphalt.... for my drive way...
trucking companies do more than just logistics, might be a good source for some to find quality topsoil w/o the bag in box price.
ziggestardust
Member
So I am trying to put together a soil build using whatever I can source locally. I made a spreadsheet calculating the cost of different mixes and to my surprise it is MUCH cheaper for me to buy local organic premixed soil bags. This is where I need advice.
So, comparing the following two mixes:
Soil mix #1
0.5 gal Coco
0.3 gal Perlite
0.2 gal EWC
1 tbsp Blood meal
1 tbsp Dolomite
2 tbsp Bone meal
1 tbsp Kelp meal
This mix sets me back at least $2.23 per gallon, not accounting for delivery costs etc. I have to order from different stores online for some of the ingredients.
Soil mix #2
0.5 gal Premixed organic soil
0.3 gal Perlite
0.2 gal EWC
1 tbsp Blood meal
2 tbsp Bone meal
This mix is much cheaper, $1.53 per gallon. I am not entirely sure that I even need the perlite, blood and bone meal. This is where I need advice.
I asked the manufacturer about the contents of the soil. He told me it contains the following:
- Different peat mosses
- Sand, clay
- Composted cow manure at 10% by volume
- Chicken manure (I assume pellets) at 45g/gal, or 12kg/m3
- Gypsum
- Magnesium chalk (dolomite?)
- Kelp meal
Now my thoughts revolve around soil mix #2, I am not sure how to turn it into a great soil for my coming no-till. I provide the following list of things that I can source at more or less slight effort:
Coco
Perlite
EWC
Dolomite
Blood meal
Bone meal
Kelp meal
Sand
Bat Guano (N)
Neem meal
Basalt rock
I can probably source more stuff but this is the shit I've stumbled upon and added to a list when I've seen it.
Please help me out here, thanks!
edit:
I have access to my own vermicompost and leaf litter/topsoil from some local healthy forest (hundreds of years old designer oak forest cared for by the city), food compost/leaf mold in a couple of weeks when it gets warmer because it is frozen rock solid, local red granite dust from my father who's a well driller, horse/cow/sheep shit. All those things I do not have to buy.
So, comparing the following two mixes:
Soil mix #1
0.5 gal Coco
0.3 gal Perlite
0.2 gal EWC
1 tbsp Blood meal
1 tbsp Dolomite
2 tbsp Bone meal
1 tbsp Kelp meal
This mix sets me back at least $2.23 per gallon, not accounting for delivery costs etc. I have to order from different stores online for some of the ingredients.
Soil mix #2
0.5 gal Premixed organic soil
0.3 gal Perlite
0.2 gal EWC
1 tbsp Blood meal
2 tbsp Bone meal
This mix is much cheaper, $1.53 per gallon. I am not entirely sure that I even need the perlite, blood and bone meal. This is where I need advice.
I asked the manufacturer about the contents of the soil. He told me it contains the following:
- Different peat mosses
- Sand, clay
- Composted cow manure at 10% by volume
- Chicken manure (I assume pellets) at 45g/gal, or 12kg/m3
- Gypsum
- Magnesium chalk (dolomite?)
- Kelp meal
Now my thoughts revolve around soil mix #2, I am not sure how to turn it into a great soil for my coming no-till. I provide the following list of things that I can source at more or less slight effort:
Coco
Perlite
EWC
Dolomite
Blood meal
Bone meal
Kelp meal
Sand
Bat Guano (N)
Neem meal
Basalt rock
I can probably source more stuff but this is the shit I've stumbled upon and added to a list when I've seen it.
Please help me out here, thanks!
edit:
I have access to my own vermicompost and leaf litter/topsoil from some local healthy forest (hundreds of years old designer oak forest cared for by the city), food compost/leaf mold in a couple of weeks when it gets warmer because it is frozen rock solid, local red granite dust from my father who's a well driller, horse/cow/sheep shit. All those things I do not have to buy.
hi zigge,
i think you are on the right lines.
if the premixed soil has no perlite/aeration amendments i would add the perlite or equivalent at around 25 OR 30% (i use 30 % in mine)
EWC i would go for 10-15% as you already have some manure in there
so maybe 0.6g bagged mix, 25% perlite and 15% EWC.
if it's meant to be a 'complete' soil then it may be best to avoid the blood and bonemeal first time round and see how it is on it's own
but i would add neem meal ( i use about 10g per gallon ) and kelp meal and basalt at 20g / gallon as this can only help and neither is particularly 'hot'
see how this goes for your plants and then decide if you need more ferts for the round after that. its easy to feed them along the way but harder to fix if the soil is too hot.
VG
i think you are on the right lines.
if the premixed soil has no perlite/aeration amendments i would add the perlite or equivalent at around 25 OR 30% (i use 30 % in mine)
EWC i would go for 10-15% as you already have some manure in there
so maybe 0.6g bagged mix, 25% perlite and 15% EWC.
if it's meant to be a 'complete' soil then it may be best to avoid the blood and bonemeal first time round and see how it is on it's own
but i would add neem meal ( i use about 10g per gallon ) and kelp meal and basalt at 20g / gallon as this can only help and neither is particularly 'hot'
see how this goes for your plants and then decide if you need more ferts for the round after that. its easy to feed them along the way but harder to fix if the soil is too hot.
VG
ziggestardust
Member
I'm making calculations on this. However, can I use gravel/coarse sand instead of perlite? I can get that for free and weight is not a concern since it is supposed to be no-till.
should be ok, the extra weight may encourage some compaction so keep an eye out for that.
as for no-till, if you feel the soil needed more then you may be better to mix it up with more ferts after the first run... others may disagree with that. i dont do no-till myself as i'm not convinced it is the best method for me and the way i grow.
VG
as for no-till, if you feel the soil needed more then you may be better to mix it up with more ferts after the first run... others may disagree with that. i dont do no-till myself as i'm not convinced it is the best method for me and the way i grow.
VG
ziggestardust
Member
I just found an interesting product which is organic and could make my soil mix very easy.
Soil mix #3
0.15gal EWC
0.25gal Coarse sand from local sand pit
0.60gal Organic soil mentioned above
1 cup? EM Mest Best*
1 tbsp Neem meal
The EM Mest Best is quite cheap 40 liters for the price of 2 liters of kelp meal. I think it could be a winner. I might want to throw in some neem meal in there too, I dunno.
* Translated from the package:
Mest Best is dutch and means "the best fertilizer", a selected composition of organic compounds that together makes a complete fertilizer. Mest Best contains two products in one, both organic (ECO) fertilizer and EM microbes.
Contents:
Meal worm castings
Ricinus meal
Volcanic rock dust
Kelp extract
Trace minerals
EM
The product contains 62% organic compounds with an effective NPK of 5-4-2.
Application:
40 liters per 100m^2 or 1 liter per 2.5m^2
Soil mix #3
0.15gal EWC
0.25gal Coarse sand from local sand pit
0.60gal Organic soil mentioned above
1 cup? EM Mest Best*
1 tbsp Neem meal
The EM Mest Best is quite cheap 40 liters for the price of 2 liters of kelp meal. I think it could be a winner. I might want to throw in some neem meal in there too, I dunno.
* Translated from the package:
Mest Best is dutch and means "the best fertilizer", a selected composition of organic compounds that together makes a complete fertilizer. Mest Best contains two products in one, both organic (ECO) fertilizer and EM microbes.
Contents:
Meal worm castings
Ricinus meal
Volcanic rock dust
Kelp extract
Trace minerals
EM
The product contains 62% organic compounds with an effective NPK of 5-4-2.
Application:
40 liters per 100m^2 or 1 liter per 2.5m^2
