Living organic soil from start through recycling

[ClackamasCootz]

GC

On the Bentonite and Pyrophyllite clay, a good source are pottery supply stores. The ones that cater to the purists that mix their own glazes, etc. The main one in PDX sells Bentonite for about the same price as Azomite ($19.00) and the Pyrophyllite is in the same price area.

Anyway, there are some interesting materials to consider using at these stores.

CC

 

[Gascanastan]

GC

On the Bentonite and Pyrophyllite clay, a good source are pottery supply stores. The ones that cater to the purists that mix their own glazes, etc. The main one in PDX sells Bentonite for about the same price as Azomite ($19.00) and the Pyrophyllite is in the same price area.

Anyway, there are some interesting materials to consider using at these stores.

CC

Absolutely!!!...there is NO need to buy a tiny plastic container from General Hydroponics for some crazy ass out of this world price when it can be sourced like this.

Why are we using clay's a noob might ask?????

 

[ClackamasCootz]

Why are we using clay's a noob might ask?????

They're still mulling over the benefits of Superthrive or something equally worthless and benign.

No easy feat.......

 

[Gascanastan]

I remember when I thought Superthrive was organic and was actually something good for cannabis plants...a leftover of the late 70's and 80's mythological based cannabis gardening....I guess I could say the mythological based cannabis gardening of the last 30 or so years really.

Besides the obvious benefits of moisture retention clay in a living soil provides,the particles in clay soil are negatively charged...they attract positively charged particles...Cal,Mag,etc.

I am no scientist,nor do I claim to be smarter than the next Joe when it comes to any of this. You can Google/Wiki any of this and if you are intelligent enough to discern what the difference between BS and fact are...you're 'winning'.
My knowledge is based upon over two decades of actual hands on experience cropping cannabis and a bit of standard horticultural college level education over 20 years ago. I've learned more from Coot and MM than anyone in school.

 

[ClackamasCootz]

Soluble Potash - 3%

Without a doubt the best grow store scam - bar none. Nothing even comes close.

Exporters like AliBaba.com (Yahoo has a huge stake in this company) offer barrels of Soluble Potash @ 51% and a single will cost about $500.00 (FOB Tacoma) and by the time you get up to a full container the price will drop in half.

So if you take a single barrel and dilute it down to 3% you now have 17 barrels of Soluble Potash - just under $30.00 and if we divide that by 55 (number of gallons) we're around $.54 per gallon.

Now look at each and every bottle at the grow store and look at the labels - Soluble Potash 3% and in a couple of cases that's it. $.55 per gallon (landed cost)

CC

 

[Gascanastan]

Soluble Potash - 3%

Without a doubt the best grow store scam - bar none. Nothing even comes close.

Exporters like AliBaba.com (Yahoo has a huge stake in this company) offer barrels of Soluble Potash @ 51% and a single will cost about $500.00 (FOB Tacoma) and by the time you get up to a full container the price will drop in half.

So if you take a single barrel and dilute it down to 3% you now have 17 barrels of Soluble Potash - just under $30.00 and if we divide that by 55 (number of gallons) we're around $.54 per gallon.

Now look at each and every bottle at the grow store and look at the labels - Soluble Potash 3% and in a couple of cases that's it. $.55 per gallon (landed cost)

CC

Vultures,predators,reptiles......victimizing the unsuspecting and unaware in order to die with a fat wallet...actually more scumbag than these types...

What would be a good source of potassium to incorporate in an organic living soil a noob might ask???

Sul-po-mag..aka Langbeinite

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php...nite&fulltext=Search&redirs=0&profile=default

 

[Scrappy4]

I will add my favorite foliar feed routine. I take a handfull of alfalfa meal and soak it in water for 24-48 hours, then strain and dilute in one gallon of water. I add a tsp or so of liquid silica, and spray at lights out. I can almost guarantee new growth in two days.

Alfalfa meal costs me $12 for 50lb. As always organic is better but either way it is good stuff. I also use it in my compost, as a soil amendment, and in teas. Here is a blurb on alfalfa meal.....


Alfalfa Meal

Alfalfa provides many nutritional benefits not only for plant use, but for soil organisms as well. One very important ingredient is tricontanol, a powerful plant growth regulator.

Orchid and rose growers make an alfalfa tea and spray it directly on as a foliar fertilizer. Alfalfa is very high in vitamins, plus N-P-K-Ca, Mg, and other valuable minerals. It also includes sugars, starches, proteins, fiber and 16 amino acids. Approximate analysis is 3-1-2.

Sprinkle lightly over garden and water, or use about a handful (depending on the size) around each rose, tree, or shrub. Alfalfa meal and hay used for mulch contain vitamin A, folic acid, trace minerals and the growth hormone “tricontanol.” Use at 25 pounds per 1,000 square feet or 400-800 pounds per acre.

Alfalfa helps plants create larger flowers and increases the tolerance to cold. Make alfalfa tea by soaking 1 cup of alfalfa meal per 5 gallon of water.

Good for all flowering plants. Research has shown that using more is not better. At recommended rates alfalfa worked wonders on roses but it could be overused causing adverse effects.

Alfalfa and Irises - Mixing Alfalfa and Iris
http://members.rogers.com/cdn-iris/alfalfa.html

Alfalfa Pellets
Wonder drug for Hosta?
http://hostafaq.westside.com/wsContentPublisher/story.view?R...

 

[SeaMaiden]

I use either alfalfa pellets or the sweepings from the hay storage area I get from the local feed store. I *think* have a box of alfalfa meal somewhere, but I can't beat the free alfalfa with a stick because, being sweepings, it's high in flowers and leaves (the stuff horses tend to pick out first).

 

[ClackamasCootz]

Here's a product from England - Comfrey Pellets

1 litre - L10.90 (British Pound sign was intended)

All the benefits of comfrey leaves - NPK, trace elements, minerals, vitamins and plant hormones now available in a dried pellet form. These can be used to make your own comfrey liquid or applied directly into the soil or compost where they will release nutrients over the whole season.

To make liquid, take 200g and steep in 1 litre of water for 3 days. Filter the solution and then dilute 1 in 25 for watering onto plants.

1 litre pack. Apply 150g per sq metre of soil for use on vegetables, potatoes and flowers.

I'd buy it if it were available

 

[Scrappy4]

Here is a humus, humates, humic acid link I use and like, even though it's from Texas......

http://www.calciumproducts.com/articles/Dr._Pettit_Humate.pdf

 

[Gascanastan]

Good info. Scrap..

For those organic purists....be aware that some alfalfa is sprayed with insecticides and also grown with chemi ferts.... for the mass production of livestock feed. You can research the companies and find out.

I use alfalfa in every single re-amend. Careful kids...it can burn if not used correctly.

I believe that the tricontanol alfalfa contains had prolonged flowering on some types of cannabis in my garden when overused.

 

[ClackamasCootz]

Alfalfa is one of the rawest amendments you can use - go lightly into that good night

 

[Gascanastan]

Man it would be awesome to have comfrey available here as a dried powder....

I often push building up the humic levels in the soil with EWC and compost...get those humic levels up there and problems with ph and nutrient uptake diminish dramatically.

The more you recycle and incorporate EWC/compost in your re-amending practices,the better life gets.

Make sure to balance EWC/compost levels with drainage and aeration amendments as you recycle.

Seriously...

 

[Scrappy4]

Man it would be awesome to have comfrey available here as a dried powder....

I often push building up the humic levels in the soil with EWC and compost...get those humic levels up there and problems with ph and nutrient uptake diminish dramatically.

The more you recycle and incorporate EWC/compost in your re-amending practices,the better life gets.

Make sure to balance EWC/compost levels with drainage and aeration amendments as you recycle.

Seriously...

View Image

You can find comfrey root powder here, and they also sell dried comfrey leaf......

http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/bulkherb/c.html

 

[Gascanastan]

You can find comfrey root powder here, and they also sell dried comfrey leaf......

http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/bulkherb/c.html

Nice!!!!...10 bucks a lb. isn't bad if you are an addict.

I imagine once the hands go arthritic I'll be reaching for this option.....then again the tea and topdressing whole leaves works as well....

 

[Scrappy4]

Nice!!!!...10 bucks a lb. isn't bad if you are an addict.

I imagine once the hands go arthritic I'll be reaching for this option.....then again the tea and topdressing whole leaves works as well....

I thought ten bucks was cheap, then I started growing comfrey, lol. This is my first year and I shared an order from horizon herbs from the people's republic of oryegun. I have a dozen plants for myself. So far I have made ten gallons of tea, and have a largish comfrey syrup batch started. Plus I have used at least five gallons of tea on my garden. Next year it will be kind of overwhelming..."..scrappy

 

[DARC MIND]

Good info. Scrap..

For those organic purists....be aware that some alfalfa is sprayed with insecticides and also grown with chemi ferts.... for the mass production of livestock feed. You can research the companies and find out.

word
as is most livestock fed crops
drowned in pesticides,aggressively monocultured & chemically mined
lets not forget we dont label GMO alfalfa here in the U S of a

 

[Scrappy4]

word
as is most livestock fed crops
drowned in pesticides,aggressively monocultured & chemically mined
lets not forget we dont label GMO alfalfa here in the U S of a

If that is all you can get, you can still be fairly safe composting it. And it does kick serious ass in compost.....scrappy

 

[heady blunts]

wtf I have to sit all the way back here? this is what I get for having a day job.

 

[DARC MIND]

If that is all you can get, you can still be fairly safe composting it. And it does kick serious ass in compost.....scrappy

& like comfrey its also a pretty perennial and super easy as pie to grow...
sad that it doesnt accumulate nearly as much biomass as nettle,borage,burdock,comfrey,gandule tree or the many other bioaccumilators & or potential animal feeds we can use.

honestly i think my fenugreek will grow 5x the amount of alfalfa in one season,go to seed,feed me and the soil before alfalfa can recover from a haircut....
i do like the pretty flowers alfalfa gives tho