Mulch. Just do it.

[SeaMaiden]

I use mixes, but I can't remember if one of them is an all-clover mix. Most of them are clovers, legumes, some grasses and beans, all mixed together. I do have some single-species seed stocks that are clovers. I say go with it!

 

[mad librettist]

yes, go for it first, ask questions later!

 

[h.h.]

yes, go for it first, ask questions later!

Are you sure that you're not Dick Cheney? Sounds like something he'd say.

 

[SeaMaiden]

Seriously. You can either let yourself remain mired in unanswered questions, or you can speak to a more pioneering spirit. What could it hurt? What observations could you make?

 

[mad librettist]

Yeah and if you need a reason, some of those clovers are warm climate friendly. I have plans to try them too


best info by far on clover and other cover comes from sites about forage for livestock

 

[mad librettist]

some living mulches and cover yarrow. when you cut away your cannabis, you are left with this. totally legal (I don't actually grow weed)

 

[SeaMaiden]

Mad, some of those photos should be printed and framed. I can see them double-matted, bevelled edge mats, in my mind's eye right now.

 

[mad librettist]

 

[xmobotx]

+1 i like the bottom 1 w/clover/yarrow in spite of the wires

yarrow farmer!!!!

 

[MrSterling]

Mad, do you inoculate your cannabis seeds then?

 

[mad librettist]

Mad, do you inoculate your cannabis seeds then?

makes more sense to inoculate the clover and let the cannabis get infected by the way.

 

[chief bigsmoke]

I use a rhizobium inoculant, and I've confirmed nodulation. It's possible to find it in bagged soil, but I'm not sure how likely.

this is a very inexpensive product though, and if you are re-using the soil, there is no need to inoculate again.

Do you have a specific product you would recommend?

Thanks for all your help! wicked thread

 

[mad librettist]

Do you have a specific product you would recommend?

Thanks for all your help! wicked thread

I use n-dure

works fine.

 

[Uktena]

Hello ICMag!

Hello ICMag!


I'm Uktena. Been a long time lurker here and this is my first post. First off, a thousand thanks to everyone who has contributed to this outstanding forum, and to Dignan for starting this thread. It has been most helpful to me in figuring out my own mulching system. I have some seedlings in 3"pots under t-fives. I'm pretty new to growing indoors and, second time around, have luckily figured out functional organic pest management, and can now focus on finer things, like mulching. To digress, I read through 'Teaming With Microbes' about a year ago and found it an excellent crash course in soil science. I've been playing around with teas for a little bit, and seem to have much yet to learn. It's a bit of a precise science, kind of like baking, not much room for error.

I tried alfalfa meal and kelp meal as a mulch and believe they led to poor germination rates and growth, due to getting too hot. I asked the nice people at my local feed and seed shop what they would recommend as a mulch for container plants, and was recommended quarts chicken scratch. I got the coarse grade, 50-100mm in diameter, just little flakes and pebbles. I must say, it is light enough not to compact the growing medium, and is keeping the soil moist all the way to the top. A couple weeks later, I have some great results to show. The attatched pictures show a canopy shot of one of my flats with the quarts as a mulch (I accidentally burned them with a compost tea, so that's why they look a bit stressed), and a close up of feeder roots growing to the top of the medium under chicken scratch. I hope this helps peoples, and sorry if it's already been covered, I haven't been able to read all 20 pages. Cheers everyone and happy gardening. Keep it green!

Uktena

https://www.icmag.com/ic/attachment.php?attachmentid=152635&d=1328749676

 

[t33to]

Sorry to go off topic. But I'm insanely intrigued by the water method I am seeing here. Now that I am going organic I find I am un-learning a lot of my old methods and trying new things.

Is this water bottle some how auto-watering the soil?

 

[mad librettist]

yes that is a "plant nanny". It does a great job auto watering, and even though it's not supposed to, it slows down when the soil is moist. I've had them drain in a day and I've had them stay half full for a week.

The area around the plant nanny becomes a worm haven, so top dressing right around my plant nanny gets the dressing worked in by the worms.

I tried blumats, but I was growing in a top floor apartment and decided they were a hazard

 

[t33to]

yes that is a "plant nanny". It does a great job auto watering, and even though it's not supposed to, it slows down when the soil is moist. I've had them drain in a day and I've had them stay half full for a week.

The area around the plant nanny becomes a worm haven, so top dressing right around my plant nanny gets the dressing worked in by the worms.

I tried blumats, but I was growing in a top floor apartment and decided they were a hazard

Is the "Plant Nanny" a product that one can purchase or did you just give it that name and it's a custom device that you constructed yourself?

How exactly does it work?

I'm thinking it must have a long tube that goes to the bottom of the pot where water can escape into the soil. When the soil becomes saturated the water level in the bottle would probably remain constant until the plants or the air dry the soil out a bit, then it must just gently trickle as time goes on?

 

[mad librettist]

Yes they are a product from the store.


The design is very simple. Just a cone,made of clay and plastic attachment for the bottle. Water passes through the cone and into the soil.

 

[t33to]

Yes they are a product from the store.


The design is very simple. Just a cone,made of clay and plastic attachment for the bottle. Water passes through the cone and into the soil.

Very cool. I've googled them and I am reading some reviews on them. Do you think I could install a few of these in a 4x8 soil bed and use that as my watering system?

 

[mad librettist]

Very cool. I've googled them and I am reading some reviews on them. Do you think I could install a few of these in a 4x8 soil bed and use that as my watering system?

I would use them along with normal watering (just less frequent). it's important to really drench the soil once in a while.

my favorite method is to use a pump sprayer to water the soil.

remember also, you need room under your canopy or you need a smaller bottle.