TLO!!!

[Eureka Springs Organics]

Now that is concise and constructive information, which is what I'm looking for here.

Yes I apologize I'm new to the whole faceless online forum format of communication. I thought this one called TLO would just be about information from people who've tried it, and as stated I didn't realize it was so old. I was just throwing out there to that one guy what I'd taken from the read vs. what he said. I flat out said "I'm so new to this style", and I'm honestly glad people are passionately jumping on this. Anyhow! If you can't beat em...

Assuming theres "so much wrong with everything i've said", and let's say I have that ritualistic book burning as suggested earlier, but still am fascinated by the living soil mix. Does anyone have any suggestions where to start, or restart as it were? I've got "Teaming With Microbes" coming in the mail tomorrow, and I've got tons of organic supplies. Any positive insight or constructive criticisms would be greatly appreciated!

I've definitely grown a few monsters on synthetic steroids but there's something about the feel of that organic matter on the hands and the smell of fresh forest floor that feels just too right. I'm at the point where I can't learn much more just by my own experiments so I've been reading a few publications. I'm not here to argue y'all, I'm hear to learn and grow!!

Teaming with microbes will get you going in the right direction.

Follow this one simple rule, and you will be good.

Don't ever buy a book about growing cannabis.

It's that easy.

Congratulations on going in the right direction. Organics is a fun journey.

 

[Rickman]

Thank you! That is a fantastic suggestion. I've actually got a few reads coming up when my amazon gets here, I'll start there for sure.

In the mean time, I'm reading "Worms Eat My Garbage" by Mary Appelhof, it's a pretty neat read.

And I'm all about the journey. Cheers.

 

[h.h.]

Thank you! That is a fantastic suggestion. I've actually got a few reads coming up when my amazon gets here, I'll start there for sure.

In the mean time, I'm reading "Worms Eat My Garbage" by Mary Appelhof, it's a pretty neat read.

And I'm all about the journey. Cheers.

It's not about the path anyway. It's about the journey and where you wind up.
"Teaming with Microbes" is a great start.
Microbeman has some great information on his sight.
U C Davis and Cambridge are good sources.
"Worms Eat my Garbage" has great reviews. I wish it was made as an e-book. Just studying worms will give you good insight into soil and microbes.
Question everything, even conventional wisdom. That went out with the internet.

 

[ct guy2]

"The Intelligent Gardener" by Steve Solomon. One of my new favorites. I'm in Yahoo groups with both Jeff Lowenfels and Steve Solomon. It makes for good information from good sources and the topics are always interesting.

Steve and I recently had a thread on whether or not you could make a water only soil mix that was productive (high yielding), sustainable, and nutrient dense. He was highly skeptical, yet I know many people who have been doing it for years. Interesting to discuss it from a mineralization perspective though.

Also there's going to be a forum with Microbeman and Spurr on "logical gardening" popping up soon.

There's plenty of resources on the net if you know where to look.

 

[rasputin]

+1 on The Intelligent Gardener by Steve Solomon. The man who dared to say compost is not enough.

I tend to fall somewhere in the middle on that particular matter, ct guy. I think it is possible, it's being done by people as we speak, but perhaps to Solomon's point when compared to a soil that is, shall we say, "enhanced" is when you see the shortcomings. I think that is something that has dogged soil in general, there has rarely been an apples to apples comparison in terms of productivity from one method to another.

He does highlight (indirectly) what, I think, is the most common problem for cannabis growers switching to or trying soil for the first time: a lack of sufficient mineral content for both high quality and high yields. Thus the common refrain, "organics doesn't yield" but rarely a complaint about the quality.

This also explains why some growers who have attempted to feed the soil in order to feed the plant report having best results from a hybrid feeding program of feeding the soil and the plant directly. The bottled ferts make up for the minerals the soil lacks.

As a corollary; if you grow in amended soil and feed regularly with bottled nutrients and can do so without harming the plant, your soil is likely amended too lightly and thus lacks sufficient mineral content to grow the plant, while strictly relying on the soil, to levels achieved while complimenting the soil with bottled nutrients.

This in effect "proves" the grower's point that their organic soil is not capable of yielding the way 'feeding the plant' can when in fact the only thing being proven is that the grower's soil was insufficient from the beginning and thus never capable of yielding comparable to any bottle fed plants, soil or otherwise, simply because by comparison they were underfed.

Logical gardening, eh? That is no match for my veganic snake oil and biodynamic voodoo.

 

[h.h.]

I'm easily sold.

If first you bring the minerals into proper balance, then the whole soil ecology, all the microlife — the worms, nematodes, algae, amoeba, fungi, bacteria, both helpful and harmful — all those living things come into a healthy balance too. In my opinion, when it comes to microlife, there is rarely any need to import them. When the soil favors the proper organisms, they will predominate, appearing as if from nowhere. As Louis Pasteur admitted on his deathbed, the body’s inner chemical nature is everything, the bacteria is nothing — disease organisms appear because the body has become a welcome home for them. Same with soil.

Solomon, Steve; Reinheimer, Erica (2012-12-04). The Intelligent Gardener: Growing Nutrient Dense Food (Kindle Locations 182-184). New Society Publishers. Kindle Edition.

 

[Rickman]

wow that is a lot of great info! my dear ol ma mailed me out her copy of "botany for gardeners" by brian capon, anyone read that? looks comprehensive yet practical. I'll just be doing a whole lot of reading like i've been lately, glad to have experienced suggestions. cheers!

 

[h.h.]

I'll be impressed if you read the botany book cover to cover. I'm not familiar with this copy. It has good reviews. To me botany can be a bit dry to read, like reading an encyclopedia or a dictionary. Generally written as text books, they often contain a good bit of filler material along with copied information.
That said, good ol' mom! I wouldn't go through life without one. A good botany book that is. Well both.
Read the glossary, learn the index, skim through and learn the layout. Read what you find interesting. Use it for cross reference. Use it to verify other information. This is your bible in many regards. Just remember for the most part, the info is generally taken from someone else who got it from someone else who may have been wrong. Science also has a way of breaking life down into individual parts. We worry about NPK and potential hydrogen. It helps us understand and manipulate. The danger is when we loose sight of the whole. It becomes very limiting.

http://growabundant.com/

This may be getting a bit off track from your goal. It should give you some good background information though.
There is nothing special really about growing pot. While we try to influence specific qualities, there is very little we can do other than provide them with a healthy environment. Admittedly, it would be hard to write a book about it without repeating basic information, filling it full of fluff, and worst.

 

[Eureka Springs Organics]

The intelligent gardener may be a bit much for you now. I would read some other books first,teaming with microbes, teaming with nutrients, vermicomposting books, Coleman gardening books, etc.

Then you can move onto the intelligent gardener, hands on agronomy, eco-farm, etc..

That way you will soak up as much as possible.

 

[Rickman]

yea since i can't seem to stop now! i actually tacked on the teaming with nutrients to my order to read after microbes since I'm on that next! some of the more advanced stuff does make pretty good sense to me just because my major is soil & crop science and some classes already focus on plant physiology.

actually my textbook itself is pretty neat read, dry, but so much precise info. called "plant physiology 5th edition" by lincoln taiz and eduardo zeiger. i might jump ahead in there now (i'm only on ch 5). actually that botany for gardeners seems like a simplified version of this one (xcpt also including garden applications).

anyway i'll shut up now and just catch up on some reading but i've got so many great title suggestions now..i'll have to report back.

cheers once again!

 

[h.h.]

I too thought the "Intelligent Gardener" might be a bit much to start. Not that it is a difficult book to comprehend. It isn't. It just isn't a "how-to" book.
Skimming through it I wonder if it shouldn't be the first. There is a lot of "why" in it. Why magnesium does what it does, why humus is desirable. Like Teaming with Microbes", it appears to be a book that will keep your head straight while everybody tries to tell you how.

 

[Team.Lift]

"Don't ever buy a book about growing cannabis."

What, did you all forget about "Cultivating Exceptional Cannabis" by DJ Short?

Simple, fun read. With chapters on basic breeding it's a worthwhile mention to combat all of your marijuana publication hatred.

Then again, you could just read here or any number of other forums to learn....

 

[FunkBomb]

Jorge Cervantes "Medical Marijuana Growers Bible" is worth its price. The same is true of "Organic Gardening" by Geoff Hamilton.

-Funk