Hey all, I have been searching this forum as well as google for the best realitively cheap soil mixes for outdoor grows in the grown. The soil at my location is mediocre but it seems to be a bit dry and lacking nutrients. I do not live in a particularly hot climate and the grow location receives alot of direct sung light per day. I am growing around 25plants(not for commercial reasons, don't really want to get into it) and I know that the holes will take alot of soil. There is a relatively goofd soil sold around me called kelloggs patio plus which is 6$ for 1.5 cu but I was wondering what I should add to that? Peat, coco coir, castings, perlite ect? Again I am growing to have to fill about 25 holes so cost is vital!! Thank you all for you help!!
Cost effective soil mix
- Thread starter Suggasean
- Start date
Bobbles
Member
If its the barber shop looking bag (red and white stripped) that has the ingredients on the back reading: composted forest, chicken manure, lime, bat guano, worm castings, and kelp meal. That is a good quality omri organic rated soil that I have used. I generally add a lot more perlite, some more castings, and some bone meal to the mix, but overall, for a typical bag soil found at home depot/lowes, its damn hard to beat for the price.
I suggest pouring the bag out and mixing it in a bin, as some of the quality ingredients seem to sink to the bottom. I also recommend a little more aeration that what it provides. You can use penlite or any other aeration creating material such as lava rocks or rocks or rice hulls, whatever.
I get a much bigger bag @ 3/cuft for 8 bucks. Have a look around at your local lowes if you have one.
I suggest pouring the bag out and mixing it in a bin, as some of the quality ingredients seem to sink to the bottom. I also recommend a little more aeration that what it provides. You can use penlite or any other aeration creating material such as lava rocks or rocks or rice hulls, whatever.
I get a much bigger bag @ 3/cuft for 8 bucks. Have a look around at your local lowes if you have one.
I just made a big soil mix using kelloggs patio plus og. Picked up everything but EWC and stonemeal cheaply at home depot. Recipe was approx as follows:
1.5cuft patio plus soil
.5cuft steer manure
.25cuft chicken manure
.25cuft sharp sand
.25cuft peat moss
3 cups earthworm castings
2 cups gypsum
1 cup premium stonemeal/rockdust
1/4 cup epsom salts
1.5cuft patio plus soil
.5cuft steer manure
.25cuft chicken manure
.25cuft sharp sand
.25cuft peat moss
3 cups earthworm castings
2 cups gypsum
1 cup premium stonemeal/rockdust
1/4 cup epsom salts
I think you need some aeration material in Soil Margins mix..........I don't see any. I prefer rice hulls then perlite, etc. I would use .75 cu. ft. or so.
All the bagged soil mix I started with already had a decent amount of perlite, I don't normally care for adding too much perlite as it starts to decrease nutrient density of the soil. It also seems kind of expensive for it's utility, at least from the brands I've seen at home depot.
I misunderstood, as I didn't see where perlite was part of the soil mix. Still, a lot of heavy amendments are added in (the manures). If you get a chance, try adding rice hulls. I was glad I tried them and now I don't have perlite floating all over and the rice is more natural.
S
sourpuss
How about organic powdered nutes. Dig a hole mix your nutes in with soil. Plant and fill hole. Top dress every 3 weeks or so.
Shop guy told me about it. Happy frog. Makers of fox farm.
U could bri g some perlite and a bag of nutes. Or just the nutes. Dependingon the soil.
Shop guy told me about it. Happy frog. Makers of fox farm.
U could bri g some perlite and a bag of nutes. Or just the nutes. Dependingon the soil.
S
StanKDanK
buy a pallet of soil or get it delivered in bulk.
