Help me on my soil plz

Hi I am new grower in need of advice on organic soil
I live somewhere in middle east with no access to most materials, organics, additives, and equipments mentioned in guides and in online threads. So here is what mix I decided to go with with my very limited availability.
1 part potting soil. Localy made
1 part vermicompost (worm casting)
1 part Peatmoss. It has (30-40)% perlite+vermiculite
0.2 part chicken manure
0.2 part cow poop
A little bit of agricultural lime
I ve been told I am low on k on my mix but I can't get my hand on any kelp or seaweed or green sand. So here are my question?
Is my mix ok to grow from seedling to harvest with no need too feed extra fertelizer?
What else I could add to that or any mix to balanced NPK and all the other micro stuff and usefull bacterial and microbes?
Keep that in mind. I am very limited. So the simpler the better. I'm also planing to go SOG with my micro grow. And have very short vegetation period. Thought the shorter the whole cycle the lesser complication in plant or soil. Right? Or?!
I ll appriciate any suggestion. CheeeerZ all

i would avoid manure for indoor potting soil. in mall amounts it can be ok but it should be composted

wood ash can be a good K source & learn your local plants to find dynamic accumulators you can compost or mulch w/

xmobotx said:

i would avoid manure for indoor potting soil. in mall amounts it can be ok but it should be composted/

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Can I go with just vermicompost as fertilizer till harvest? Since it doesn't smell bad like manure.

Take note that the advice you're getting is from a beginner, but it may still serve you well.

It definitely sounds like you're going to need to start learning about permaculture so that you can provide a lot of your garden needs on site (such as growing alfalfa, comfrey, yarrow, etc). If this isn't possible with your living situation obviously ignore that.

I've got this document that has potassium sources rated and I'm going to include the ones of note in hope that you can source some locally.

Alfalfa Hay: 2.45/05/2.1
Apple skins(ash) : 0/3.0/11/74
Beet Wastes: 0.4/0.4/0.7-4.1
Cattail reeds and water lily stems: 2.0/0.8/3.4
Cucumber Skins (ash): 0/11.28/27.2
Grapefruit Skins (ash): 0/3.6/30.6
Millet Hay: 1.2/0/3.2
Molasses Residue
(From alcohol manufacture): 0.7/0/5.32
Orange Skins: 0/3.0/27.0
Pea Pods (ash): 0/3.0/9.0 (I cut them up with a pair of scissors while shelling them)
Potato Skins (ash): 0/5.18/27.5
Rabbitbrush (ash): 0/0/13.04
Red clover hay: 2.1/0.6/2.1
Smokehouse/Firepit Ash:0/0/4.96 (I put the ashes from my smoker in the pile)
Tobacco Leaves: 4.0/0.5/6.0
Tobacco Stems: 2.5-3.7/0.6-0.9/4.5-7.0

At the very least maybe see what you can make teas out of local ingredients. Good luck!

here on the forum there is a list what you can take otherwise like the other member said:

make teas out of local ingredients

what about langbienite?? provides sulphur, calcium, magnesium, and it's 0-0-22.

Use these to help you on your way...

Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases

Plant choices

High-Low Chemical query

Limolax said:

Can I go with just vermicompost as fertilizer till harvest? Since it doesn't smell bad like manure.

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I don't think that is going to be enough. a good compost would suit you better along with the vermicompost. you can add different meals to your recipe. I would highly suggest checking out the Organics for beginners thread.

heres a basic one for making teas so you would just use the base soil with no amendments

Fish and Seaweed (This is sooo easy)
1 capful is 1 TB or 15 ml.

For veg growth…
1 capful 5-1-1 Fish Emulsion
1 capful Neptune's Harvest 0-0-1 Seaweed or Maxicrop liquid
1 gallon H2O

For early flowering…
1 tbs. Neptune’s Harvest 2-3-1 Fish/Seaweed
1 gallon H2O

For mid to late flowering…
1 tbs. Neptune’s Harvest 2-4-1 Fish
1 gallon H2O

5 parts Canadian Sphagnum Peat or Coir or Pro-Moss
3 parts perlite
2 parts worm castings or mushroom compost or home made compost
Powdered (NOT PELLETED) dolomite lime @ 2 tablespoons per gallon or 1 cup per cubic foot of the soiless mix.

ladyluckybean said:

Fish and Seaweed (This is sooo easy)
1 capful is 1 TB or 15 ml.

For veg growth…
1 capful 5-1-1 Fish Emulsion
1 capful Neptune's Harvest 0-0-1 Seaweed or Maxicrop liquid
1 gallon H2O

For early flowering…
1 tbs. Neptune’s Harvest 2-3-1 Fish/Seaweed
1 gallon H2O

For mid to late flowering…
1 tbs. Neptune’s Harvest 2-4-1 Fish
1 gallon H2O

5 parts Canadian Sphagnum Peat or Coir or Pro-Moss
3 parts perlite
2 parts worm castings or mushroom compost or home made compost
Powdered (NOT PELLETED) dolomite lime @ 2 tablespoons per gallon or 1 cup per cubic foot of the soiless mix.

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As I explained I don't have access to brand name fertilizers and additives and most organics like fish emulsion, kelp, sea weed,guano, etc. think like materials available in a village. No home depot no e bay no online ordering and such.

What are you looking for.......

What are you looking for.......

http://www.alibaba.com/products/F0/fertilizer/CID11502--IR.html

Contact a few of these say you are thinking of setting up an export biz to back home, ask for samples

Get your post count to 50 and pm me, I have been to that village

Use a VPN & PGP ASAP

if you have rice, milk and any type of fish, we can show you how to make your own fish fertilizers. with just the rice and milk, we can show you a lot of different plant based fertilizers or bokashi.

Well guys thank you for all the great advices. The good news is I finally found some more organics like blood meal, bone meal, feather meal, fish meal, mushroom compost, seaweed and kelp. Also found suger molasses. I think I ll make a new post with all the available organics now that I have more option. Thank you again

Stonedasarock said:

Cattail reeds and water lily stems: 2.0/0.8/3.4
Cucumber Skins (ash): 0/11.28/27.2
Grapefruit Skins (ash): 0/3.6/30.6
Potato Skins (ash): 0/5.18/27.5
Rabbitbrush (ash): 0/0/13.04

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About those ashes. Can I make them myself? Like cucumber skin ash. Is it just like peeling the skin off. Let it dry for a bit and then burn it to ash? Or it has a commercial more complicated process? Are thise ashes like cucumber,grapefruit, and potato slow or fast releasing source of K?

You have everything for this recipe by Burn1.

1 tablespoon Blood meal per gallon or 1/2 cup per cubic foot of soil mix
2 tablespoons Bone meal per gallon or 1 cup per cubic foot of soil mix
1-tablespoon kelp meal per gallon or 1/2 cup per cubic foot of soil mix
or Maxicrop 1-0-4 powdered kelp extract as directed

Mix all the dry nutrients into the soiless mix well and wet it, but don't soak it. Use Liquid Karma and water @ 1 tbs./gal. Stir and mix it a few times a week for a week or two so the bacteria can get oxygen and break down the nutrients and make it available. And don't let the mix dry out, keep it moist and add water as needed. It'll also have time to get the humic acids in the Liquid Karma going and the dolomite lime will be better able to adjust the pH of a peat based mixture too.

With this recipe, all you need to do is add plain water until harvest.

When I'm working with seeds, I punch a hole in the bottom of 16 ounce cups and fill them with plain LC's Mix. Lightly wet the mix in the cups and germinate one seed in each cup. At the same time I mix enough LC's mix along with the blood/bone/kelp to fill all the 3 gallon flower pots I'm going to use for the grow. After about two weeks, the seedlings and the blood/bone/kelp mix are ready. I transplant the seedlings into the 3 gallon pots and just add water until harvest.
When you go to flower and pull up the males, save the mix in the pots. It is ready to be used again immediately. Just remove the root ball and transplant another seedling into it.

Well except the liquid karma, compost soaked water with molasses or aerated with an air pump. That's even better than liquid karma.

@ ladyluckybean
Thank you very much for pointing that out. I was just reading all those recepies by burn1 again since I have access to new organi materials Actually there are more suggestted soil and fertelizer mix I can use I am just going throu all and deciding on one. But I have a question now
When we have a slow releasing source of organic NPK like green sand, rock phosphate ,etc lets say the number shows 0-33-0 comparing to a fast acting source like blood meal,kelp meal,etc.lets say the number shows 1-1-2 how can I calculate the npk in my soil? What portion of the slow acting organic is gonna be available for the plant to use ?
Idk if my question was completely clear. I just wana calculate the npk of my soil but I just don't understand how to calculate it npk amount for slow releasing organics. Anyone can clear that for me please?
I just wana be able to calculate some rough estimates.
Thank you

If you don't get a good response, post your question in the thread with the soil recipes. Lots if experienced growers on that thread that are fairly helpful. I have an idea but am interested in hearing others who know for sure.

^^^ best advice you might get in this thread

ladyluckybean said:

Well except the liquid karma, compost soaked water with molasses or aerated with an air pump. That's even better than liquid karma.

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I don't have liquid karma. Could you Explain more abotut the compost soaked water with molasses tea please

You just take some compost and put it in water with some molasses. Probably something like one cup compost or worm castings with 2 tablespoons molasses and one gallon of water.

Getting the compost wet and soaking it helps make the nutrients more available. Not the best way. Here's a good article by a well known guy:

It's Tea Time!

By Tad Hussey

Compost tea has become increasingly popular in the last few years as part of a grower's program. In fact, the current world record holder for giant pumpkins was grown using this technology. I'd like to take this opportunity to discuss different types of compost teas and share some of the knowledge we've gained in the industry over the past 5 years.

Let's start by looking at some of the different types of teas you can make for your plants:

Plant Tea - This is where plants are soaked directly in water for an extended period of time. Compost is not involved, and any bacteria or fungi on the surface of the plant will be extracted. May contain some soluble nutrients.

Manure Tea - Typically manure is placed in a permeable bag (burlap) into a bucket or barrel and left to soak for an (# of days) extended period of time. Compost is not involved, and will be dominated by anaerobic organisms (bacteria and ciliates). Pathogens will be present in most instances, and may burn the leaf surfaces of plants. These teas will contain some soluble nutrients, but may also contain antibiotics and growth hormones such as tetracycline, that are not broken down during the composting process.

"Put To Sleep" Tea - These teas are typically advertised as "instant" compost teas. Specific organisms are cultured or extracted from compost and then put into a dormant state. Even with hundreds of different species, it won't contain even 1% of the diversity or quantities you would find in properly made aerated compost tea. These teas may be helpful in certain instances when you wish to combat certain diseases and know the proper microbe that has been documented to prevent or suppress it (eg. trichoderma).

Compost Leachate - These teas is sometimes referred as "worm tea" as it is the liquid that leaches out of the base of worm bins or compost piles during the composting process. Leachates will consist primarily of soluble nutrients, but will contain some small amount of biology. This can serve as a good food substrate for the biology in your soil.

Compost Extract - Compost extract is where the microorganisms are stripped from the soil aggregates using water and extracted into a liquid form. This process will contain good biology for soil drenches, and can be made very quickly, as it does not require a brewing process. It does however require a large amount of compost relative to the final liquid product, and is primarily used in large commercial productions.

Non-Aerated Compost Tea - This is where compost is put into a container with water and foods are added for the microbes. The tea is then stirred occasionally or left to sit for a period of time. These teas may or may not produce beneficial results and could potentially harm your plants depending on the anaerobic organisms in your starting compost.

Aerated Compost Tea (AACT or ACT) - Similar to the tea above, this process involves adding oxygen to the tea and a food source for the biology in the compost. By creating optimal conditions for aerobic microbes, AACT allows you to multiply the biology in the starting compost by over 10,000 times. Many plant pathogens are anaerobic and prefer low to no oxygen conditions. By making sure the tea and the compost itself are well oxygenated and highly aerobic, you can potentially eliminate 75 percent of the potential plant-disease-causing bacteria and plant-toxic products.

For the past 5 years, AACT has become the standard within the organic industry in regards to compost teas. It's currently being used by golf courses, vineyards, farmers, and homeowners as a means of growing healthier plants. Here's a list of some of the benefits:

Compost tea has been shown to help in disease-suppression (pythium, phytopthera, powdery mildew, fusarium, etc.) when applied as a foliar spray and soil drench.

Helps extend root systems

Increases water and nutrient retention

Is 100% safe and natural

Creates healthier plants

Helps breakdown of toxins in the soil and on the plants

Enhances the taste of fruits and vegetables

Reduces or eliminates the need for chemical pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers

Occupies the space around the infection sites so disease-causing organisms cannot penetrate into the tissues of the plant

Cannot be over-applied because it is completely natural and organic

These benefits are all attributed to well-made AACT. If the tea is not made properly, you will not see all of the benefits listed above. Let's take a closer look at what goes into making quality aerated compost tea.

Good compost is very important! Without good biology in the compost, you really have no chance of getting high-quality tea. You can only multiply what you put into your brewer, therefore good compost that has been tested to have high numbers and a diversity of beneficial organisms is essential. A lot of science goes into making good compost, and unless you test your compost you really have no idea if what you are putting into your brewer is truly beneficial. By adjusting the type of compost you put in the brewer you can control whether your tea is going to be bacterial or fungal dominated. We use a mix of 3 different composts (Alaska humus, vermicompost, and a fungal compost comprised of woody materials) to increase the biological diversity in our teas.
Food is critical for the microorganisms so that they can reproduce and grow in numbers. The goal is to maximize your output of beneficial biology without giving the bacteria and fungi too much food that they over-replicate and cause the tea to go anaerobic. It's important that dissolved oxygen levels stay above 6 mg/l during the entire brewing cycle. There are many different recipes out there, each of which will give you different biology in the end and some are much better than others. It is important to see the lab results of the recipe you use to make sure that you are indeed maximizing your final product.
Oxygen! All living organisms need oxygen to survive, and your tea is no exception. If you're not getting enough oxygen in your brew, then your tea will go anaerobic and you will start brewing the "bad" organisms (pathogens such as e.coli or root feeding nematodes) that may have existed in your original compost. If your tea has enough oxygen and stays aerobic for the entire brew cycle, what you'll have at the end will be the good biology that you want for your plants.
In addition to these variables, other things to consider are elevation, temperature, brewing time, and water quality. All of these variables can have a significant impact on your final tea. With significant elevation, you may need to increase the brewing time, due to the lower oxygen content in the air. With high temperatures, where the water temps are 90 degrees or above, you'll want to shorten the brewing cycle and possibly cut back on the foods you're using. In cold temps., you'll want to increase the brewing cycle to give the organisms time to reproduce. In regards to water quality, different sources will have different mineral or chemical content, which will affect your final tea. In the case of chlorine or chloramines, these chemicals will need to be removed prior to adding the compost to the brewer.
http://www.gardeningwithmicrobes.com/teaarticle.shtml