[Phases]

I know there are a lot of really good growers and I myself have learned a lot of things from them I just wanted to put together a thread that could help newer growers learn some new things - I ve been slacking on getting my tips that I have learned - but I encourage everyone to put up something they have learned - because we all have had problems and eventually (hopefully anyways) solved that problem.
Waxy, Budda if you guys are thinking organic soils are they way to go - maybe throw up a few things you have learned along the way - I know personally I failed miserably my first time running organic soil. I wasn't fully dedicated to doing it. I may have half assed it but I have no clue where I went wrong.
I know that Dank Fank has an awesome link in his sig - to some really good organic mixes - which I need to try out soon.

thanks to everyone who has contributed so far. I will try and dig up a bunch of threads I have saved with tons of useful stuff that I can add..

[Phases]

Originally Posted by WaxyTaxi

Mosquito Bits.

Cheap way to take care of gnats in gardens with tables or trays. I sprinkle the stuff around the rez area and the corners of all the tables, anywhere with semi standing water every other week. Most people use the sticky traps but if you use the bits,traps,and hit the root zone with sns at the right time you can kill the cycle for a lot longer than most.

Took your advise - got the dunks - not sure if it is the same thing - but I am on the fungus gnat hunt - going to kill all these little buggers!

[WaxyTaxi]

Yes dunks are the same thing, just crush them up good and sprinkle around areas with standing water..bottoms of saucers for sure.. The bacteria inside the dunks mixes with the standing water around the room or res and causes the gut of the gnat to explode from what I remember reading..

[hayday]

For those that hand water, this has helped me reach the back of the garden. Funnel, pipe and a ketchup bottle for feeding-watering.

The older I get the more useful this rig has become.

[whythefnot]

Originally Posted by Phases

Who's got the ultimate fungus ghat remedy ??

Sure, this question has been answered, and I'm not the one to quantify what the "ultimate" fungus gnat remedy would be, but I had a horrible FG infestation about 2 years ago -- all my strips were solid black with the damn things. I was brewing a lot of compost tea at the time and read about Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, available at home depot as a product called "mosquito dunks." I brewed up 1 batch of compost tea with the BT innoculant as a large proportion of my starting material. I fed it to my soil, and within 2 weeks no more fungus gnats, ever.

Edit:

Originally Posted by WaxyTaxi

Mosquito Bits.

Aaaand that's why you read before you post.

[trichrider]

this is still theory so bear with me.

i grow organic perpetual. after harvest i'm faced with what to do with the stem/rootball.
no-till suggest leaving it and planting around it.
left long enough it would dissolve/rot on it's own, but with limited space i don't care to have 10 or 12 pots full of dirt sitting around waiting for the leftovers to leave.

usually i would let them go a couple weeks for the rootball to break down some and then pulll them out and plant in that hole. it seemed counter-intuitive.

so, after dabbing at the problem i believe i've a solution.

mainly i think leaving the rootball is about keeping the microlife doing their thing. that was what prompted me to leave them before....but, what if?

what if, after pulling out stem and rootball, you submerge them in water and attempt to harvest the microbes in like a tea or fpe, and then use that to innoculate your seedlings/transplants.

[jesbuds]

That reminds me of a way I learned how to up-can a potted plant to hydro. Remove from pot, submerge root ball in water with air stone and let it sit there for a little while. The dirt will loosen from the ball and comes out fairly clean to be moved to a hydro setup.

[Phases]

Originally Posted by whythefnot

Sure, this question has been answered, and I'm not the one to quantify what the "ultimate" fungus gnat remedy would be, but I had a horrible FG infestation about 2 years ago -- all my strips were solid black with the damn things. I was brewing a lot of compost tea at the time and read about Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, available at home depot as a product called "mosquito dunks." I brewed up 1 batch of compost tea with the BT innoculant as a large proportion of my starting material. I fed it to my soil, and within 2 weeks no more fungus gnats, ever.

Edit:

Aaaand that's why you read before you post.

I was reading another thread that mentioned the dunks and it suggests crushing them up and sprinkling them in the pot that way whenever the medium gets a feeding the water re activates the dry chunks that aren't dissolved and helps kill all the larva and everything.

So I think I am going to sprinkle somw in the pots and then make a few 5 gal buckets to water with, I really this works - I guess the sticky strips will help let me know how effect the dunks are.

I ll report back after I have figured out what works best for me !! Keep posting guys...

[Baked Alaskan]

Start your veg room on 12/12 two weeks before you harvest your flower room. This way your plants are two weeks ahead of schedule.

An eight week plant can be harvested, fully matured eight weeks, every 6 weeks. Which is two extra harvests per year.

Most plants don't need the powerful light till flowers show, IMO. Plus this will help if you are hindered by small plant count.

[WelderDan]

If you run DWC bubblers, ditch the air stones and save yourself time and money. They just clog up, forcing you to buy more. Just weight the air line. I stopped using them and could not tell the difference.

Go medium-less and never wash hydrotron again. No more little clay balls to bust your ass on or crush all over the floor. A slice of pool noodle in place of the net pot is super cheap and completely re-usable.