good organic time release?

[maryjohn]

yeah, sorry, that wasn't helpful.

Microbe, the reason I would submit a wormbin is high in NPK is that the average person who owns a wormbin has a diet - and therefore, kitchen scraps- high in NPK. This could of course be entirely untrue in a small minority of cases.

I look at it this way - if I throw in leaves, the worms poop out a lot of leaf production building blocks compared to other kinds. If I feed it fruit, there is lots or flowering/fruit building blocks, and when I throw in roots, they make building blocks for roots. Sugar and carbon feed the mycowhatsits, so I don't worry about them. I might sprinkle a bit of lime for good measure. But basically, I try to put together all the parts of plants.

Some foods are rich in other special goodies, and these should not be left out. They also are the same foods that provide us with diverse micronutrients and helpful compounds for eating- like kelp. If it went into your bin, it did one of three things: stayed, leeched out, or floated out. So yes, I can say with confidence that my worm castings are rich in N, P, and K among other things.

 

[Microbeman]

MJ - That does make sense. That is indeed the only way to evaluate the NPK (at home/farm) in organic matter (you either know what went in or see what the microbes say through a microscope). But you have added this factor in discussing what you know comprises nutrients in your worm bin, as I do in my worm barn but this digresses from the discussion and my point that your statement could be misleading to those who think the NPK rating on products is relevant to organics.

By lime you mean dolomite?

 

[maryjohn]

By lime I mean any powdered form of limestone. It depends on local rock formations. My local stuff is dolomite

By all means ignore the npk rating on ferts! It is only there for legal reasons and is meaningless. Instead, think about ingredients for a soil stew. Cannabis needs a rich stew to be productive. You want your stew to be not too sour or sweet (pH), have plenty of plant parts, some fungi, and some soil bacteria and protozoans.

And yes, if you have litmus paper, it beats putting soil in your mouth. And if you are testing for npk with a simple soil test kit, that's good too. Look for balance and if something is off (your p through the roof for instance) go back and modify your ingredients, count to 4 months, and look again.

 

[Microbeman]

Just a warning folks; The simple NPK soil test kits do not give accurate results. I have a high end one, costing around $2K and its value is not even 2 cents.

 

[maryjohn]

ah, but if you are not trying for accuracy or precision, but just want a general idea, it's great! I use a test kit that is very vague, except for the pH. It sees more use with my carnivorous plants, which die if the roots get fertilized.

Let's say, it's not primary, but rather secondary confirmation, and also a potential warning of major disturbance. I am going to be finding a microscope soon, because I really want to have a look.

I don't think it is I who misled people, but i see your point. Another throwback to the "green revolution" is the current practice of marketing snake oil as a magic cure-all yield booster to organic gardeners. Then you have your everyday products diluted and put into fancy bottles and sold for a king's ransom. There are no short cuts, except, apparently, if your goal is to make money.