Tutorial Organics for Beginners

[BurnOne]

Will Lc's and the
First Recipe
Will it hurt seedlings?

Yes. Wait until they're at least two weeks old. Use plain LC's mix for seedlings. At the same time you germ your seeds, mix a batch with blood/bone/kelp. By the time the mix is ready, the seedlings will be ready to be transplanted into the blood/bone/kelp mix.
Burn1

 

[TheOneWill]

The only problem is it's hard to get a hold of Powdered dolomite lime.

 

[ixnay007]

The only problem is it's hard to get a hold of Powdered dolomite lime.

You should try to find it in italy if you think it's hard there.

 

[Dignan]

Doesn't it come from Italy?

 

[ixnay007]

Yeah, but the water's all harder than hell here, so nobody wants to make their soil more alkaline

 

[Raistlin Majere]

The only problem is it's hard to get a hold of Powdered dolomite lime.

i don't know if it's been said already, but i use a small coffee grinder to powder my D-lime pellets
works very well ! and only takes a minute or so to grind to a fine powder

 

[jrw]

Got a question for you guys

Here's the story.
I'm currently using a 2-2-1 ratio of peat moss/perlite/mushroom compost.
I use this slightly modified LC mix for starting seeds, and it doesn't burn them.
It's my BASE mix.

I wanna get rid of the mushroom compost, since it's not totally organic. I've found a fertilizer made up of composted chicken manure - governmently approved organic, it's near by and cheap - I thought I'd make the switch.

Facts about the composted chicken manure (as stated by the seller):
Farmer fertilizer 2-1-2
Total nitrogen 2,3% N.
Well composted chicken manure.
Contains all macro and micro nutrients
Water soluble nitrogen 0,8%
Organic nitrogen 1,4%
May be used in teas.

Facts about the mushroom compost currently used:
Nitrogen, total 1,6 g/l
Phosphor, total < 0,30 g/l
Potassium, water soluble 1,4 g/l

Now the Q since I can't get my head around the difference in the notation (2-1-2 and g/l)
To what ration (peat moss/perlite/chicken compost) should I change to make sure I don't burn my seedlings in the mix.

Further food for the soil will be added in the form of blood, bone and kelp. so don't worry about that...

 

[BurnOne]

TheOneWill-
Check your PM.

jrw-
That should work just fine.

Burn1

 

[jrw]

That should work just fine.Burn1

Well, should I use the chicking manure in the same amounts as the mushroom compost - although the one is labelled 2-1-2 (chicken) and the other 1.6g/l-0.3g/l-1.4g/l (mushroom)?

Does 1.6g/l-0.3g/l-1.4g/l mean 1.6-0.3-1.4 NPK?

Wont I have to cut down on the chicken manure in order to not burn seedlings in the mix?

In thinkin maybe 2-2-0.5 peat moss/perlite/chicken manure instead of 2-2-1 peat moss/perlite/mushroom...

 

[BurnOne]

jrw-
The NPK on the chicken manure and mushroom compost is almost none at all. They have to put that on the label if there is over 1% total NPK.
The reason we use worm castings, mushroom compost and/or home made compost is for the humus and bacteria it contains. Worm castings and home made compost are the best. If you don't have them, then other manures can be used.
The numbers you posted appear to be grams per liter. We look for percentages of NPK.
If it were me, I'd use the mushroom compost. Nothing is totally organic. The chemicals in the mushroom compost won't matter IMO.
Burn1

 

[jrw]

The chemicals in the mushroom compost won't matter IMO.

WTF?

Many people, including vonF, talk about how chicken manure has burned the hell outta their plants.

Are you saying that I can use the same amount of well composted chicken manure as I would mushroom compost in my mix? Without the risk of burning my seedlings?

 

[BurnOne]

jrw-
Un-composted chicken manure is VERY hot!
Composted chicken manure of an NPK of 2-1-2 mixed at 20% of your mix should not burn your seedlings. However, you should test it first if you're worried about burning them.

The recipes that I posted at the beginning of this thread are "tried and true". Anything that has not been tested and proven is "experimental". So, proceed at your own risk.
Burn1

 

[jrw]

Thank you very much, Burn1.

Ofcourse I'll test my new mix before putting a bunch of seeds into it

 

[NickMode]

I need some advice. im using the soilless mix #1:
Peat, EWC, Perlite, Dolomite lime

And i have

Cottonseed meal, alfalfa meal, Sea Island Jamaican Bat Guano (was rated like 4-9-1), and Kelp meal.
My question is how much cup of each do i put per sq ft. of mix?

 

[BurnOne]

NickMode-
Cottonseed meal can be very acidic. Use Alfalfa meal instead of dried blood in recipe #1. Use your guano as a tea during flowering.
Burn1

 

[GrizzleB]

I did mix #1 but forgot to mix in the blood and bone meal and ive already transplanted into it. Any tips? maybe a tea I could mix for that lil left out?

 

[BurnOne]

I did mix #1 but forgot to mix in the blood and bone meal and ive already transplanted into it. Any tips? maybe a tea I could mix for that lil left out?

Your question isn't clear to me. What exactly did you mix up? Be more specific so we can help you better.
Burn1

 

[GrizzleB]

Im sorry, I used this mix...

LC’s Soiless Mix #1:
5 parts Canadian Spaghnam Peat or Coir or Pro-Moss
3 parts perlite
2 parts wormcastings or mushroom compost or home made compost
Powdered dolomite lime @ 2 tablespoons per gallon or 1 cup per cubic foot of the soiless mix.
...Wal-Mart now sells worm castings.

This is the mix we attempted to make....

RECIPE #1
If you want to use organic nutes like blood, bone and kelp...
Dry Ferts:
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
1 tablespoon per gallon or 1/2 cup per cubic foot of Jersey Greensand to supplement the K (potasium) in the Kelp Meal and seaweed extract.

I just realized that we missed a few things though, only thing actually added to the soil was the seaweed. Forgot to add blood and bone meal and we couldnt find greensand. Maybe il just go with the simple fish emulsion liquid tea, I do have some of that laying around. Anyways hope thats more clear, thanks for any info.

 

[BurnOne]

You can use the fish (5-1-1- I assume) for veg.
I'd use the recipe for guano tea for flowering. Or Neptune's Harvest 2-4-1 fish.
Don't worry about the greensand.
Burn1

 

[Suby]