Tutorial Organics for Beginners

[mugenbao]

Stagger knows his shit for sure, both he and BurnOne have proven results, but you can't maximize anything without having a baseline first.

You may get very good results by "personalizing" right out of the gate, but you can't possibly know if anything you've done has provided a benefit without some way to objectively measure gains, right?

Having said that, bottled nutrients and organic amended soil are kind of at cross purposes, really. I suspect that it's going to be hard to diagnose any issues if they arise, and similarly difficult to determine what elements are key to any successes. So why the hurry? Why not just pick a method, be it BurnOne's or Stagger's, and just try it out? I'm sure you'll be happy smoking your own product no matter which way you go

I wish you the best of luck, man.


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[mad librettist]

I dont follow directions because im taking your advice and using your recommendations as a baseline!
I am not nearly as experienced as you are but im trying to personalize my grow to maximize efficiency and results. I love advice and a confident point in the right direction but i prefer to blaze my own trail....
Not to mention the fact that you cant argue with results.... see the thread.... (My organic collection of nuggetry=multi strain grow= )... Stagger Leev is my brother so his advice has more weight than anyone elses.
But i do value your opinion, burnone!
With that in mind... if i made those changes would you still recommend wetting the mix and letting it sit?
Thanks for your time.

FYI, not everyone feels as free to post pictures showing lots of pot like stagger lee does, so just going by pics may not be a good way to choose a method as a beginner.

my advice is, get thee out of the growstore now, and do a simple biotone grow.

oh, and a living mulch, of course, or a dead one, will make your soil easier to manage.

 

[descivii]

I think BioTone is an amazing way to start "organic" gardening so that you have a chance to learn and have a relatively high chance of turning out decent smoke even on first try. Inevitably, when they are successful, they will learn more and become more "hands on" in their own grow and at the same time becoming more self sufficient and reducing impact on environment.

 

[StrapAssassin42]

FYI, not everyone feels as free to post pictures showing lots of pot like stagger lee does, so just going by pics may not be a good way to choose a method as a beginner.

my advice is, get thee out of the growstore now, and do a simple biotone grow.

oh, and a living mulch, of course, or a dead one, will make your soil easier to manage.

going by pics?? lol.... I've seen, touched and smoked almost all that stagger has to offer! Stagger does not exagerate! Top quality medicine is all he grows and his product is second to none.
I only vary from his method because i do not have all the materials available to me... as well as the previously stated reasons.
I've been growing with synthetics for over a year and a half and have just now made the switch to organics. Only looking to change my soil because ffof is so expensive and it would b nice to cut that cost and see some of the advantages of a living soil.
Can a plant really get everything it needs and maximize its potential all the way thru flowering without adding anything to soil after its been mixed with dry nutrient?
I like the appeal of the simplicity behind your method but there must be somthing to Stagger's method...like i said before...you cant argue with results.

 

[StrapAssassin42]

Stagger knows his shit for sure, both he and BurnOne have proven results, but you can't maximize anything without having a baseline first.

You may get very good results by "personalizing" right out of the gate, but you can't possibly know if anything you've done has provided a benefit without some way to objectively measure gains, right?

Having said that, bottled nutrients and organic amended soil are kind of at cross purposes, really. I suspect that it's going to be hard to diagnose any issues if they arise, and similarly difficult to determine what elements are key to any successes. So why the hurry? Why not just pick a method, be it BurnOne's or Stagger's, and just try it out? I'm sure you'll be happy smoking your own product no matter which way you go

I wish you the best of luck, man.


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not ammending the soil with nutes! but would like the cal mag from the lime as well as enhancing microbial activity with the castings.
I dont see how the methods contradict...if modified slightly can i not get the best of both worlds? Can't i try? I hear you on having a base line... gona have to work something out.

 

[BurnOne]

The good thing about having a "baseline" to start with is, if you experiment and have problems, you can always come back to a known starting point and try again.
I always keep notes.
Burn1

 

[mugenbao]

Can a plant really get everything it needs and maximize its potential all the way thru flowering without adding anything to soil after its been mixed with dry nutrient?

Yes, absolutely, there are several people here who have demonstrated tremendous results doing exactly that.

Having said that, I think many people who do use an amended soil mix will still occasionally add ACT or topdress (or in my case use stuff like Cal/Mg because I'm still learning), but it can definitely be done.


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[mugenbao]

not ammending the soil with nutes! but would like the cal mag from the lime as well as enhancing microbial activity with the castings.
I dont see how the methods contradict...

Ah, I may have misunderstood when you said "I plan to use bottled nutes and still adjust my Ph" then.

if modified slightly can i not get the best of both worlds? Can't i try? I hear you on having a base line... gona have to work something out.

Of course you can try, and you may even have fantastic success, and I certainly understand the desire to do so. I'm just offering my perspective and trying to provide the best advice I know how. For me, that means learning a lot about organics by doing organics, starting with a "recipe" that many people have used with decent success and which provides a good starting point or baseline. Your path may be different. Everyone here is just trying to pass along what they each believe is a good recipe for success, bro

Best wishes.


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[mad librettist]

no one is detracting from stagger's work, and that's great you've actually smoked his meds, but you brought up results and I'm pointing out some other ways to get those results.

 

[Dawn Patrol]

Having said that, I think many people who do use an amended soil mix will still occasionally add ACT or topdress (or in my case use stuff like Cal/Mg because I'm still learning), but it can definitely be done..

I grow everything with amended soil, routinely use ACT and top dress if the strain demands it.

I grow outdoors almost year round (just vegging June-Aug) and different strains have different demands depending on what time of the year it is and how hot it gets.

The beauty of organics is that there are many ways to do it, establish a baseline that works for you and branch out from there.

 

[StrapAssassin42]

Hey guys.... I didn't mean to get too defensive!
I appreciate everyone's opinion and am only trying to get to the bottom the rabbit hole.
Every time i think i got it figured out i learn something new that forces me to question my previous methods.

 

[SecretGardener]

Serious Seeds Chronic - 9.7 weeks flowering

Serious Seeds Chronic - 9.7 weeks flowering

Hey guys,

This is my 3rd organic grow using LC's mix using bone meal, blood meal, kelp meal, jersey greensand and a little added biotone. I also top dressed some P guano, N guano and compost around week 6 because the lower leaves were slowly yellowing/dying.

My question is regarding harvest readiness. Based on what I've read the plant is in control and should stop "feeding" when its ripe and the leaves will naturally fade to yellow/purple/black (I know color change is probably strain specific as well) no matter how much organic nutrients are available right? Won't the plant STOP releasing exudates so the microbes are not as active? Correct me if I am wrong, I probably am it's been a long time...

My plant still has green fan leaves, the buds look pretty ready to me though but there are a bunch of new white hairs popping out of new calyxes every week. She is at 9.7 weeks and Chronic is rated for 8 weeks (I know thats a rough estimate based on environmental variables/phenotype).

It's a bit hot in the tent being summer time using an HPS. Average temp is 90*F and 35% RH. I've lowered the light cycle from 12 to 11 then 10 hours in hopes that would help her ripen but no go. She is flowering strong hehe. How do I get her to start ripening instead of continuing flowering?

I do NOT want to cut her early. I've checked a few trich's with my microscope and most of the buds are 80% cloudy, 10% clear, 10% amber. I usually cut them at this point today but what I find is that the buds don't really taste so great after curing (I feel I grasp curing and have a good method but something is still OFF when smoked). When I say they don't taste great they DEFINITELY don't have a hay/homegrown/grass taste but they DON'T taste/smell like that good old weed smell. They are smooth, not much coughing but again, not like the WEEED you know?

So this time I'm thinking if I can let her ripen completely maybe the end product will be better?

Anyway, thanks for your input!

 

[BurnOne]

SecretGardner-
I'd try teas instead of top dressing. More effective IMO.
The microbes should be alive and active if a plant is growing in it or not. The bone, kelp and greensand will be active for months after harvest. They last a long time.
Your plants are much too young to harvest. Chronic is a Big Bud variant and will get very fat. Watch for bud mold after harvest.
I've never seen a plant from seed ripen in the time indicated by the breeder. Cuttings from mother plants can be shorter but most go beyond the flowering time shown.
Ripening times are from the plant genetics. Let it go. Forcing it to ripen is not necessary. Patience is.
I'd let Chronic fully ripen. Since it's a commercial strain and not very potent (IMO), I'd let it get 70% amber trichromes minimum for that "dopey" high.
Be sure to cure the buds for at least a few weeks before smoking. The longer you cure the buds, the better the smoking will be.
Patience Grasshopper.
Burn1

 

[mad librettist]

heya B1, been finding of late that activity does indeed slow down without live plants. You can use a living mulch or just sprout some kind of place holder until you are ready to transplant.

"cooking" a fresh soil mix with raw ingreadients in it is still a good idea tho.

 

[SecretGardener]

BurnOne:

Thanks bro! I whole heartedly agree, I want her to fully ripen. I checked trich's again and they are mostly cloudy so probably a bit more to go before 70% amber. I'll also let her dry well with good airflow to avoid mold on those fat buds

Thanks again for the reply and the great soil/tea recipes!!

 

[Scrappy4]

Secretgardener, you may find 70% amber a bit much, great for sleep, if that is your goal. You will figure it out if you keep that strain going. Taste wise my herb is definitely mild and smoother than my pre organic days, I take that as mostly good. One thing I have found to improve taste is using Mexican bat guano in veg, it brings an earthiness to the table in my experience.

And burn one is right on flowering times advertised vrs actual times. All my plants do better at 9-10 weeks over 8.....scrappy

 

[BurnOne]

BurnOne:

Thanks bro! I whole heartedly agree, I want her to fully ripen. I checked trich's again and they are mostly cloudy so probably a bit more to go before 70% amber. I'll also let her dry well with good airflow to avoid mold on those fat buds

Thanks again for the reply and the great soil/tea recipes!!

Remember, the buds put on a lot of weight the last two weeks of flowering. Since Chronic is a commercial strain, I would think that would be most important.
And with Recipe #1 your plants will be well fed until harvest.
Burn1

 

[GDK]

You guys dilute this tea, or just apply straight from the brewer?
Flowering nute tea mix:
2/3 cup Peruvian Seabird Guano
2/3 cup Earth Worm Castings
2/3 cup High P Guano (Indonesian or Jamaican)
5 tsp. Acadian powdered kelp extract
(That makes the "dry mix". You can make all you want and save it to use later.)
Mix with water @ 2 cups of dry mix into 5 gallons of water to make the tea.

To that 5 gallons of tea add:
5 tbs. Liquid Karma or a good Humic or Fulvic acid
5 tsp. Black Strap Molasses
Use it to water with EVERY watering.


Stay Safe

 

[rasputin]

GDK, when I was using teas I could do both, dilute or apply straight, depending on the plants needs at the time. In general, I would apply straight unless a plant looked over-fed, like N curl, and then I'd dilute the tea for that plant.

 

[BigTex]

Anybody ever use Rid-X in a compost pile or soil mix? It contains bacteria cultures, enzymes, micronutrients, and inert ingredients. It is marketed as a septic tank cleaner, but I can't help but think it would be a beneficial ingredient to an organic mix. Before I added this to some organic medium I just wanted to see if anyone else had tried this before.