Read my previous post. If you use fresh vermicompost you will end up with worms in your pots just from the cocoons. My pots are full of worms and I've never bought any. Look for horse manure on craigslist...that's where I got mine, for FREE!!!! Solo
Thanks for everyone who replied and helped answer my questions. I'm going to start over on reading this whole No-Till journal and make sure to take notes along the way this time so i don't miss or forget anything important! Another question for you ROLS people out there, what kind of pots do you guys use? Smart or Geo pots or just normal black pots? I've heard that the smart and geo pots dry out quicker and they can be a little messy when watering sometimes, yet a lot of ROLS use them.. Correct me if i'm wrong, but wouldn't a typical black plastic pot be best because it would hold the most moisture? And how dry can the pots get before it starts killing the microbes? The reason i ask is i'm just afraid of bugs or fungus or mold or rot from keeping the soil to moist, What separates the line between keeping it moist enough and then too moist?
Fabric pots get more oxygen to the roots. Plastic pots do hold moisture longer. I feel like the only time my soil was too wet, was when my aeration was insufficient in my mix. Mulch FTW
Use fabric pots. If you are new to this mix its heavier than bagged mixes and the fabric pots will give you much more room for error while you learn to water. The main reason we all use them is for the oxygen to power the microbes and roots... Think of the plants at the river. Not the ones in it or the ones up on the dry top of the bank. The thriving ones that always have primo moisture levels and associated vigorous healthy growth habits, no matter what the plant type. That is what you are shooting for. Start hydrated and water less more often is my beginner advice, and mulch at least an inch or two thick helps the top not get a crust and the moisture stay more even top to bottom. hth
Chunk, Thanks for the help. I gave my friend a link to Concentrates and NWRedworms....It sounds like he is going with a local Eastern WA nursery that will blend to his specs using what look to be very good materials. His cost will be in the neighborhood of $425 cy delivered....not bad if the quality is there. I'll let you know how this works out. Thanks again. MrBridge
That works out to $15.75 cu/ft which still seems high to me for 7 cu/yds. I guess factoring delivery in is an added value. Let us know how it goes.
Have you compared the prices with KIS nursery in Redmond, WA? They ship the same stuff from concentrates and mix soils and (i believe) will deliver. Might be worth a shot post an ad on craigslist and see if some local guy with a dump trailer will haul it for cheaper or maybe a barter
Jesus christ....I'm building 3 yards with plenty of left over amends to last me 2 seasons at least for just shy of 800. And there's allot of shit going in this soil! I'm so happy I have the room to build it though.....I hope you all chime into my thread ;-).
Tad (KISorganics) sells 1 yard of water only soil for $250 in a "super sack", you can get his new Bio-char mix for $350. It's honestly a ridiculously good deal. He MIGHT deliver for the right price but I always just drive to pick it up. Bham Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
Extra $100 for biochar?? At what percentage? I'd rather just buy 2 cf of black owl and add it myself.
I have a question.. I've been no til growing for some time now. This will be my 3rd cycle thru..in my 7 and 10 gallon smart pots. I have slivers of purple going thru my stems and I have no idea why. This has been the case since my first grow. Can someone try to help me pinpoint this? My mix: 1/3 peat 1/3 compost/ewc 1/3 perlite/local stones Amendments: neem cake Crustacean meal Kelp meal Espoma Tomato tone Azomite
Ohh okay, that makes since why everyone uses the smart pots. Well then i for sure will be using the smart pots, especially if they are a little forgiving with over-watering since they dry up rather fast. Thanks guys again for another great answer! Can't wait to get started with my No-Till, i can already smell the results
Don't worry bout the purple bro, in my experience it shows because of temp drops from light to dark...... Or maybe some cal/mag? Lmao
This could very well be. Indoor grower and my room stays about 68 degrees and inside tents usually peak no higher than 80. And dropping no less than 65..am I locking nutrients out by bringing them to 65temps This could very well be. Indoor grower and my room stays about 68 degrees and inside tents usually peak no higher than 80. And dropping no less than 65..am I locking nutrients out by bringing them to 65temps
It's 15% I believe but don't quote me directly on that. He uses black owl biochar and charges it with fish hydrolosate for 2 weeks before mixing. They've had really good lab results with this mix and outstanding costumer reports. Bham Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
guys look what i got, anyone want to guess what it is? It's . . . . . . a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Neem Sapling! i was just so excited to find this i had to get one! not that i have actually a place to grow it so it will become a bonsai neem! maybe one day when i get a house i can give it a real home peace!
Congrats! I have one in my veg tent. Little fella compared to yours, hoping to put mine outside. Thinking of planting one everywhere I live in the future, climate allowing of course lol Check out my grow! Mars II LED & Organic No-Till Soil. http://forum.grasscity.com/organic-grow-journals/1318542-freedom-35.htmlk "So for the farmer in his work: serve nature and all is well. Farming used to be sacred work. When humanity fell away from this ideal, modern commercial agriculture rose. When the farmer began to grow crops to make money, he forgot the real principles of agriculture."
One quick question I have is I'm making a newer batch of just a cu. Ft. Of mix and my amendments is my question... The amount I plan to use per cu. Ft. Is: 1.5 cups neem cake 1.5 cups bio-tone starter plus 1.25 kelp meal 1.5 cups crustacean meal Would that be enough? Or should I add more of something ?