Is dehydrated alfalfa meal still ok to use for plant? This is all ican get. If so i can just lay it around my plants and water it in? or mabey mix with water? i also just picked up some blacksrap molasses, i just mix it with the water right? thanks alot for the help, im new at this
Never used alfalfa myself, so I don't know dosages, but it's good stuff. Browse through LumperDawgz posts, seem to remember he had some info on it. Maybe in the comfrey tea thread? As far as fresh alfalfa, you'd want to turn it under your soil for a season, or compost it, or dry and powder it as best you can. Molasses, I give it maybe twice weekly in veg. AACTs once monthly, molasses bi weekly at 1 tbs per gallon to keep everything nice and fed. I also use a liquid fish/kelp, usually once mid veg, and will switch over to that bi weekly for the first half of flowering. Then, molasses every water for the last two to three weeks, at one tsp per gallon. Note the different levels, a tablespoon of molasses goes a long way if you're feeding it every water. "Every water" is kind of misleading too, as I usually cycle it as 2-3 feedings, and one small flush out.
Alfalfa meal is a great organic addition to your soil as well as an ingredient in a tea. Using it in your soil will give you a good supply of nitrogen, as well as vitamins, minerals and growth hormones. Alfalfa meal also has Triacontanol, a plant growth hormone. You can also use it by making a tea. I use 1.5 cups alfalfa meal, 1 cup EWC, a couple of tbsps of molasses and aerate for 24 hours. You can also make it without the EWC, I just like it for the microbe infusion. You can strain it and foliar spray and/or use as a soil drench. The leftover solids can be fed to your worms or composted back into your ready to re-use soil. I have noticed my plants greening up within 2-3 days when starting to show a slight N deficiency. If you can't seem to find alfalfa meal in your area, you can even buy a bale of alfalfa hay and make your own meal in a food processor. As for molasses, I use it in my AACT's but use it real sparingly otherwise. Molasses is a food source for bacteria, and IMO overuse can cause an excess of bacterial microbes at the expense of the fungai. Plants produce there own carbs and deliver them to roots to feed the bacteria, so be careful not to over do it. HTH chunk
THCweed You can certainly top-dress the alfalfa meal (I'm assuming that's what you meant by the term 'dehydrated alfalfa meal') but you can get far more bang for your buck if you take a couple of cups and put it into 5 gallons of water. Let it sit for a couple of days at least (longer is better). If you have an air pump hook that up to move the alfalfa meal around in the bucket as it will speed up the process. Strain the tea and it's now good for several months - at least. Add 1 cup of this mix and fill with clean water to make 1 gallon and apply it to your soil every 10 days or so as part of your regular watering cycle. IOW you don't have to apply it on Day 10 specifically so wait until Day 11 or Day 12 or whenever your next scheduled watering cycle falls on. If you buy a bale of alfalfa at a feed store and you can opt for organic alfalfa, you can take enough of this hay and fill a 5-gallon bucket about 1/2 full - stuff as much as you can into the bucket. Fill with water and let it brew and ferment for 3 - 4 weeks. Strain and apply as above. The very best alfalfa option is fresh and if you can get some of the roots that's what you want to do. Crush the fresh alfalfa and fill the 5-gallon bucket as stated above. Let it brew for a few weeks and strain and apply as above. The spent alfalfa can be placed outside around your plants, compost piles, worm bins, etc. There is still a lot of value even after the brewing/fermentation cycle. RE: Comfrey There is probably no better plant to grow and use in organic gardens. The amount of leaf material you will harvest is incredible. Comfrey is loaded with phosphorus, potassium and the entire range of micro-nutrients. Horizon Herbs in Williams, Oregon has a few varieties - I 'believe' that the Bocking 14 is the correct variety but please verify that because if you get the incorrect hybrid it will take over your property - very invasive. Worse than blackberries. HTH LD
I love an alfalfa top dressing as well as a tea (I add worm castings as well). It is truly a gift. I'm not sure if mixing in right into my soil is worth it or not. How much meal should I put in, if any, to my soil when I'm mixing? Or should I put a little in each pot as I transplant? Thanks for your help.
Depending on what else you're adding to the soil, you could add about 3/4 cup of alfalfa meal mixed into your soil mix. If you're using a fertilizer mix (E. B. Stone, Down-To-Earth, Espoma, Dr. Dirt, et al) then I would mix 3 parts of the fertilizer mix to 1 part of alfalfa meal. Of that mix I would go with 1.5 - 2 cups to 1 c.f. of potting soil and mix it in well. That's assuming you're working with a potting soil that has a quality humus @ 25% of the total mix. HTH LD
LuDog Well, I've moved away from the $15.99/per 1.5cuft premixes (Gnatty Frog, ugh!) and though Roots did me well, it's tough to be spending that kinda coin. I'm using Gardner and Bloome Blue Ribbon organic as my base $6.50/per 2cuft. 30% pumice, 5-10% EWC, and dry ammendents of kelp and alfalfa, along with teas. I'm striving to master my own mix vs. a premix soil or premix fert combo. The OCD in me, I guess. Now, when you say 3/4 cup alfalfa, is that per gallon, cubic foot, etc.? I've burned my plant before by putting too much but I want to balance it, so they have plenty of food to draw from. My plants are doing very well, and I'm a bit hesitant to really push them hard, but perhaps that's what is needed? Thank you for you response, very helpful. I've lurked on a lot of your posts before I joined up here (the reason for) and I appreciate your selfless contribution to the community. My skills have certainly improved as a direct result of your knowledge. Peace
Sorry about that - 3/4 cup to 1 c.f. of potting soil. Mix thoroughly and you'll do well. RE: EWC - I think you'll do better with 15 - 20% as part of your mix. IF you live in an area where a product called Vital Earth is available in your area - buy it. The young gentleman behind this company are very bright and educated. They are not like many of the other 'superior potting soil' companies. Here's the specific product you want to find: They use rock dust, pumice vs. perlite, organic amendments, OMRI listed (if that's important to you), etc. The price in Portland is $9.00 per c.f. and for many people this is a viable solution vs. mixing your own potting soil. Pretty hard to beat - they have their own commercial earthworm operation as well as a huge thermal compost operation down in Southern Oregon meaning that the part of the potting soil that has to do the heavy lifting (the humus) is something that they have control over. Pretty unique in the potting soil industry. HTH LD
No worries..I've been using about 1 cup for every 1.5 cuft bag, so if my quick math is right, that's essentially what you've suggested. Thank you for the link, that looks like great stuff, but unfortunately they don't get down to the Southern part of California, so I'm outta luck there. I really need to make the jump to just making my own from scratch, but I'm gonna to need more than just alf and kelp. I like that G&B as a base because it has some goodies in it, however, probably not in the ideal amounts. Going to the nursery tomorrow, and was thinking of grabbing a bale of compost and doing a 50/50 with the G&B, then doing my usual pumice/ammendment deal. I've never heard of adding compost to be a BAD thing, so it seems like the right direction. You know, I've tried going that high, but my soil just turns to sludge, no matter how well I mix it in. Even 10% jacks it up, as I prefer a light, fluffy mix, but that still holds water well. EWC seems to work in tea form wonderfully for me, but I have to be careful ammending it. And this is with 30-35% pumice. Is it just me?
Orange County Farm Supply carries Sunshine Mixes, Pro-Mix, kelp meal, fish bone meal, fish meal, rock dusts, blah, blah, blah, blah................ AND they also carry Agrowinn Earthworm Castings out of Encinitas, California. Some of the finest commercially produced EWC on the West Coast. Beyond that, Southern California is the epicenter of nursery stock growers. The pricing structure on professional materials (peat, coir, pumice, etc.) is extremely competitive among the wholesale distributors. And there are at least 5 major companies with several branches up and down the I-5 corridor. Try and find a product called 'Sunshine Just Coir' - 2 c.f. bags, organic, OMRI listed, blah, blah, blah - out of their plant near Portland it's going for $7.50 Take 1 bag of Sunshine Just Coir & 1 c.f. medium pumice (1/4") and 1 c.f. Agrowinn EWC and you're set. All you need now are some seed meals and some marine products (kelp, fish meal & fish bone meal) and some rock dust(s) like Azomite, Canadian Glacial Rock Dust, soft rock phosphate, etc. and you're done. I would also add neem seed meal and crustacean meal to the mix. It's 'water only program' and if you'd like you can add some humic acid every 10 days or so. Apply neem seed (oil or neem seed meal tea) with liquid silicon as a foliar spray to keep mites, thrips, white flies, etc. at bay as well as powdery mildew. Add liquid silicon to your water reservoir if you're going to automate that part of your garden. HTH LD
I actually live in San Diego county, so Agrowinn is a quick 25 minute jaunt west for me. They look like the real deal, and the PRICES!! Wow, I've really been getting taken at the local nurserey! How do you feel about Agro's rock dusts? Also, they say on their site "By appointment only". In your professional experience, does that mean they're going to expect me to be buying a minimum dollar amount? Thank you for the in depth knowledge and stellar advice, it is much appreciated. I think I'm just about ready to start mixing my own...
Simple answer................... Rock = rock dust Azomite = Azomite soft rock phosphate = soft rock phosphate Glacial rock dust = glacial rock dust Ain't a dime's worth of difference between Agrowinn's re-packaging of whatever rock dust vs. someone else's package. Go for price and price alone. According to some old friends in both San Diego and Orange County, the Agrowinn EWC product is available at any number of nursery centers, farm stores, etc. in their respective areas. Rural North San Diego (San Marcos area) is a good place to look for wholesale suppliers as that's a large nursery stock producing area. You might have to also look for greenhouse suppliers as some of these companies have branched out to include that end of the industry. North San Diego around Cardiff, Encinitas, Solano Beach have some large nursery operations. You could even approach them about buying some of their potting soils, soil amendments - as bad as the nursery stock business has been since the downturn in the real estate market they'd be happy for any source of money. Trust me. LD
Cool. So should I still add Glacial and Azomite along with that? I have no experience with mineral ammendments, other than whatever would be in the bag already. I think you're right about them grabbing business anywhere the money is. My aunt lives in San Marcos, why didn't I think of that? I'm going to start the legwork on this ASAP. I imagine I will find the Sunshine Just Coir at one or more of these guys as well. Thanks much BTW, what's the name of that humic product you speak so highly of?
I would. One of the things about Agrowinn EWC is that they add soft rock phosphate. This does not breakdown in the worm bins but what it does provide is a system by which fungi can attach themselves and grow - up to 10' in length. In a forest the fungi strands can reach several miles as a point of comparison. The soft rock phosphate give their EWC a fungi profile pretty much unrivaled in a commercial product. Obviously one can do better at home but that's a no-brainer. So if you were to use this EWC specifically then you could use less of either the glacial dust or Azomite. Using both would be better mixed in equal amounts by weight. You would want to add 1 cup to each 1 c.f. of potting soil. It's my understanding that the best 3 rock dusts readily available in the US are Azomite, soft rock phosphate and glacial rock dust - and in no particular order. It's my belief that diversity in everything in agriculture/horticulture is a benefit. Rock dusts are cheap and obviously will last forever. A typical price for 50# of Azomite is around $20.00 and it's about the same for the Gaia Green Glacial Rock Dust out of Canada. Soft rock phosphate is about the same meaning that for around $60.00 you would have 150 lbs. of a professional mineral mix which works out to $.40 per lb. Let's say that you went with another humus source that didn't already contain some kind of rock dust then a typical rate of application would be between 1.5 - 2 cups per 1 c.f. of potting soil. The amount of mineral mix that you're adding would be about $.60 per plant per cycle. If you're going to 're-cycle' you potting soil and if you go with Agrowinn EWC then adding the correct amount of minerals will insure that your potting soil is alive and healthy. HTH The company that I recommend is BioAg here in Oregon. BioAg is headed by Dr. John Faust who is considered one of the world's authority on humic and fulvic acids. There are 3 of their products for agriculture that I recommend: 1. HumisolveUSA From their site: This is 57% PHA (pure humic acid) and 12% fulvic acid. The price is $12.00 per 100 grams. The rate of application every 10 days is 0.5 - 1 gram per gallon of water, i.e. somewhere between 100 and 200 gallons of pure humic acid for $12.00 - tell that to VideoMike up north. 2. TM-7-USA From their web site: The 7 micronutrient that almost never get discussed on cannabis grow boards are as follows: Sulfur (S) - 5% Boron (B) - 0.37% Cobalt (Co) - 0.05% Molybdenum (MO) - 0.1% Copper (Cu) - 0.31% Iron (FE) - 1.2% Manganese (Mn) - 1.2% Zinc - 1% Derived from: Boron, cobalt sulfate, copper sulfate, ferrous sulfate, manganese sulfate, sodium molybdenate, zinc sulfate and chelated with humic and fulvic acids derived from fresh water cretaceous humate depostits. This product also contains humic acid @ 50% and fulvic acid @ 10%. THe rate of application is 0.75 - 1.25 grams per gallon of water every 7 - 10 days. 100 grams is $15.00 3. Ful-Power Humic Acid Liquid (Golden Liquid Fulvic Acid) From their web site: This is the real deal - seriously. The rate of application is 4 - 6 tsp. per gallon. This product cost $30.00 per quart and $65.00 per gallon. Fulvic acids are best utilized by the plant when applied as a foliar spray which doesn't mean there isn't any benefit from adding to your watering system. The prices I noted include shipping and handling. Their customer service is stellar with phone calls returned by either Dr. Faust or his assistant, Dr. Ryan Zodrow No grow store B.S. - products that excel in their field and imitated by many/most out there. These guys have the science to back up their products and with the prices it's a win-win deal. Their web site contains a plethora of information about what is and what is not a humic/fulvic acid and is well worth digging around for a couple of hours. These types of products have a benefit for people and they have a number of products that you can review. DISCLAIMER: I have no fiduciary association with BioAg or the partners/owners. I do believe that they provide the highest quality humic and fulvic acids at a very fair price. HTH LD
As always, a wealth of knowledge. Once again, thank you. Video Mike, what you don't think he's being honest? I guess if they have to call themselves "Advanced", that's a pretty good indication they are anything but. It continues to amaze me how the price of actual, viable products of top quality are consistently priced below the so-called "MJ specific" nutes from the grow stores. Well, I have a wish list now for sure. I'm going to check with some of my local people as you suggested as well. Maybe I can get them to pay the shipping on 150 lbs of rock! Bio ag sounds like the real deal. Organic gardening just keeps getting better all the time. I can't even imagine a day when the soil across the country is vibrant and full of life again, able to grow the best crops without chemicals. Maybe fields of legal green will be a reality by then. One can dream...
I haven't gotten quite that far in my assessment. I'm still trying to figure out if he's even lucid. His discussion of silicon on his 'Rhino Skin' video seems to prove that he's never ever looked at a periodic chart - a feat usually accomplished by the 9th grade if memory serves me correctly. Weird bunch to be sure. Advanced Nutrients is supposedly out of Canada but the licensing and financial offices are located in Brandenburg, Kentucky. Smoke and mirrors redux. LD
Well, LD, remember now, Canada, especially B.C., is/was the end all, be all epicenter of everything related to cannabis growing. Street cred, yeah! If he started his company today, it would be some shit with "Humboldt" all over it and...oh, wait, somebody already did that, didn't they?