Help with Soil mix

is the coco coir your aeration? If you have access to 'down to earth' products, I would get their crab meal. I would also add some garden lime. The soil mix in the notill or notill revisted thread is what I would try to use. It isn't a coir recipe, it calls for perlite, pumice, or lava rock. I would use mycorrihaze at least for the first few runs.
my $.02
os

 

Is it too late to unorder the epsom salts, guano, diatomaceous earth, molasses and azomite? Skip the lime too if you already have oyster shell. The mix on the "no till revisited" thread that OS recommended is excellent! The only changes id suggest would be to sub a cup per cf of your oyster shell flour for some of the rock dust component and also to increase the aeration to about 40%.

Also i wouldnt use ewc as your full compost component. Its very expensive and also very dense which could lead to a muddy soil. I think about 10-30% ewc (of your approx 33% compost component) is plenty and the rest should be just high quality compost. Throw some composting worms into your pots and it will all get worked over eventually anyways. If youve already bought extra just save it for topdressing later.

 

Read some of that thread i mentioned. Its an excellent mix and theres a lot to learn there regardless. In the meantime... Epsom salts? Nope, use em to soak your feet. Molasses? Maybe in an occasional ACT or make cookies. Azomite? Its ok and useable but not a true rock dust, you want basalt and gypsum ideally. De? Meh, i wouldnt spray it on plants and it would be a way too slow silica source in soil. For spider mites? No wonder youre having trouble, you need neem oil and healthier plants, read those threads!!!. (The soil recommended will actually fight pests internally btw) Most importantly your ewc sound fine and you can certainly use only that if necessary. What part of the country are you in though? Maybe post looking for a good source. Good luck!

 

ashton:
That is a great price for ewc, local is better than what you buy from the big companys. You can add aeration to it, to avoid the "muddy" worries. I always add lots of aeration to my homemade stuff. Perlite, pumice, lava rock, or my favorite rice hulls all work well. I put some of each, and it works really well. I make it look like a soil mix, with a little bit too much aeration.

Gypsum is not a rock dust, but sulfur and calcium. I wouldn't consider it in the same category as rock dust. Rock dust should be rock dust, whether its basalt, granite, glacier rock dust, etc. I use quite a bit of gypsum, like 1 or 2 tablespoons a gallon, when I make a mix. I also use about the same amount in my vmc. "I believe", that gypsum gives all my crops much better taste, as well as other benefits.

Azomite is frowned upon by some folks because of the possibility of aluminum becoming available, and being taken up by plants. I used to use it. I don't now, because I get glacier rock dust free. I suggest anyone wanting to use azomite, do a quick web search and decide for themselves.
cheers
os

 

@ASHton,
I have never had mites personally. I see above you have neem seed meal. In addition to trying foliars for mites, have you tried top dressing neem seed meal once a week. I recall talk of folks trying that, in addition to repeated foliars. At worst you get a nice top dress. I'm sure there are lots of blades here with actual "experience" : (-, with mites that may chime in and help.
You wont regret getting the crab meal, bio char, and mycos.
Best of luck my friend
os