New to organic - Need help with easy soil mix

Discussion in 'Growing Organic Marijuana' started by foolmelt, Jun 5, 2015.

  1. #1 foolmelt, Jun 5, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 5, 2015
    I just wanted to make sure I'm not missing anything in my recipe. I couldn't find EWC in my area but I'm currently trying to lure some worms out of the ground(its very dry lately so I dug down a foot and filled the hole with mud/compost and will check tomorrow) and I couldn't find kelp meal but here's what I have so far.
     
    2cu ft PRO-MIX BX MYCORRHIZAE
    1cu ft sheep manure
    5l perlite
    5l crushed rock dust
    2 cups dolomite lime
    2 cups bone meal
    2 cups blood meal
    1.5 cups organic tomato tone
    1 cup liquid organic kelp
     
     
    Anything key I'm missing? I'm letting this cook for a few weeks while my seeds germinate so I have a little time before anything goes into the pots.

     
  2. I'm also brand new to organics but comparing your inventory to the beginner's soil thread it looks like you're missing compost and/or EWC. I see you're trying to get some worms from the ground but there's no way they'll be able to produce that many castings that fast. I'm unfamiliar with promix but if you have 2cu ft that would be something like 15 gallons total? So you'll need at least 5 gallons of perlite unless promix already contains it.

    You have perlite and crushed rock dust listed at equal parts so i think it might be a typo. If your soil base is just the 2 cu ft of promix then you'll need 8 cups of rock dust (going by memory so verify in that thread). Also, you mention crushed rock dust. Make sure the rock dust is literally dust, it needs to be very very fine like flour for reasons I kind of understand but definitely can't explain. I read like 300 pages of that thread lol.

    Re: putting compost in the hole to attract worms. I read elsewhere that placing wet cardboard on the grass overnight will attract worms to it, so maybe you can do that and use the compost for the soil mix instead?

    I'm rocking some organic soil now made directly per that thread and in easy quantities and my little plants are loving it. I would suggest pulling back on your quantity and making sure you have a proper mix, that way if you have any issues you won't be scratching your head wondering which variable is the cause. If you still need more soil perhaps go non-organic for the rest until you can mix up more of the good stuff and say adios to non-organic forever :)

    Good luck!
     
  3. I used sheep manure compost in place of EWC, and pro-mix already has perlite I just wanted more to balance out the manure I added and improve overall aeration. My dust is plenty dusty, and better too much than not enough it will only help with aeration.
     
  4. Our organic mixes are BASED on quality compost and/or vermicompost. Let me ask - how old is the sheep manure? Is it actually composted or is it simply aged manure? There is a difference - compost is generally made using both Carbon & Nitrogen materials where your sheep manure is really only a single part of a true compost.
     
    Can you find other compost locally? Could I ask what general part of the world you are from? This could make or break your soil mix.
     
    Also, kelp meal is not seaweed extract which brings me back to your location.
     
    thanks
     
    j
     
  5. #5 foolmelt, Jun 5, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 5, 2015
    The put the word compost on the bag, but I take that with a grain of salt. I don't know anyone local who composts but I'm starting my own worm bin. I live in the very middle of Canada if that helps you help me. Where should I be looking for kelp meal? I tried Peavey Mart and all the hardware and gardening stores.
     
  6. livestock feed stores will have kelp and some other items.
     
    if you took a pic of your compost sheep manure, it would give a good idea of how aged it is. maybe that's not a good way to estimate...couldn't hurt though.
     
  7. I was actually just thinking about checking the feed store, they'll have something. I totally forget that place exists, it's hidden in the industrial part of town.
     
  8. my place has everything you would need minus the neem. big giant economical bags. bring a big car. :D
     
  9. Found kelp and alfalfa meal, the kelp was 50x more expensive ($18 a lb vs $17.50 for 50lbs) hopefully its worth it. Still no luck on EWC though.
     
  10. Just checked and the manure says composted not compost and I did find a few worms in the garden today. I took half the soil mix and added the worms I found and put the rest of the mix into the compost pile with this weeks veggie trimmings and shredded paper. Anything else I should be doing?
     
  11. What? $18 per pound?! I know some kelp is more expensive but that's insane. Is it returnable?

    I drive 45 mins one way to buy my castings. It's worth it and I only go a couple times a year. I mostly top dress the soil instead of teas and a cubic foot bag should last someone a while if you have a small grow.
     
  12. It's probably all I'll find in this area, it was enough for a batch of soil and then some so I'm no too butthurt about it. Next time I'll probably just order the kelp online, and I'm hoping to make my own castings once I gather up some worms.
     
  13. Found a commercial composter that will sell me worms for $40 a pound and someone else that will do $15. If the person with the $15 worms calls me back I'm set, otherwise its a long ass drive into no mans land for $40 worms.
     
  14.  
    Find and contact your local County Agricultural Extension Office. They might know someone. There are sometimes networks of organic folks at those offices. Not many, but it's worth a shot if you're stretched for ideas on how to source locally.
     
  15. #15 BrassNwood, Jun 6, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 6, 2015
    Alfalfa is a great organic amendment and best of all It's always found local at a feed and tack store as horse chow for around 15 dollars for 50 pounds.. Pet stores as rabbit chow 15 bucks for 15 lbs.. Meal or pellets I toss in about a half pound per CF between runs..
     
      I don't know your local big box stores or garden centers but Home Depot sells a useable compost at a not to bad a price called Eco Scraps.. Otherwise for off the shelf compost you'll have to try what I did and search them all.. Find an open bag or tear open a corner before buying anything marked compost.. Most of it isn't compost at all but ground up wood with zero actual composting behind it.. What you want is nearly black and damp, smelling rich and earthy.. If you've opened a bag of dry, odorless wood chips and bark shavings keep looking..
      The same thing with most landscaping compost they sell by the yard.. It's ok as ground cover but not much good in a super soil like we are building.. Inspect anything your buying for quality as it really is the heart of your soil.. EWC is a fine addition but won't take the place of your humus-compost.. If your lucky enough to live in a wooded area find a nice mature maple and collect the bottom most layer of leaf mold from under it.. That 40 year old layer of decomposed leafs an inch thick just above the dirt..
                       BNW
    Edit:: Avoid anything with a high portion of still recognizable material in it or pine needles, bark fines and the like..
     
  16. If you are thinking that rock dust might help with aeration your thinking is 180* out of whack, at least in my experience. The 4-5 cups of RD/cf made my mix entirely too dense that no amount of perlite would correct. Since then, I've reduced the RD to 2cups/cf which works just fine.

    You will need more perlite. Pro Mix doesn't have that much in it, especially with the sheep manure. I love sheep manure BTW and wish I could still get it.

    Wet
     
  17. The rockdust is to provide a surface for bacterial cultures, the perlite I added is for aeration.
     
  18. The sheep manure compost is shows all signs of being a quality compost, so with a little EWC it will have to do this time around then when I 'm ready to cycle the soil I can mix in the hummus from my compost bin. I found a local composter who does $15/lb for worms and EWC, so I'm going to pick up a couple pounds today.
     
  19. If they sell EWC at $15 a pound, keep looking around. A cubic foot bag is avg 28-30 pounds I think. Not a bad deal in worms though.
     
  20. Its more worms than EWC, she just includes some bedding from her own bin to get things started.
     

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