Original roots organic, add perlite some big work casting and growing the dank with it, use it till I have an issue but so far, super green no matter what I add to it. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
That's so cool man I'm a new grower on my first grow and had a lot of problems with some Home Depot soil and just switched to roots organics and I've been using bioizz nuts this whole time so I'm very excited to see the results....the 4 White widow plants I have right now in the Home Depot soil (1/2 dr earths, 1/2 happy frog, like 10% peat moss, and 10% perlite) seem to be doing better since I dressed them with some roots organics soil, vermibloom, and bat guano Open to tips Which but line is better? Vermicrop organics or bio bizz?
Home Depot sells Sunshine Mix for $11 and if your local HD doesn't have it, check HD online and ship it to the store for free. Same with promix. I can buy sunshine at my store but promix has to be ordered. Way cheaper than the gro bro store. I've bought the potting soil at HD they have in bags. The compressed bales are all peat moss with some perlite depending on which you buy, are excellent for growing pot. If you prefer the consistency of roots organic, promix is exactly like it. Sunshine peat moss and other peat moss are processed/harvested differently and so the peat moss looks a little different. Roots is around $12 a cubic foot where as promix is 7 cuft. Not sure on the price. I buy sunshine so that's like a $1.50 per foot.
Sooo... total newbie and I am starting from scratch mostly. I am a good grower as my citrus love me even in zone 4. (Indoor/outdoor) If I use roots organically soils, what nutes do I have to use and when? I fertilize my citrus with a specific fert, and have had to diagnose a couple deficiencies along the way, but I'm trying to keep it simple with this new hobby. Any tips on simple feedings through flower?
It really depends on how much up front effort you want to put into this. It IS very simple to just use the Roots soil and then buy a couple bottles of fertilizer, a pH pen to check the pH of your fertilizer/water solution, a bottle each of pH Up & Down and just feed a balanced nutrient solution to your plants. It works and you can grow some good smoke this way. As far as fertilizers go there are about a million to choose from... lol What @Sc00byD00bie is referring to is actual Organic gardening. There is a little more work up front to buy 6-8 different items and to mix them together but the deal is that once you're done mixing your soil all the real work is done - you can just keep your soil/plants moist with tap water from start to finish. There's no buying bottles of fertilizers, no checking and adjusting pH, no "flushing". All nutrition is added directly to your soil when you construct it in the form of a few different soil amendments. With the 7-8 items needed and mixed in the right proportions you'll end up with a true organic soil that you'll be able to use over and over again. Good compost, vermicompost (worm castings), Sphagnum Peat and an aeration amendment make up your "base soil". After that a few basic soil amendments such as kelp meal, Neem cake, stone flour and maybe another item or two and you're done - and can rest assured that you're gonna be growing high quality plants in a soil that you've put together yourself - so you know exactly what is in it and have control over. I suggest taking a look at the link Sc00by provided. Questions, just ask... GL J
Yup! Thanks for this. It just gets to be so much. I see a super soil recipe and such. Some say let it cook with a cover crop some don't. Some people seem to add ferts/minerals even during the grow in super soil, and then others use just water or some just topdress with a bunch of acronyms that I don't know til google tells me. I probably can't afford EVERY supplement on the main post but I do have peat, perlite, vermiculite, dolomitic lime, osmocote (seems useless for anything but my citrus) and I want to know if it is better to fully make my own soil with fewer amendments or if there is a way to amend roots organics to make a super soil or, well I don't know. I need to know what the must haves for super soil are. Planning. No till 20-25# smart pots single plant 190 actual watt led single plant auto grow. Also, I do some mushroom growing, would it be beneficial to make up a couple CO2 producing spawn bags for my grow cabinet? Or with venting this is it completely useless? Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
I would say extra CO2 is never a bad thing, and i would say the ventilation depends on the placement of the bags, couldn't hurt to try. He told you the must haves for the soil, the peat, the aeration, good humus source/compost, then amend with neem/kelp/rock dust and whatever else you want! It is worth the time to read through the whole thread(s), and if you are having trouble understanding/sourcing something there is an awesome community here willing to help Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
This is recipe that I found that I'm currently using that you use roots organic soil and is working really well. 2 large bags roots natural and organic soul. 15 pounds earth worm castings, 420g Fish bone meal( down to earth 3-16-0), 420g bat guano( happy frog 0-5-0), 420g blood meal (down to earth 12-0-0), 80g potassium sulfate(0-0-50) 200g ancient forest Alaska humus (general organics), 200g xtreme mycorrhizal granules, 200g azomite, 100g see kelp(algamin 1-0-2), 70g dolomite lime(30% cal 3% mg or 75/12), 50g alfalfa meal(down to earth 2.5-1-1) 20g Humic acid powder(down to earth), 8g epson salt Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I haven't had to add other nutes just watered and repotted when needed. I switched over to flowering Nov 1st and the only thing I've done differently is watered with molasses a couple of times. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Awesome. Yes, this is what I was hoping for! And then water and let sit for 4 weeks? I would assume that might be too hot to put some plants straight into right away, but I could be mistaken. Also, using an autoflower, should I be putting this mix in the bottom half or 2/3 of my smart pot instead of to the top, and just used a regular soil/ compost mix for the top 4-5 inches? Since I will be germinating in the full size pot since they dont recover awesomely from re-potting?
Yes mix well , put in a garbage container or something comparable with lid add water but don't soak ( about a gal should do) And cook for 60 days. I added 1 tsp of molasses to the water. Mix really well. I turned soil with shovel every other day for the first couple weeks. And couple times a week after that add water when needed. When I transplant to 1 gal pot I only go half with this mix and fill the other half with a good potting soil. When it's time to transplant to 3 , 5 and 7 ( if you go to 7 gal) This is my very first grow but Ive filled with mine with only this mixture and I haven't had any problems . All Ive done is water through the whole growing process . I have add molasses on a couple of the waterings while they've been in flowering just for the hell of it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Just read that your not gonna repot. Don't know cause I've repotted Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
If your growing a auto then you need to plant and not replant. I'm not growing auto's so I'm not sure if they would be ok with that mix Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Plant auto seeds in their final pot. Buy some cheap "light starter mix". When you fill the pot, place a 1 quart or bigger empty pot/container in the center level with the top of the pot. Remove this pot and fill with light mix. Water everything well and plant your seed in the starter soil portion. Don't do anything but water for the first 3 weeks. LIFTA. Also, 20 hours of light seed to harvest. Follow this and you will be successful. (I only grow autos , trust me). This Pic shows how you fill a pot, leaving room for the starter soil. Remember the orange plastic pot comes out and gets filled with "light starter mix". Pot by Organic sinse posted Nov 27, 2016 at 10:02 PM HTH OS
That was exactly what my brain was planning to do. I just didn't know how big I should make the starter soil area so this helps. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
the light starter is a good idea i want to give it a try thanks.. if you let your soil cook for 2-3months can you just plant in that w/o the light mix?
I start from seed in solo cup with just potting soil. Then transplant into 1gal pot with mixture on bottom half. I then put about an inch or so of good pot soil on top of that and transplant filling around the sides. When I transplanted into 3,5,and 7 gal pots I only use the mix. I do the transplants so to always have with fresh soil and nutrients for the plants. Since Im only growing regular and have not grown auto's I can't say Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk