Would I need to cook an organic soil mix with following- FFof neem meal kelp crab shell Glacial rock dust gypsum vermiculite Cow manure any advice would be greatly appreciated .I'm kinda in panic mode
Yes, you would. There is also a 6 page thread that deals with this very question on this page. Suggest you read it. Wet
Take a deep breath and take a step backwards. Go here and start reading. Easy Organic Soil Mix for Beginners - http://forum.grasscity.com/organic-growing/1116550-easy-organic-soil-mix-beginners.html Once youve done some reading, THEN start asking questions. Good luck. j
Thank you jerry,I started getting a lil ahead of myself and allowed a couple things to slip my mind.I do apologize I should have taken the extra time to brush up on my facts but I was just looking for a quick answer.lesson learned And for the record I have done plenty of research And for the record I have done plenty of research
So,if I'm not completely beyond help.Do you guys believe I am on the right track with my additives and such.What should I add or subtract.pls and thanks again-
First off, the very last thing I'd be going out and buying would be Fox Farms bagged soil. Right now all I see is a list of products. You need to figure out an actual recipe, ie: amounts of each, etc, post the recipe and then ask for advice. I'd lost the cow manure and add it to a compost heap. I don't see compost or worm castings in your mix either. Come up with an actual recipe. J Edit: I don't see any aeration, either... You're *kind of* on the right track, or at least the right mentality with wanting to garden organically. I like the crab, kelp, neem, GRD, gypsum. Vermiculite is useless in a soil medium, or at least in any kind of amounts. Small amounts would be ok but vermiculite holds water. J
Okay cool,I forgot to mention I,m most likely going to get some lava rock or perlite as a backup.also I now have ewc on my list.Yeah the manure was iffy.As for the soil are you just not fan of it or did I overlook something?Jw cause I see alot of Peaple use it.I was only gonna use a small amount of vermiculite and gypsum.I Was told it would the soil loose.I will of course take your advice and drop them.I'm working on a recipe right now,should be up soon. We'll I believe that's all for now.as always thank you for the help
FFof - did you already buy this? I ask because if you didn't; save your money. Buy yourself a bale of Pro Mix, Sunshine Mix or even plain ol' Sphagnum Peat. I suggested Pro Mix/Sunshine Mix because it comes pre-limed (pH balanced) and has a tad of perlite already added. neem meal - excellent choice. kelp - excellent choice. crab shell - excellent choice. Glacial rock dust - excellent choice. gypsum - I have zero experience with it but see other gardeners use it. If you go with plain Sphagnum Peat you'll want to add a little lime (calcite - not dolomite) to the mix along with a little gypsum. (Never mind, just realized you had crab meal which will take care of your lime needs). vermiculite - it's fine to use in small amounts. Just offset with aeration but it's not a necessary thing. If you have some use it but keep an eye on your drainage/aeration. Cow manure - excellent - once it's composted! This is my take on your ingredients. I don't see compost or worm castings, and these two items will make or break your garden, ie: you will be successful - or not. Look for quality compost and vermicompost (castings). 30%-40% Pro Mix/Peat 30%-40% Compost/Castings Balance Aeration - or something like that. For each Cubic Foot (7.5 gallons) of this "base" soil add 1 cup crab and 2-3 cups of a mixture of kelp & neem, plus several cups of GRD. That's it. Moisten and set aside for a few weeks. Plant, keep moist, harvest. J Edit - percentages are approximate. Please make sure the mix drains very well. J
Lol okay thanks a bunch again.I dont think You couldnt be anymore helpful or patient.yeah I ordered the FF already because I had extra cash at the time but I will most likely just mix my own base as well.last but not least I did order some worm casting(ewc). I don,t think you could*
Okay so here we go I apologize for the wait.I am going to mix 7.5G base so 2.5 of each give or take. BASE coco lava rock EWC (earth worm castings) Nutrient amendments 2 1/2C kelp 1 1/4 neem 1 1/4 crab shell 1 1/4 alfalfa 1 1/4 sea bird Quano mix all together then use approx.3C Mineral amendments 5C glacial rock dust Well I believe that's it what do you think?
So no peat?? Growing in only coir might mean adding additional calcium because coir holds on more than peat so that's why coir growers "charge" their soil. CEC of coir is nothing compared to peat which provides a nice buffer for mistakes. I can't think of a recipe for organic coir that wasn't entirely bottles. There's one guy I know but he doesn't share his recipe. Peat is a better medium for organics while coir is better for synthetic or bottle organic ferts.
If you already have it then I would use it 50-50 Coco/Peat - there's no sense in wasting it but I would definitely make sure that you cover your bases on the compost/worm castings end of things. If you don't already have it then I would go strictly with sphagnum peat moss. J
i tried using 50/50 peat/coir for a seedling mix a while back and all my seedlings got weird crinkled leaves right away. i gave them some cal carbonate and they started growing nice new leaves. after i did that, i was told you only add 20-30% coir instead of 50/50. the only time that's happened is when i used the coir to cut my soil with that heavily. i still have half a bag gathering dust in the garage because each time I've gone to use it, it's screwed up my plants. use the same soil with no coir and they grow great. i would though like to use the bag up somehow but I'm not willing to screw up some plants i actually want to grow.
coir does have an amazing wicking ability and isnt hydrophobic when dry. i wonder if going something like 90/10 or 95/5 peat/coir would have any benefits without the drawbacks of calcium lock?
Thank you for your input it is very help full.I can easily get some peat to replace it with but I still may use a small amount of coir.I just don't want it to be a complete waste I guess.I will Def let you know how it goes scooby.proley go 90/10.I,m not too worried about it,my home has some tangier and such he will be donating.