Hot soil mix ingredients: 3cf FFOF 10cups neem seed meal 10 cups kelp meal 20lbs of worm castings 10lbs biochar 12-15 cups hydrocorn 1 tablespoon Natures Pride 1Tablespoon marine cuisine...this mix with all above ingredients was divided into two plastic totes. *To fix the hot mix i added I only used 1cf of the mix and then added: 3cf premier peat moss 2cf perlite 10more cups hydrocorn ...so to summarize i have a very hot mix and used 1 cf of that mix and added the 3cf peat and 2cf perlite plus more hydrocorn...how much dolomite lime should i add to the new fixed mix per cf? Sent from my LM-20 using Grasscity Forum mobile app
I'm going to disagree with OS just a bit here simply because that mix is so convoluted and FFOF has a reputation for being under limed from the git go. Not a big disagreement, but *I* would do at least 4 cups to make sure the FFOF is covered. When OS first posited the idea of just liming for the amount of peat in the mix it made perfect sense. Still does, but I also account for the pine bark mulch that is also part of my mix. Perlite is pH neutral and needs no liming and is not counted in my calculations anymore. THANKS OS!! I would also suggest adding some pine bark mulch to your *fixed* mix, ~10% or so. Will likely need more than the 2cf of perlite you added also. What the hell is hydrocorn? Wet
Gold Label - Hydrocorn - 36 Liter direct from Growers House Just because I was that curious, what purpose would it serve in soil
Ive seen what hydrocorn does to properly prepared soil mix. The microbiology that was surrounding each clay pebble was outrageous. Each clay pebble was completely white and the soil surrounding it was also white. Its supposed to become a home for the microbiology and also help with aeration and root development. Ive legit looked at the results of using this the right way and its undeniable as far as the microbiology goes.
Wett I want to add .ore perlite but cant afford another 20 dollar bag going into this mix. I tried to source it cheaper but I cant find it anywhere but a local green house. Lowes and Homedepot have miracle grow perlite so i avoided that. I was hoping that the perlite already in the ffof wasn't calculated into your equation to help my mix, so i assumed a little bit extra was there aside from the 2cf i added. Hydrocorn is supposed to help with some of the things perlite does like soil displacement and aeration etc so i added some extra hydrocorn hoping itll make the difference.
Also, now that Ive mixed and fixed the soil. Is it ok that it sits in my fabric pots until the plants are ready for transplant? Also should i add more ph safe water?
OKAY HERES A THOUGHT!!! Any ideas as far as me testing tomato plants that are bearing fruit into my newly prepared soil mix? If im not mistaken, when growing, the tomato is close to chronic and likes the same kind of soil...think i should test the soil with the tomato plants?
For sure not a bad idea to test it with a lessor plant. I have heard a lot of people planting lettuce and other fast greens from seed. If they grow normally u are good to go.. You could also go ahead and plant some clover or vetch or the like for cover crop and to see how it does then it will be handy for the plant if it works out.. Very anxious to see if this mix with the crazy amount of amendments is usable
Well remember frost, you all suggested using less of my hotmix, so i added a little less than 1cf of that super hot mix to 3cf of the peat and 2 cf of perlite plus alot more hydrocorn so in short 1cf of that crazy mix was diluted with 3cf of peat and perlite and other stuff...you think its still too high in nutes?
That does sound more reasonable but again I am coming from a place of relatively new at this and because of that adhering to recipes so it makes me nervous. That said I have read from a lot of people smarter than me in this subject that allowed time to cycle it is hard to use too much of the organic amendments. Nervous about it but I think you will do well
Fingers crossed. I just added the lime and a little bit of ph neutral water and im gonna let it sit for 3 weeks or so and see where im at.
This is pretty much what the pine bark mulch does at a cost of only ~$2.50 for a 2cf bag. It is also 100% organic, turns into humus over time, and is WAY lighter. It starts out as aeration and ends up as humus as the fungus/mycos works on it. Ask @Organic sinse about pine bark mulch. I turned him onto it some years back and he delved into it much deeper than I ever did. I now follow many of his guidelines and have expanded it's use. Wet
Ty wett and ty organic. Ill definitely be adding the pine bark mulch asap. Most likely today. Cant hurt to have all 3 of those in the mix to help with aeration and microbial life. Might be overboard or excessive to have the hydrocorn perlite and pinebark but i cant see an issue with it. If anything it should be a plus to have all 3.
Im looking for composted pine bark mulch atm and cannot find it. Also IMPORTANT QUESTION...should i innoculate my soil? If so what do i buy to do so?
I use small pine bark nuggets, natural, as I can’t find anything Pre composted up here. It’s not composted and works great anyway. The stuff I get from Lowe’s is “greens mix” brand. It’s repackaged Waupaca brand, which I also can get at the feed store. I think wet uses bark fines, when he can find them. Bark usually comes in the 2 cu ft bags. Don’t buy the cheap ass Miracle Grow and similar fare that are like $1-2 a bag. Don’t use anything with dyes either. HTH Cheers Os
***RELATIVELY IMPORTANT TO ALL OF YOU AMAZING PEOPLE HELPING ME*** Ive been searching and searching for a soil mix close to mine and Ive found a video where these guys use everything I did plus a few other items. Does anyone have the time to watch a 45min vid and absorb what they say, and then tell me where i went wrong according to their recipe? The one or two random ingredients aside, their math and calculations are close to what mine were SUPPOSED TO BE...guys help! I think this will help yous to understand what i was aiming for and then how to steer me back into that direction...everyone who helps me gets 2 coupons for an upscale dining experience in lovely downtown detroit on the Taco Tuesday of your choice. *offer not valid from monday to thursday and from friday to sunday*