So this year I will be growing a little garden and I am stuck between purchasing two items. Right now I have alfalfa, neem and karanja. I can purchase one of the following: 2.5 lbs of kelp meal OR malted barley (I don't know the price of it around here but from what I've seen others post it looks like I can probably get about 10 lbs of this. I also have alfalfa seeds and just found some sprouted quinoa and mung beans (I can use the pre-sprouted seeds/beans correct?) as well as some tri-color popcorn. I was looking for sprouted corn flour but didn't find it yet. I have been reading about the SST and am real interested in learning about this and incorporating it into the garden but I am not sure if I will be better off with the barley or kelp. So that's what I am looking for, which one is more beneficial given the ingredients I currently have and have access to. I also hope to find some nettles, dandelion, comfrey, etc. I recently moved out to Colorado so I am not sure where to locate these at the moment. I am in Fort Collins if someone might know of any spots where I can forage for those goodies or others. Thanks for any help! Edit:I also found sprouted wheat flour, would this work as well in the garden? Thanks again!
In all organics Kelp meal is pretty much the #1 "Must Have" ingredient. Everything else you listed is a 'good to have', but well short of what kelp meal brings to the table, or, being a 'must have'. Just for laughs, try and find a organic recipe that doesn't include kelp meal. It will be a looong search. Wet
If it makes a difference I'm not mixing up soil. This is an outdoor garden plot. I threw some alfalfa down to break down before planting and I'll be mostly doing teas throughout with a top dressing once or twice. I'll be purchasing the sprouted mung beans and quinoa cause if I understand correctly I can use those for SST and I'll possibly get some tricolor popcorn as well if I feel like doing the sprouting process. And I'm hoping to find some goodies that I can forage as well. I'm just trying to put myself in the best situation possible with literally no money right now. That's why I wanted to make sure I got the most bang for my buck. I appreciate the help I kinda figured kelp but I just wanted to double check.
Growing cannabis directly in the ground is going to require a much higher skill set (or luck) than growing in containers. Ideally, the process of building soil would have begun last year. Take a look at 'sheet mulching', Sepp Holzer and hugelkulture, and the site permies.com. Colorado soils are typically alkaline and lacking in organic matter. Local wisdom and cultural practices to deal with this can be obtained from attending a Master Gardeners class from your county extension program. You can also call or email questions. Another reason to attend is that they are sometimes a good resource for organic materials, stuff that other gardeners in your area use successfully. Cow manure, rotten bales of straw, leaves, etc. With or without money knowledge is going to be your best friend. That said, you may want to start by obtaining a water quality report and research info about the soil in your area. RD
It's funny, when i started reading your post ''Growing cannabis directly in the ground is going to require a much higher skill set (or luck) than growing in containers. Ideally, the process of building soil would have begun last year.'' at first i thought this guy is insane....then i finished your post and remembered we dont all live in the same area...In Quebec we have pretty fertile loam all along the southern St-Lawrence, so you can pretty much drop a plant anywhere and it will grow into a decent plant, especially along any river (which are everywhere). I used to grow ''gorilla' style, i would just plant like 10 plants scatered in the forest with no fertilizer at all and would come pick up the flowers in october. I would always end up with at least 3-4 pounds of okay weed, sometimes it would actually be pretty good. I've even had friends grow right in the gound int their yard, they even seemed to be actively trying to kill the plant, watering with beer and bong water and other very stupid ideas and it still grew a decent plant. I've always wondered why most outdoor operations i have seen on the west coast use giant smart pots.
I have to disagree on many levels. But thats just my 2 cents. I prefer growing in the ground over containers because it is much simpler IMO. I feel the quality is much better as well due to the sunlight. I feel that as growers we obtain these beliefs from other growers and then we adopt them as our own and being the creator beings we are as humans, when you believe something strong enough you create it. So when you believe you need "X or Y" or that "the soil doesn't hold everything you need" or whatever belief system you want to create/believe regarding growing then it becomes a reality. When I plant seeds I put them under my tongue so they can learn all about me before I plant them (there are a few other steps as well) then they will work in connection with the rest of the universe to produce a product that will be most healing for my vessel; physically, mentally, emotionally as well as spiritually. I've also found with this method that foods obtain a higher quality of taste, more pest resistance and they also tend to be hardier. I don't feel that I need anything from an outside source but I enjoy the results that I get with these products (kelp,alfalfa, neem, etc) so I continue to use them. One day I hope that I will lose this habit as well. Why would God (Source, Creator, however you choose to define it) put us in a situation where we need help from an outside source? We have all the answers already, we just have to remember. https://www.rivendellvillage.org/Book_1_Anastasia.pdf - this book will give you the information on how I plant seeds. Chapter 11 in particular.
I hear ya. The soil being suitable was the 'luck' part I was referring to. Some spots in the Rocky Mtns are incredibly fertile others not so much. RD I certainly enjoy growing outdoors over indoors and strive for water only situations. Disagree as you may, but filling a container with an appropriate soil mix is far easier than trying to "fix" the poor quality native soil the OP likely has. It also requires much less skill to make some Coots mix vs. fixing the native soil. Here is a description of the soil the OP is likely to encounter near Fort Collins. The pH ranges from 7.2-8.0 typically. Official Series Description - FORT_COLLINS Series I really wish all of us could just 'believe' our plants will grow big and beautiful and this would make it so. But we are not gods and sometimes real world solutions need to be employed. I've already tried growing plants with nothing but Willie Nelson playing 24/7, I figure it'll be hard to impove upon that. RD
Wow theres a lot of ''love and crystal power'' in your techniques...just wondering...all those places in lets say Africa were the soil is barren...did god drop the ball??? ''The universe is not required to be in perfect harmony with human ambition'' -Carl Sagan
But see you're assuming there is something wrong with the soil. There is nothing wrong with the soil. Anywhere. It's this belief system that we have been fed to believe that is causing more problems than anything. And we are gods and we are capable of using our creative abilities to grow plants. The problem is most people lack the vibration of unconditional love and they don't believe that what they are trying to create will happen. They let their thoughts tell them they can't and then they stick to that belief. Lose the belief systems that you have been conditioned to believe and watch the miracles that unfold. I'm not saying this is easy but it is possible. You are more powerful than you have been led to believe. That's all I'm saying. Go within and find your truth instead of believing other peoples lies. I don't even ask that you believe me, I only know whats worked for me I don't know what doesn't work for you. My reality works for me and what works for you works too. I'm not saying that you can't do it the way you are saying, I'm just saying I don't think it is easier in a container and I don't think the soil has problems either. And BTW I am the original poster. And you're not going to convince me that my soil has problems. The problem is that you believe that and therefore you create that. I don't believe that I know that the soil is perfect for my needs otherwise I wouldn't be there using it. Now the real question becomes do you truly believe that or did someone who you considered knowledgeable on the subject tell you that so therefore you believed it?
Do you mean there's nothing wrong with the soil because the soil dosen't owe anything to humanity? Or do you mean all soil everywhere can grow any plant? If your being philosophical i'm all for that, but even Socrates isn't going to be growing tomatoes in the desert without human intervention. I'm trying real hard to keep an open mind here but your claims are very unscientific. Now i know the whole abscence of proof is not proof of absence thing. But this is getting ridiculous. As if the people in Kazakhstan (or Mongolia, Sudan, Yemen and so on) were responsilble for the poor soil that plagues their country.... sorry Kazakhs you didn't believe hard enough in yourself i guess you'll be planting potatoes again...about as scientific as sacrificing a goat...Actually the goat would eventually turn into compost...so less scientific then sacrificing a goat
Try playing the 'Super Suckers' "Must Have Been High" album in addition to Willie. They used to tour together in the 90's for a bit. (Fav SS album "The Sacrilicious Sounds of the Super Suckers"). cheers os
I have absolutely no idea if the soil in your backyard is viable for growing cannabis. I simply tried to steer you in the direction of being able to determine this for yourself. If you believe growing outside in native soil will be easier than container gardening by all means you should do so. The reason for my advice is based on gardening in the Rocky Mountains for 20+ years. I've seen it snow on the 4th of July. Best wishes to you and your endeavors. RD
Come on man, open your mind! We are star stuff, we are the universe, i am the plant, i am the eggman hell i am the Walrus! Coocoo cachoo dude!
There is a nasty hard pan in the west coast. Organic material will eventually turn it to loam but if you have many plants to put out and no equipment a smart pot is like an instant raised bed. 200/300 gallon should get you through a season. When we used to grow behind the “shed” the holes would be prepped during the rainy season with humus. By the time April rolled around it was good to go.
We could win James Randi's $1,000,000 challenge if we grew a plant with nothing. WTH are we waiting for? Start believing!