Need Soil Help

[Letterhead954]

I've been using Promix for quite a while now, but I've finally realized that I could mix my own much cheaper. I can buy peat and pearlite locally, but I noticed that Promix has dolomite lime as a ph buffer. My question is... how much do I add to the peat moss? The moss I can buy here is about the same size as a bale of Promix, 3.8 cu.ft.

Other than pearlite and lime, is there anything else I should add? I use the GH Floranova series of nutes, so I'm not organic. 

[trichcycler]

from experience I can say Promix has never borne a pest life form. I wish I could say this for those bags of peat.

[+Malamute]

Wetting agent.  Look into Yucca plant.

[t-pain]

use coco coir instead of peat moss. its better and less bugs i think (if you get compressed block)?

 

most of the grow books have dirt recipes.

like vermiculite, perlite and dirt. yeah.

 

thats why some people use organic nutes, because you can reuse the dirt.

why buy dirt every cycle?

Edited August 27, 2014 by t-pain

[garyfisher]

I've tried this money saving step also.  It's not worth it in my experience.  When stores like Grand Rapids Hydroponics sell promix for 19.99, you just cant beat it.

[+Malamute]

I fall in  line to garyfisher on that.  And I am a soil mixer aye.  Just never seemed worth the hassle. But,.. it does cost less to do it all from scratch so to speak.  But not enough to make it worth it.

[trichcycler]

once the total cash is tallied per plant pot, the investment in new soil is seen as one of the lowest cost of producing.  Money is well saved with proper atmosphere controls and genetic selections. One bud on one branch of one plant is valued several times more than the dirt the whole plant grew in. Outdoor gardens love used cannabis soil.  If you're using salt fertilizers you could be growing in pro mix, sand,rocks, Styrofoam, sponges, or just about any substrate, without the addition of any  lime, dolomite or vermiculite. The salts are feeding your plants, while killing the beneficial organisms responsible for the breakdown of organic materials. A fine choice to grow, and much cleaner.

[semicaregiver]

A friend is a big believer in reusing soil. The believers tend to refer to it as "No Till" or "Living Organic Soil". I watched as he harvested indoor plants at 11 oz per plant with two plants per 1000k. He claims it is less costly and better tasting than the standard indoor soil mixes such as Mal's KISS or SuperSoil formulas.

 

You can find extensive discussion on the techniques on all the national cannabis websites.

 

The above said, I have spent hours reading the various forums and threads about these methods and I have come to at least one conclusion, it is far more work and more costly than the normal promix type formulas. The supporters write eloquently about harvesting their own additives in the forest, creating their own worm farms and compost heaps. It all sounds wonderful, but seems really impractical for anything more than a few plants. I priced out purchasing their various components and there is no cost savings if you go that route.

 

In terms of production, I am not sure. My friend started out with 3-4' plants in 15 gallon smart pots before flowering. He flowered in a controlled room with AC and CO2. Plus lots of daily attention. It is very likely he would have gotten the 11z per plant without all the crazy soil work.

 

Anyway, just my 2 cents worth. If you want to research it for yourself, just google Clackamas Coot (runs LivingOrganicSoil.org) or Blue Jay over in Grasscity.

[garyfisher]

A friend is a big believer in reusing soil. The believers tend to refer to it as "No Till" or "Living Organic Soil". I watched as he harvested indoor plants at 11 oz per plant with two plants per 1000k. He claims it is less costly and better tasting than the standard indoor soil mixes such as Mal's KISS or SuperSoil formulas.

 

You can find extensive discussion on the techniques on all the national cannabis websites.

 

The above said, I have spent hours reading the various forums and threads about these methods and I have come to at least one conclusion, it is far more work and more costly than the normal promix type formulas. The supporters write eloquently about harvesting their own additives in the forest, creating their own worm farms and compost heaps. It all sounds wonderful, but seems really impractical for anything more than a few plants. I priced out purchasing their various components and there is no cost savings if you go that route.

 

In terms of production, I am not sure. My friend started out with 3-4' plants in 15 gallon smart pots before flowering. He flowered in a controlled room with AC and CO2. Plus lots of daily attention. It is very likely he would have gotten the 11z per plant without all the crazy soil work.

 

Anyway, just my 2 cents worth. If you want to research it for yourself, just google Clackamas Coot (runs LivingOrganicSoil.org) or Blue Jay over in Grasscity.

 

 

Absolutely, if you're using organics.  But this thread is about creating your own promix which is not worth the effort.

Edited August 27, 2014 by garyfisher

[trichcycler]

I only recently ceased recycling my soil. Hands down the labor alone made the task more expensive(like cg's get paid for labor right). I had nothing against bagged preps but was that crazy ole coot with 1ook worms and dozens of trays in the farm for the recycle job. Daily fuss, pest management, weight, water usage, composting dried cannabis trimmings risk, constant dirt transfer....all made my decision easy. The end results were better, but I think I was bias is all. I have superb results with brand new soil each time, and organic fertilizer spikes or Advanced Nutrients ME Tea. Considerable time savings, spinal health, lung health, and clean fingernails are the win! Now...nobody can tell I'm a cannabis grower ! (yeah, right)

 

Using new soil requires the disposal of the spent soil. Just look for the lawn with all the floating perlite in each low spot puddle. hehe, that's me. I'm private here, but if you are not I suggest building raised flower beds for the disposal outdoors.