FarmerJake’s Raised Bed

[FarmerJake]

I do live in farm country so the local feed store has bulk clover in stock for cheap, probably wouldn’t hurt to grab some while it’s around

 

[WildBill]

I may since it’s a real long term soil project and I understand the benefits involved. I never did in my 2x2 though and had favorable results so I’m leaning towards sticking with what I know for this round. Keeping vegetative matter in the grow room to a minimum is a goal as well, any kind of untended vegetation has the chance to rot and cause mold within the tent, learned this the hard way with untidy leaf removal, and organic mulch covers that ended up molding from moisture. Safest to compost outside the tent and bring it in, so I’m unsure I want a cover crop in this situation. Alot of a cover crops benefit is realized when it is reincorporated into the soil and the process of reincorporating it creates the vegetation decay I want to avoid. More living vegetation also makes more humidity via transpiration. A lot of variables but I agree long term it would make sense, short term I don’t think I would benefit beyond planning ahead for the future. And I can match the benefit by adding amendments on such a small scale. Cover crops come into play on a much larger field size scale where amendments would be too expensive to implement and natural soil structure is at mind(not much natural soil structure to preserve here) Interplanting cover crops is also not the typical way farmers use cover crops though it is being adopted more. I was almost wondering if next spring leading into summer I would plant a cover crop only bed to revitalize and skip the hassle of a summer grow in the basement with the humidity and all.

One aspect of a large bed that I think is a must is earthworms. All your vegetative decay worries would be resolved with earthworms.
Ideally, you would want your cover crop to be well established before planting code but that's gonna occur later on anyway.
Your clovers and your vetch are going to be active nitrogen producers in your soul with their little nitrogen nodules on their root structure. With the other non legume or nitrogen fixing plants, their main benefit is from a bulky root structure. In actual soil, this is extremely beneficial by the roots being able to go deep into the soil to break it up and to extract hidden unavailable nutrients and bring them further up in the soil structure. When either of these are chopped and dropped food for the worms.
I really think you'd be missing out if you don't have a living cover crop. That's actually my biggest reason for a raised bed. It would sort of duplicate what would occur in nature, as best we can inside. A living mulch helps retain moisture and keep the biological activity at a high rate in the upper sections of the media structure.......... again duplicating what occurs in nature.
Think of it as acting like the cover on earth box. Cover on earth box conserves moisture, but the biggest thing it does is keeps the biological activity at the top of the soil structure where the roots are want to go, the way it is in nature.
I hear your mold concerns are valid, but really nonexistent if you have earthworms for sure. And really if you think about it, your humidity concerns would really only be valid if you didn't have a way of removing it. You gonna have humidity if you're growing cannabis. But I understand your concern.
I understand your concerns man. You're doing something different any kind of wanna take it slow and that's fine.
I am a cover crop nut! I use cover crops extensively in my family garden and in my pasture. Cover crops were an invaluable resource in soil building when I bought my farm. That soil was horrible in the beginning.......... A very sandy sandy loam, but fairly deep with the underlying clay layer deep below.

I used a huge array of cover crops, each with its own benefit. I always had a cover crop of some sort going on in my garden. No bare soil in my garden. It either had to have an active cover crop or mulch. Never a single crop, with the most simple being hairy vetch and elbon rye as the mother crop overwinter to protect the hairy vetch.
I've used feed turnips and feed beets to add massive amounts of carbon material to the sandy ass soil and then turn the cows out into it instead of me getting on a tractor and shredding it.

Like any new method of growing, you have to work it out and adapt it to your way of thinking and what you're comfortable with. You're already gonna have a great grow by having a big bed. You'll be fine by putting down straw or rice hose or something similar and use what you've been doing in past grows.
I think once you see how well this bed will work, I think you'll want to expand upon it once you get comfortable with it and have a grow under your belt.
When you do decide to have a living cover crop, just get build a soil multi variety seed package. That's what I ordered for these 20 gallon pots.


Oh yeah one last vote for a cover crop. It will definitely keep your moisture level more even throughout the raise bed. I think that's pretty invaluable too with you needing to learn how to water this bed.

 

[WildBill]

I do live in farm country so the local feed store has bulk clover in stock for cheap, probably wouldn’t hurt to grab some while it’s around

Some cover crop is better than none, but I never use a single plant as a cover crop.

 

[FarmerJake]

All your vegetative decay worries would be resolved with earthworms.

Not a solve all IMO as I already have abundant worms

Your clovers and your vetch are going to be active nitrogen producers in your soul with their little nitrogen nodules on their root structure

The nitrogen is fixed into the cover crop itself and becomes available after being worked into the soil so on the short term they actually use nutrients that are immediately available and require processing to rerelease the extra.

 

[FarmerJake]

That's what I ordered for these 20 gallon pots.

I really don’t get the cover cropping of pots but don’t actually want to suffer through the explanation of the virtues

 

[WildBill]

Not a solve all IMO as I already have abundant worms

The nitrogen is fixed into the cover crop itself and becomes available after being worked into the soil so on the short term they actually use nutrients that are immediately available and require processing to rerelease the extra.

Well I guess that is one aspect of growing in a basement. I have no knowledge whatsoever of growing in those kinds of conditions. LoL!
A cover crop is not necessary just for the current grow. That's true and regular gardening and it's true in this silly stuff that we're doing.

I know you know what you're doing. As with anyone, any advice I give is from my experiences in the past. Just like I do with what Jeremy of BAS.....or others....... does and says, I absorb the information and take what works with my methods and my train of thought. I expect no less from others.

I think it's pretty safe to say, growing cannabis is an evolution.

 

[WildBill]

Do you use insect frass? With your concern for mold, it could help you with this.

Insect Frass naturally contains the nutrition plants require, beneficial micro-organisms, and the only immediately plant-available source of chitin (pronounced “Kite-inâ€). Chitin fortifies a plant from the inside out, causing an "auto-immune" response that signals a plant to produce natural toxins which fend off its natural enemies like pests and fungal pathogens. The EPA says that chitin and chitosan (see FAQ's) defend against botrytis (grey mold), powdery mildew, early and late blight, fungal pathogens in the root zone (root rot) and root-feeding nematodes. Insect Frass does NOT cause a plant to kill beneficial insects or beneficial nematodes.

 

[FarmerJake]

This thread will become my stomping grounds for the next few grows, but first an update on the first complete/failed grow. The plants were huge, buds were dank, aphids and mold ruined the crop. Lessons were learned and now we are going to have an amazing grow ahead of us. Right now we are in a fallow period for a week while the aphids starve. To take advantage of this I added the amendments and thoroughly remixed the soil bed and I’m glad I did as I found unmixed soil layers from before which may have been to blame for some of the Ph issues I was having early on first grow in the bed. I also saw how there were dry pockets and that I need to water more especially around the edges and corners. While a No till option might be best, the information I learned and the consistency I achieved with amendment distribution makes it worthwhile. Who else uses real shovels in their tent?

Here is the biggest autos I’ve ever grown, I don’t think it was only epic genetics but also this setup that maxed them out.

Eight plants was too many so this next round we will be using 4 plants of some homegrown crosses I made. Hopefully we get monsters again. I’ll be rearranging the hardware and setting the tent up into winter mode over the next week

 

[WildBill]

I think you'll fly through the next one with big girls!

 

[Rick Dirte']

Hey FJ. I love the new raised bed. Good idea. Those 20/20 girls were awesome!
Get some insect frass and pelletized neem cake. It will keep the bugs out of your soil and the bugs from munching on your plants. Crab meal has chitins in it also.