Pro-Organic - 30%
cow manure - 20%
EWC - 25%
coco coir - 15%
Perlite Pumice! 10%
Initial thought to amend the base with:
Lime / dolomite - 0.15 cup/gal
Bulk Mg/Su (epsom) - 0.05 cup/gal
Oyster shell - 0.5 oz/gal
Neem - 0.125 lb/gal
Blood meal - 0.2 tsp/gal
Bat guano - 1 tbs/gal
Shrimp meal - 1 tbs/gal
Alfalfa, EWC, Kelp teas throughout the grow.
I only have specific NPK for:
Neem 6-1-2
Blood meal 12-0-0
Bat guano 0-7-0
Shrimp - 6-6-0
No analysis for the Pro-Organic soil, just general components:
Coarse Sphagnum Peat Moss, Coconut Coir Fiber, Perlite, Vermicompost, Diatomite, Dolomitic Limestone (for pH adjustment of this soilless mix) and a Natural Wetting Agent, Endomycorrhizal Fungi, Ectomycorrhizal Fungi,Bacteria
Now for the hitch..... WTF do I have here?
Should have micro-nutrients, bacteria and such covered, silicon, pest control from the Neem, but am I too high or too low with any of the primary nutrients?
Hi bud!
I'd say the ingredients look pretty tasty. The only thing I may suggest to get you started would me more pumice. I've never used ProMix though, so I don't know its perlite percentage. As far as pumice goes, it is a better choice than perlite in my opinion. For starters it does have minerals in it that will help the soil. Also it is natural, where perlite (natural to a point) needs to be processed, and that process is actually harmful to the environment.
I would go up to 1Tbsp/Gal of the shrimp meal. Not so much for the 6-6-0, as for the chitin. I am sure you read about them, but just in case you want a bit more info. This is when I was working on my IPM.
To add to the line of defense, and fertilization I have ordered some crab meal too. I went with the Down to earth brand and got a 5lbs box. It is rated at 4-3-0, and has Chitin in it. The chitin is what I am going for. It is know to suppress lesion nematodes (Pratylenchus) and improve plant health by strengthening the cell walls. in the book "Kick-Ass Cannabis & Veggies" it also claims chitin will trick the plant to "excreting substances to ward off pest as a defense mechanism". Chitin is found in crustacean, and insect exoskeletons mainly. It is also found in squid, and octopus.
I am curious if this last part is on a terpen level. I read somewhere recently a guy stay he thinks some genetics are mold/pest resistant is due to their trepen build.
The wiki on chitin: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitin#cite_note-9
A close-up of the wing of a sap beetle; the wing is composed of chitin.
View attachment 503264
"Glanzkaefer" by Zituba at the German language Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Glanzkaefer.jpg#/media/File:Glanzkaefer.jpg
The crab meal will also help the microbial life, which in turn will hunt the problematic bugs. The following was found at: http://www.natureswayresources.com/nl/102OrganicFertilizer33.pdf
"The exoskeletons of some pathogenic fungus, parasitic nematode eggs, and many species of insects contain chitin. When these meals are applied they encourage the growth of chitin consuming microbes in the soil. Over a few months these microbes can grow to very high numbers as they eat the chitin in the meal. When all the chitin has been consumed they start looking for other sources of chitin to eat that can be found in the bad fungus, pest nematodes and other insect pests, killing them in the process resulting in a natural control as a side benefit.
For example chitin digesting bacteria produce enzymes (chitinases) that degrades chitin hence it attacks insects and other pest that use chitin in there exoskeleton. One of the chitinases called Chitosan has been shown to increase photosynthesis, stimulate plant growth, activate natural plant immune system defenses, increase nutrient uptake, increase seed germination and sprouting, and increase overall plant vigor."
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Maybe you could get some of the crab meal instead. Do 1Tbsp/Gal of crab and shrimp. The crab has a lower N-P rating, and it is a slow release. Plus the size of the crab meal help with aggregation of the soil. While the shrimp would feed the soil for the initial "cook", the crab will provide a constant source of the chitin.
In regards to the low P, I wouldn't worry much. A plant will tell you kinda fast if it needs P, and if that happens you could brew up some tea with the guano. Just for piece of mind you could give it a bat shit tea at the start of flower, and mid flower. Really however, if you are using EWC tea, and have a fair amount of organic matter, you should be fine.
You may want to have a look at the ground cover link in my signature. It has a lot of info that will help out maintaining happy microbial life. It cuts down on a fair amount of watering too. In turn saves the back some pain.Most the choices are free too.
I too have osteoarthritis in my lower back. It doesn't sound as progressed as yours but I can attest it is pretty shitty. I was diagnosed at 30, and am 33 now. Doc blames it on genetics for me forming it so young. I actually just got my 1st set of CBD breed seeds to try and take the holistic approach to the pain.
I love the fact you are making your own soil. In my opinion it is the best a gardener can do. You love the soil, the soil will love the plant, the plant will love you. Perfect circle my friend.
When I was coming up with IPM ideas someone shared this video with me. I found it to have some absolutely golden information. There is a bunch of videos from the emerald cup, and they are all by "great minds" in the organic cannabis world.
If you have any questions bud feel free to let them fly. I hope some of this helps. Take care bud.:smoking:
for the insights!
