TLO/Super Soil recipes

[DTOM420]

I used to use the 2.1 masters Mix.I stopped using it some time ago now due to the new owner D is his name.Messed with the mix so its less solid and less a performer in flower.Plus he accused me of stealing from him and being dishonest.So I essentially told him to fuck himself and how dare he.so i dont use it anymore.plus its inferior today with these other mixes out there. but you could do worse.but Id recommend KIS ,Bio Tabs ,Coots mix.there are others too Id use over the 2.1

That’s good news! I was worried that those water-only/super soil type mixes might be too strong on the nutrients for optimal auto growth. Since so many people including autobeast use these incredibly light mediums or soils (like Biobizz Light Mix or Light Warrior) I was also worried that the density of, say, a Coots Mix or the KIS soil would be less than ideal for autos’ root growth. Even with all the pumice in a Coots (33%) or KIS Mix (30%), there’s so much rock dust and basalt and heavy fine ground materials I thought it might be too much work for the roots to push through on their accelerated growth schedule. But you say you’ve had great results with them, right?

Have you tried the topping of autos in those types of soil mixes?

 

[BISCUITS]

I have used some pretty strong soil that is basically a Coot mix with alfalfa meal added and “cook” the shit out of it for 60 days if you can.My plants in 2 gal. smart pots end up around the 24” mark for height with nice bushy growth and seem to be thriving with the malted Barley top dress.The leaves reach for the sky and are eager to grow always pointing up and look like they are “ reaching” for the light.It is not hard to tell when a plant is happy.If you listen to them they will tell if they need anything.I also lightly top dress at the onset of flower ,usually the one month mark.I have also just started to experiment with a new cheap chitin source that contains a nice 16% total chitin and also amino based nitrogen a little phosphorus,calcium and lots of other stuff.I am talking about mealworms here.Their frass is outstanding too a little bit better then black soldier fly but I have been using the whole dried worms they sell at feed and pet stores.The freeze dried suckers that you can find at the feed store on sale for $3-4 and a little really goes a long way.They turn to powder in my coffee grinder along with the malted barley and my resin set is better then ever and begins earlier.

 

[BISCUITS]

Back to the soil bit.Cooking is the most important part.I moisten with molasses water and turn every few days.Good earth worm Castings are vital.The fresher the better of course.At and after the 60 day mark is important too.I also leave about a quart size hole which I fill with 75% pro mix 25%EWC and a sprinkle of the barley/mealworm mix.I am starting to realize the value of chitin for rooting it seems to accelerate rooting and growth in general.

 

[BISCUITS]

I have never found the soil to be too heavy or compact.The roots shoot right through my mix with perlite/vermiculite at about 30-33%.It is also important to use high quality sphagnum peat and coir.My mix drains very well and holds moisture good too ALWAYS using a good ewc top dress and mulch over that.Then when I top dress I just put it on top of the mulch usually.I have topped a few autos and my cat has done a few others with mixed results.Strain dependant I think and timing is very important.Others can probably help you more with that.I am a soil guy and always have been even when I grew large scale hydro my head stash shit was always soil grown.

 

[DTOM420]

Back to the soil bit.Cooking is the most important part.I moisten with molasses water and turn every few days.Good earth worm Castings are vital.The fresher the better of course.At and after the 60 day mark is important too.I also leave about a quart size hole which I fill with 75% pro mix 25%EWC and a sprinkle of the barley/mealworm mix.I am starting to realize the value of chitin for rooting it seems to accelerate rooting and growth in general.

Man, it’s a good thing I don’t have your phone number because I’d be gnawing your ear off! Lol!

Yeah, I wish I had access to better worm castings than what I can get bagged at a local garden shop or on Amazon but I’m very rural and have few options. I’ve started my own bins but it’ll take a bit before I have a meaningful volume of castings to use. At first, I figured I’d use them to brew AACT to maximize the biology from the small amount I can generate. I started with 2500 worms about a month ago. I also planted 25 comfrey plants a month ago; but I won’t be able to use any of that for a while either. It’s a process, isnt it?

Question for you on the frass. It’s my understanding that Frass isn’t simply ground up insect bodies but it’s actually their poop and their leftovers after they compost their food. Am I wrong in my understanding? That’s not to say that ground up meal worms aren’t great - I’ll bet they add great benefit! Just trying to clarify if there’s a difference between ground bodies and “frass?”

The outer body of the meal worn would be full of chitin that I imagine would break down easily and quickly and the innards of the insects are full of protein and I’ll bet serve as an amazing food source for microbes! Especially when mixed in with the malted barley! Are you grinding the meal worms and barley or feeding whole?

So, you’re saying to turn your soil as it cures? I thought I was supposed to let it sit undisturbed and just let the microbial life grow? Mine has been sitting for 21 days since I mixed it originally. It’s only had a little water added to keep the proper moisture level. I hadn’t thought about feeding it with molassas since there’s a good amount of Malted Barley in the mix; but it can’t hurt to add some. I’ll give it a try. I did inoculate the mix with Mycorrhizal fungi and lots of beneficial bacteria using Recharge.

When I start growing in it I’ll start a new journal and I’ll post the recipe. I don’t want to post it in here until I’ve tried it. Although it’s very similar to many of the recipes in here already.

 

[MrOldBoy]

Red worms are voracious eaters, Africans and Euro night crawlers are OK but larger castingsI,you want Red Wigglers ..... I have a flow thru worm bag and harvest all I can use ..... Urban Worm Bag i got on Amazon ....$59 or $89 with stand, I believe..... Make sure you get the newest model that has a bottom open tie-off and a zipper on the bottom .....

I simply unzip bottom and take out 3-5 gallons of material .... run thru two sizes of screens and harvest fresh castings ..... I have more than enough for any grows and for vegetables too!

Worm Egg

 

[DTOM420]

Red worms are voracious eaters, Africans and Euro night crawlers are OK but larger castingsI,you want Red Wigglers ..... I have a flow thru worm bag and harvest all I can use ..... Urban Worm Bag i got on Amazon ....$59 or $89 with stand, I believe..... Make sure you get the newest model that has a bottom open tie-off and a zipper on the bottom .....

I simply unzip bottom and take out 3-5 gallons of material .... run thru two sizes of screens and harvest fresh castings ..... I have more than enough for any grows and for vegetables too!

View attachment 994052


Worm Egg
View attachment 994048

Yeah, I got 2000 red wigglers and they’re in a homemade bin made from totes and 500 Alabama Junpers that I want to raise for eventual release into our clay heavy soil in my outdoor gardens. They do better outdoors in our extreme summer heat than the wigglers do. So, I’m giving them a try as well.
Thanks for the head’s up on that “urban worm bag.” I may give it a try when I have the funds. For now I gotta stick the the “Rural Redneck Tote Bin” that I’ve got already. Lol!

I just went and looked at that thing and it's friggin awesome for an indoor bin! One of these days. Right now my wife hasn't asked about the tote in the living room with all the screen covered holes. When she figures out what it is, I may need that to keep them in the barn or the dog kennels....where I'll be living! Lol!

 

[MrOldBoy]

Alabama Jumpers or the African can work outdoors depending on soil / climate but wigglers not so much unless you’ve got horse poop .... I scored four loads and then that source dried up but I’ve got a new source, I’ll find out this week ..... I’m in seventh heaven when I’m in middle of a pile of horse poop ....

Be sure to include some fine sand or glacier rock for your friends and on my egg shells I rinse out the yoke or only use part of egg without yoke .... yoke shells go in compost outside where t has no issue composting ....

also not sure if you’re onto this little trick ..... all my cardboard boxes get broke down and put into soil with leaves, straw or whatever over it - cardboard stops weeds for a season and breaks down into soil ....

Lots of luck with your worms, do watch the moisture if worms crawl up sides, it’s too wet .... I also live rural, population 1,250 with big city 25 miles, 12,500 folks!

 

[DTOM420]

@MrOldBoy Good to meet another small town guy! Doin’ it Red Dirt style! Lol! I did see that tip on the cardboard in another thread and I’ve been meaning to give it a try. I’ve got accss to TOO much horse poop! Damn things eat me out of house and home. Haha! So, it goes to good use in compost piles and now it’ll go to the worms. Although I’m mainly feeding them the malted barley and some leaf mold I harvested from our woods. Hopefully this coming summer I’ll be feeding comfrey to them as well. I’ve already got leaves on about 15 of them, the rest haven’t grown enough from the rootlet to reach the surface. We have pretty mild winters here so they’re getting time to get established some before it hits. Generally we don’t even get a freeze until some time in January and they’re sporadic and short-lived. Last freezing temps are usually in late Feb or early March. I hear comfrey is magical for worms.

 

[MrOldBoy]

Wow didn’t know that about comfrey, just did a little reading on it ..... I’m going to have to get a few comfrey plants going .....

Yep on the eggs, be careful putting any remaining yoke into your bin, outside ok but avoid yoke inside and crush the shells as fine as you can ..... worms need course food to help digest their food, that’s why the sand or dust and I believe egg shells too .....

On the worms, be sure to “test feed” them by that I mean don’t put too mich of anyone thing into your binat once .... I like to divide the food up into the corners of the bin and let them have at it ....

Try this, put a piece of stale bread into the bin, maybe just half piece in one corner and wait about a day or two and turn over, you’ll be amazed .....

Best of grow and to the best gardeners on earth, the worm!