The Organic Way: Soil Science 101

[SweetSue]

It tunes the soil to recycle the extra leaves, stems and roots back through. Do you add anything to aide in the breakdown of the added biomass? I'm thinking comfrey or yarrow in particular.

Thank you for adding to the knowledge base.

 

[UncleCannabis]

The container is basically a ready to use compost/soil mix. I think that there is plenty of active and healthy microbial life already present in sufficient numbers to take care of the decomposition. The critters that are already there will make quick work of this.

The vegetable scraps, leaves, ,old root balls, bubble hash leftovers, etc, that have been thrown in previously are usually broken down within about 3 to 6 weeks or less depending on the size of the pieces when introduced to the bin.

 

[SweetSue]

Yeah, I should have thought of that. But look at the additional information I managed to tease out of you without even trying?

 

[UncleCannabis]

You do know how to pull my strings.

 

[SweetSue]

You do know how to pull my strings.

You make it so much fun, how can I resist?

 

[UncleCannabis]

You're welcome to pull all the strings you want Sue. Just don't go pulling on my finger.... LOL!! ::

 

[bobrown14]

You're going to make me do worms again BB. Dammit!! I have to keep them alive his time.

Sue - you have a bucket right?? You have a scoop too?? Take them on a walk in the woods specially this time of year before leaves start to fall. Look for old dead decaying trees and limbs and I mean decaying a lot. On both sides of the tree/branch what have you there will be PILES of worm castings. In a few days of scavenging like that you will have a large tote full of EWC and it will be the best you can find or make. Just scoop it into your bucket (try and leave the worms behind). Your golden... you have in your possession THE best amendment and soil building tool you will ever have and it's free! Go check it out. We do it all the time.

What you get is forest bacteria and hyphae that will out perform any and all anything you can purchase - it's organic, its sustainable, very diverse and its the best. This is the time of year to do it, as the worms have been eating last falls leaves and in a healthy forest most of the leaves from last year are gone... hey where did they go?? They have been digested by worms for the most part and composted too. Leaf mold anyone?? Simple as walking in the woods with a bucket and a scoop. Easier than worm bins. I do have an affinity for worms tho.

Don't delay tho, fall is upon us and leaves are already falling and will cover up all that black gold. Right now you can see it right there on the ground in front of you.

 

[ThatGuyThai]

Looks like I'll be getting into organic soil. Thanks to everyone who contributed. I've read through it all but will study it more in depth and learn by trying things out.

 

[ShiggityFlip]

subbed, I will read all and then jump in.

 

[maineiac]

It appears as some are confused by varied answers to the question what is the best soil/amendment combo. To clear much of this, there are two schools of thought. Hi Brix, and nonBrix organic gardening. Most don't use the Hi Brix method, however I believe this is a better quality finished product. Advice from Hi Brix growers concerns the potassium added to the soil, as potassium interferes with plants producing sugars and carbs. Potassium is needed to produce fruits (apples, tomatoes, pumpkins, etc.) As cannabis only does flowers, not so much is needed. As non Hi Brix growers aren't concerned about potassium levels, most try different things from different formulas and settle with whatever gives them the best they can, and stay with it, as long as it's "organic".

 

[Kriaze]

It appears as some are confused by varied answers to the question what is the best soil/amendment combo. To clear much of this, there are two schools of thought. Hi Brix, and nonBrix organic gardening. Most don't use the Hi Brix method, however I believe this is a better quality finished product. Advice from Hi Brix growers concerns the potassium added to the soil, as potassium interferes with plants producing sugars and carbs. Potassium is needed to produce fruits (apples, tomatoes, pumpkins, etc.) As cannabis only does flowers, not so much is needed. As non Hi Brix growers aren't concerned about potassium levels, most try different things from different formulas and settle with whatever gives them the best they can, and stay with it, as long as it's "organic".

You sound quite disparaging to growers of non Hi Brix 'organic' growers 'doing the best they can'. I would like to see you back this up with fact, if you are unable to then you might want to reword your statement as I know growers that use both and some of those growers are happier with Living Organic Soil. Personal opinion should never overrule true facts in this place, we are here to share knowledge to the best of our abilities, not opinions. I look forward to your next factual statement

 

[bobrown14]

All the Potassium required by a cannabis plant can be covered by adding about a 1/4 cup of Kelp Meal to the soil when mixing the soil prior to the start of the grow. Most organic growers use more than a 1/4 cup of Kelp Meal so any additional Potassium is not needed IMHO.

I think the Hi-Brix methodology steers clear of it as well.. I'm an organic gardener and use Pro-teck which does contain some K. I use the Pro-Tekt for its other qualities.

 

[Conradino23]

Absolutely, very little K is needed to veg and flower cannabis.

 

[lazyfish]

Really? My dad has been pouring on the NPK (heavy on the K) for years and this is about what I do when flowering begins... Lots of K gives bug buds right?

If not what then?

 

[Conradino23]

Definitely brings more bugs if soil is out of balance. K is predominantly a nutrient that "stretches the cells" allowing more water to be transpired, makes plants more fit to cope with extreme heat/cold. It also helps fruit to set and grow bigger... but there's one tiny detail, cannabis is not a fruit bearing plant. Female flowers and when she's done that's the end of the cycle. K is used a little bit more during early flowering, and later in very tiny amounts. Now if your soil is lacking in K, you need to correct it, but most of non-desert soils are abundant in K, overabundant actually, which means adding more K not only doesn't make sense, but it will hurt absorption of other minerals most important being calcium and magnesium, which are competing for uptake through the same cation channels. I really advise to cut back on K when using commercial mediums, cause they're too rich in it.

 

[bobrown14]

Conradino.. can you post a pic or 2 of your outdoor soil before planting, please?

Reason I ask is I know his soil is stocked full of naturally occurring Ca (calcium aka Limestone). It's in dem der hills and now in the soil he grows in. Conradino's soil is some of the best organic soil in the world, in his back yard. We will see his soil looks a little bit different than what we see here in the US.

Limestone deposits along with Granite/Feldspar ... this is the reason Italy is one of the top food producing countries on the planet. It's all in the minerals in balance with nature and humans making educated choices.

Healthy soil

Grows healthy plants

Healthy plants feed and keep animals healthy

Healthy animals feed humans

humans remain healthy.

if your Vegan.. then:

healthy plants feed humans

humans remain healthy.

Soil IS the building block of life.

Round ball, get on board.

Ready set..... grow!

 

[kelticBlue]

I wonder where they got the name dolomite from ah a google is born-- I see. French mineralogist Déodat Gratet de Dolomieu who was the first to describe the mineral.

Anywho, I just saw Conradino has some pictures of is soil in his new journal, pretty good learning seeing all these things.. . . . .

Conradino23's Another Outdoor Grow With High Brix Soil - Air-Pots & SoCal Seed Stock

Great science ! !

 

[Conradino23]

I can actually do it, I got some fresh pics.

 

[bobrown14]

Conradino thanks for the pics (that's gold right there) - have you ever had a soil test done on that soil??

Everyone.. maybe it's just me but doesn't his soil have a somewhat chalky (limestone) look to it. It's a dark brown with a little greyish tone. Man that soil looks really good. So looking at it, he's got a lot of hummus with naturally occurring limestone and some decent amount of clay. Clay is key... it's got all the nutrients we need for plants AND a lot of silica.

It's the clay that brings the nutrients to the table (our dinner table), once they get broken out with Hydrogen from the rain in the atmosphere. That hydrogen has a negative charge and breaks out (cation exchange) all the minerals the plants need (those minerals have a positive charge) and make them available to the plant roots.

Interestingly plant root exudates also are slightly acidic. The microbes interact with the exudates and bring the positively charged nutrients to the roots and exchange for the exudate.

So PH is the amount of hydrogen (H-) in whatever you are measuring. We need a somewhat acidic soil (more Hydrogen ions) for plants to grow and thrive, so there's some negative ions to interact with the positive anions in the nutrients the plants need for growth and nutrition for themselves and whomever eats those plants.


We humans over the millennia have decided to settle in areas where the soil is some what acidic.. the plants we feed our animals require nutrients. They are more readily taken up by plants in acidic soils making them healthier for us and the animals we use for food. Alkaline soils grow plants with little nutrients, so humans and animals get sick and do not thrive ... we then move to a place with more acidic soils.

Reason for my huge interest in Conradino's soil is I'm studying Calcium and its uses in soil (its interestingly not JUST for changing the PH), and also CLAY and what clay brings to the table. I bet his soil has all of that in spades. Why is Italy one of the places that produces the best food and veggies in the world? It's that soil...


I just did an experiment with cannabis seeds:

I soaked 10 root plugs with a solution of water, a little calcium (fine limestone powder) and a bit of coconut water.

I soaked another 10 root plugs with just water and a bit of coconut water.

I put 10 seeds of all the same strain (Afghani reg seeds) in both 10 sets. So all the same genetics.

Guess what ... so far 10 out of 10 with the calcium added. The other set only has 3 or 4 seeds germinating so far.

What I'm going to do is grow them out in veg and see which plants end up more vigorous, grow larger and faster.

I've read that seeds treated with Calcium at/before sprouting do better with yields and also germination rate.

RE: Dr Albrecht studies in Calcium.

More to come.

Cheers

 

[kelticBlue]

That is lovely. It is the grayish look to the soil I think is so cool.