fatbuds420
Well-Known Member
Is there something like a guide to how to properly reuse potting soil?
Guide to reusing soil?
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Emilya Green
Well-Known Member
composting is the key to sustainable soil. Always keep some composting while the rest is working. Try to add back what is used during a grow, in the compost pile. Analyze your soil every 3 or 4 years to see where you are at. Throw all your grow room cutting, roots and all debris into that compost pile too. Even with all of this, add fresh soil to the mix periodically, soil does wear out over time and organics decompose. Nothing lasts forever.
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fatbuds420
Well-Known Member
Even if I'm using a light mix which has no nutrients in it to start with?
Emilya Green
Well-Known Member
your light mix is not going to last very long before it starts to break down big time, maybe 2 or 3 grows... and then you are going to need to mix it in with something better if you want to get some good sustainability. Its ability to hold nutrients and water and even the plants will diminish over time. You really need to see a container of soil fall flat one time to see how bad it can get.
You can reuse soil. I do it all the time. Last soil I mixed in 2016 still in daily use.
I soil test and also have a specific soil recipe that is designed for re-use over and over with little amending.
It can be done.
Like @Emilya said compost is key!
I soil test and also have a specific soil recipe that is designed for re-use over and over with little amending.
It can be done.
Like @Emilya said compost is key!
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fatbuds420
Well-Known Member
I see, what soil would you recommend for reusing it?
I was using terra canna because I'm using their nutrients too...
Do you have a guide on how to compost soil. Such as the one I'm. Using?
Its different from usual soil, kinda acidic, you gotta water between 5.8 and 6.2ph according to canna.
What exacly. Is composting, just adding a. Bunch of crap. And let. It. Brake down over time? Like food etc?
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fatbuds420
Well-Known Member
Are you able. To share it?
Emilya Green
Well-Known Member
I like Fox Farm Ocean Forest as a good strong organic soil with many years use ability, as my base soil. Then I add in the minerals that our plants need to grow, and the recipe that I used to build my soil was the Subcool recipe... you will be able to find it in many forms out here on the webs. Since i concentrated so hard on building a good soil that could actually grow my plants without nutrients, I had no need for additional nutrients for quite a while, until that soil got too weak to support a grow without help. I found myself where I am now, with soil that has been used for 7 years and could be further amended and composted back into a good usable soil, or I could help the grow along a bit with additional nutrients and some fresh soil. I chose Geoflora dry organic Nutrients to get me through this time, so that I could still grow organically without shorting my plants of what they need. My old supersoil is in the bottom of all of my containers, with brand new FFOF in the middle, and brand new FFHF filling out the top of the containers. At the end, I will put all of this once used and 7 years used soil together in the compost bin, and it will be good to use yet another day.
Composting is the act of putting all this raw nutrient material into the soil, and then allowing it to "cook" or compost for 2 or 3 months, breaking down some of the raw organic material into a form that can be used by the plants and actually turning the raw nutrients into humus, a substance that holds together and can hold water and nutrients... you actually create new soil from the organics you compost into that mess.
Once you have a good sustainable soil that has everything needed in it, you have no need for nutrients or worries about pH. Organic growing is the best way to go if you wish to reuse your soil over and over again, and not have to rely on expensive nutrient companies to feed your plants.
Look up Vermi-composting. It's pretty easy. You can add your goodies to the compost bin instead of buying in a bottle. Just a little tip. Cheaper a lot cheaper. Takes longer tho but it should be something we all do. Vermi-composting.
Google "Coots mix" - the recipe has very few inputs. There are a few shops that sell the amendments and mineral mix then you add perlite, compost and peat moss.
What do you use to test soil?
The person you asked is a long time member but has not been around for several weeks.
A soil test kit will give you basic info with minimum accuracy for a little bit of money but keep in mind that you will get what you paid for. Crank up google or your favorite search engine and request a search for "State-by-State List of Soil Testing Labs at Cooperative Extension Offices" and then look for the location in your state if you live in the US. Once you know which state university has the agricultural college for your state you can contact them for a soil test package. You will have to send a sample of the soil to them and they will provide you with in depth results including suggestions on how to fix problems if there are any. Plus they will test for more than the inexpensive tests you will find at hardware stores.
Go back to google and type in this search question: >> soil test 420 magazine << as I typed it. At the top of the results page should be a listing of about 4 or 5 links to message threads here on 420 magazine. For more results click on the line that reads More results from www.420magazine.com for another 5 to 7 links. Doing that is a lot easier than trying to use the search function in this software.
Or make your own basic potting mix just like what gardeners, botonists and people in the horticulture businesses have been using for a 100 years. Start by getting some decent compost and Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss and Perlite. Mix 1 part of each. Pay attention to how much you are mixing so you know the total volume. Then google "Coot's Mix" for the list of soil amendments. The recipe you find will say how much to use of each amendment for the volume of potting mix you made.
Most decently stocked grow stores will have most of the amendments or a good substitution. Some store will have all of the list.
I drop in from time to time.
We get soil tests at our local County Extension service if in the states. Almost all states have a federally funded (tax dollars) soil test lab that is/was funded by the AG bill. Started way back in the 1930s after the dust bowl fiasco that could have been avoided.
Basically your state university - here in NYS where we live its Cornell - they are private college but have been active in horticulture for many many years and give us access (very inexpensively) to soil and water testing.
For example we lived in PA and got our soil tested at Penn State.
It''s cheap like 11$ doesn't even really cover postage.
Its mainly for farmers but also home gardeners is good just dont say you're testing soil for cannabis since that is still a no no at the Fed level and this is a AG Bill federally funded program. Can say your testing soil for growing HOPS - the closest relative to cannabis or Hemp if its legal but hemp growers generally require a permit.
The reason for it being able to be accessed at your local county extension service is because thats where you can pick up in person your soil test kit.
Nowadays you should be able to order on-line thru the State soil lab which is usually the state university for the state you live in. Also some state labs will test out of state soil samples same cheap price. This is due to the fact there are a few states that do not have a state soil lab.... last time I checked there were 2 or 3 states that did not have a soil lab.
Thanks. Great bargain at that price
