Making soil while sheltering in place any suggestions?

[I'mOne]

Ok i need something to do while self quarantined. I need to recycle my soil. I need help with the proper recipes. I have
Used soil with foxfarm, perlite and peat mixed. It was used one season and then placed outside. Most has been in barrels with sun and snow and rain exposure. Some has a small amount of biochar added.
I also have:
Aglime with calcium and magnesium
Oyster shell
Home made biochar
Earthworm castings
Municipal grade mulch that has set all year.
Azomite
Peat moss
Powdered diamtomaceous earth
A small amount of sand
A small amount of pea gravel
Blood meal
Bone meal
Cow manure
Horse manure

 

[bobrown14]

how old is your manure?? Has it composted hot or cold for how long?

Things on your list "I" avoid:

Bone, blood meals (unless fish bone meal), sand and AG-lime.

I can go into detail on why if you would like to see my reasons.

You have plenty on hand to make a sustainable organic soil to run over time with little amending.

 

[Bush Doctor 77]

Home Depot, still open, has become my go to source for my preferred Sunshine #4, and they have other components, too.

 

[Kinghummingbird]

Ok i need something to do while self quarantined. I need to recycle my soil. I need help with the proper recipes. I have
Used soil with foxfarm, perlite and peat mixed. It was used one season and then placed outside. Most has been in barrels with sun and snow and rain exposure. Some has a small amount of biochar added.
I also have:
Aglime with calcium and magnesium
Oyster shell
Home made biochar
Earthworm castings
Municipal grade mulch that has set all year.
Azomite
Peat moss
Powdered diamtomaceous earth
A small amount of sand
A small amount of pea gravel
Blood meal
Bone meal
Cow manure
Horse manure

First time posting and only on my first grow so high probability my response is completely incorrect. Ha! I'm currently in that 'fascinated with dirt' stage. The good stuff is alive. That's crazy to me. Anyway, as I've read, I've realized that 'dirt' is really just a growing medium. I realize how patently obvious that is, but to your question, assuming that the dirt has no disease, why not reuse it? Keeping it simple, create the right texture then add nutrient as the plant needs it.

Maybe?

I have begun recycling the soil (Happy Frog) I use for potted perennials and with a general purpose slow release organic fertilizer mixed in they do just fine. Of course, pots can be tuned for a variety of perennials just like we tune pots for variety of...pot.

Here's what I decided on for my first true grow:

Ocean Forest with a layer of Coco on top. I started my feeding program using Fox Farm (the triple pack) but have since switched to the entire Roots Organics. I imagine there will come a time when I make my own teas but prepackaged stuff gives me something to "reverse engineer". Probably true that at some time in the near future I'll make my own dirt as well.

Currently growing some cultivar of Girl Scout Cookies and a couple Green Crack. Not growing for profit so it gives me room to experiment. I'll have a pretty good yield here in a few months and am looking forward to imbibing in something I grew. In the meantime I'm gonna sow some auto-flowering seeds in some Light Warrior surrounded by a mix of Ocean and Coco (30%) and give them some love for 8-10 weeks. These will be outdoor.

Good luck and sorry for the ramble! Fucking weed makes me talkative.

 

[bobrown14]

@Kinghummingbird you sure are using a lot of "brand names" for soil use.

You know you can mix your own for pennies in comparo to bagged stuff.

Anything you mix yourself will be better by a fair margin than what you can purchase at home despot right??

 

[Kinghummingbird]

@Kinghummingbird you sure are using a lot of "brand names" for soil use.

You know you can mix your own for pennies in comparo to bagged stuff.

Anything you mix yourself will be better by a fair margin than what you can purchase at home despot right??

They have such pretty bags though. Ha! I'm getting there. Just wanna leave the science up to the scientist until I've got a better grasp of how all this works. Only been gardening (the perennials and such)for 2 years. We've got two local shops that carry all the raw materials for whatever kinda growing I want to do. I'm thinking by my fourth grow I'll transition. What kinda mix are you using? ✌

 

[bobrown14]

Coots mix - been using it for 6-7 years now. Not very many amendments needed most can be purchased at your local Feed Store (think Agway and the like).

Make my own compost - peat moss I get Lambert's at the local Ag store for cheap $12 for a cubic foot and order a cubic foot of perlite off a-zon. Thats the pricey part lol.

Rock dusts can be found at the feed store along with kelp meal.
Same with gypsum and oyster shell flour.
Neem cake and Karanja Cake I order online.

There are sources you can purchase the amendments already mixed together online for fairly cheap as well instead of sourcing all the amendments yourself. I likely have a lifetime supply of everything I bought them all before pre-mix online availability.

Only thing and its the most important part is the humus. Start a compost pile there's your humus. You can purchase quality compost in a bag but not likely at a hydro store.

Coast of Main is one as is Malibu compost BU Blend.

There are my 2 "brand names" I sometimes use if I can get them cheap as in leftover from last season in early spring at the local Ag or flower store.

 

[I'mOne]

I opted to sterilize some of my old soil and some of my earthworm castings, its not ideal but its what i can do now. I have a couple of bags of mega crop i been learning to use and get the perdormance i want. In time i will probably try to go all organic, diy approach but thats later.

 

[Vegan4life]

I am getting my shelter in place shed grow going myself! It will probably take at least another week to get space built. I am going to grow some veggies in a 3' x 3' raised bed and 4 autos in 10 gallon pots. I have about 8 cubic feet of used sohum soil from my last grow, I have it stored outside in trash bags. I am currently building my new grow space, it will be approximately 3' x 5.5'. I bought another 260 watt quantum board kit on black friday, so I will have three of the 260 watt kits in the space. I am going to need about 10 more cubic feet of of soil. I am going to make me some Coot's mix. I just odered some mineral mix from Buildasoil and some perlite from HD. I have Peat, Kelp meal, crustation meal and Neem/Karanja mix on hand . I also have a stock pile of worm castings and It's time to harvest more as my worms have been very busy...

Not quite sure what I need to amend my used Sohum? Any suggestions?

 

[bobrown14]

I'd use the sohum as part of your humus portion of your base mix. Waste not want not as they say.

Did you get the amendment mix as well as the mineral mix or you gonna use what you already have on hand which sounds like you already have it. Malted barley? only thing I use not on your list there.

Good job on going with Coots mix. Gonna be a great grow. Start a journal and invite me please? You got time now!

 

[Vegan4life]

I'd use the sohum as part of your humus portion of your base mix. Waste not want not as they say.

Did you get the amendment mix as well as the mineral mix or you gonna use what you already have on hand which sounds like you already have it. Malted barley? only thing I use not on your list there.

Good job on going with Coots mix. Gonna be a great grow. Start a journal and invite me please? You got time now!

I only ordered mineral mix, I have the other amendments already (bought them on the zon last year). Yes I also have malted barley, I will run it through the vitamix and add it to the mix. I'll let you know when I start the journal.

 

[bobrown14]

Nice you on it! Good job buddy. You gonna like the results. Mmm tasty and smooth even freshies. Specially freshies.