That perfect soil is exactly what I'm after! My partner is worried I'll go mad scientist and burn our entire outdoor crop. So we've agreed that we'll plant half our ladies in a very basic soil mix. I get to plant the other half in a more nutrient rich mixture. I've done some extensive research and the following are my best efforts. These efforts are, however, rookie. So please jump in and let me know what I might do differently; add ingredients, subtract ingredients, change proportions, w/e. BASIC MIX 3 cu ft canadian sphagnum peat moss 3 cu ft organic compost 40-50lbs composted manure 2-3 cu ft perlite In case you're wondering why I'm not using promix or sunshine mix, I already have a dozen bails of peat moss. Amount of perlite will depend on how heavy this mix is. Can I get away with no lime or ground oyster here? MAD SCIENTIST MIX Soil Structure: 3 cu ft. canadian sphagnum peat moss 3 cu ft. organic compost 1 cu ft. (25 lbs.) earthworm castings 2-3 cu ft. perlite Soil Fertility: 2 cups dolomite lime 1 cup epsom salts 1 cup ground oyster shell 5 cups RTI Mykos Myccorhizal Inoculant 2 cups steamed bone meal 3 cups alfalfa meal 2 cups kelp meal I figured the earthworm castings will give the ladies an immediate & moderate (NO risk whatsoever of burn) source of nitrogen while the soil is still too cool for microbial activity to work on the other organics in this mix. I figured dolomite lime + oyster shell is better than lime alone for pH control (let me know if this is not necessary, or if it will cause Ca/Mg balance issues). Epsom salts, uh... dunno... ResinRubber and every single other person I see list it in their recipes Mykos Inoculant - self explanatory Bone meal for a good source of P to last the entire veg cycle. Alfalfa meal as a safe, fast-release, balanced N-P-K source, which contains great vitamins + Triacontanol (<--- btw, due to this growth hormone I've read I should not feed alfalfa meal compost tea toward the end of veg cuz it'll delay the plants' flowering. anyone testify to this?) Kelp meal for awesome trace nutrients. I've seen mixes with much higher proportions than this. For example, I think if I followed the fold I'd be putting more like 6 cups of bone meal in here. I definitely am gun-shy now about overdoing it. I wanted to get all the variety included in this mix, but without loading the soil up too much and causing crop failure. So I did what I thought would make it safe and cut way back on the proportions of the meals in the mix. Please jump in on this one and let me know what ya'll think! EDIT: changed notation for "cubic feet"
After a little more careful consideration I've actually decided that 4 cups bone meal, 4 cups alfalfa meal, 2 cups kelp meal, is the way I'll go unless someone thinks that's not advisable. I was actually reading this post here http://forum.grasscity.com/organic-growing/550190-alfalfa-meal-how-apply.html which is an article specifically about how to use alfalfa meal for organic grows. Based on the author's recommendation I'd actually be using 9 cups of alfalfa meal. However, I must err on the side of caution and assume he meant that as a standalone fertilizer. So I just backed it off a bit and took it down to 4. I can always add later if needed in a tea, but I can't take away when my plants start getting "the nute burn claw" :-( How's this sound? And the jury is still out on the lime, epsom salt, and oyster shell. I'm kinda up in the air on that one, lookin for a little solid guidance
I wouldn't add any epsom salts to my soil mix. The dolomite lime (powdered form not pelletized) and Oyster shel can be used, but I'm not sure you really need both. Although I think the potting soil mix I was using had both in it when I bought it. I would definitely 100% say yes to the Dolomite lime. I think you need about a cup per cubic ft. of soil. ResinRubber is a knowledgeable source for info on organic soil.
Epsom Salt is better utilized, in my opinion, in a tea when watering. The lime is a must. I personally measure by look and consistency of the soil. Everything else is really up to you as long as you keep a healthy soil environment. Make sure the bone meal isn't too high in P early on.
