Noob City :)... Soil questions

I got through a couple issues already and am wondering what the best soil ammendments would be to add the the soil I'll be transplanting to relatively soon. While I have read a lot on the subject and definitely understand the basics of gardening/marijuana growing... I am definitely a noobie to this as a hobby.

I have bone meal, blood meal, vermiculite, pearlite, and peat moss already on hand as I do a fair amount of home veggie gardening. I also do have Budda Bloom and Budda Grow nutrients which I was planning on using starting a few weeks from now.

What is a good mix of soil and ammendments if I still intend on using nutrients?

Any help is much appreciated.

If you plan on using nutrients then its rather pointless to amend the soil. The bloom nutes will have everything the plant requires to thrive.

So there is NO point at all in amending the soil to create better aeration/etc.? The only benefit in amending is the nutrients? Just want to be clear. thank you

Always pays to have Good Soil dankmandan ~ "Feed the Soil Not the Plant" is the saying I think? I Rols so I am always adding stuff, but I have been using BioBizz since day 1 so I can't really say about the other Nutes that peeps use. You can't go wrong adding more Perlite and/or Vermiculite..I've used Bone Meal and this was just mixed in with the Batch I was getting ready for Potting on. Anything that helps the Aeration and the Micro Herd and uptake of Nutrients has to be a plus.(Just keep an eye on N-P-K Levels)

Lot of things depend on how you Growing the Mj and what system,setup..Nutes etc...

I mean IF you Potting On/Up and will be vegging for a while then by all means improve/amend the Soil/Compost Mix..

I also add Bat Guano to My Potting On Mix, and have just started using Molasses...

Tis all good so far...Though I'm still learning the Ropes and just approaching 2nd Year of Growing mark...

Peace

cc2012 said:

Always pays to have Good Soil dankmandan ~ "Feed the Soil Not the Plant" is the saying I think? I Rols so I am always adding stuff, but I have been using BioBizz since day 1 so I can't really say about the other Nutes that peeps use. You can't go wrong adding more Perlite and/or Vermiculite..I've used Bone Meal and this was just mixed in with the Batch I was getting ready for Potting on. Anything that helps the Aeration and the Micro Herd and uptake of Nutrients has to be a plus.(Just keep an eye on N-P-K Levels)

Lot of things depend on how you Growing the Mj and what system,setup..Nutes etc...

I mean IF you Potting On/Up and will be vegging for a while then by all means improve/amend the Soil/Compost Mix..

I also add Bat Guano to My Potting On Mix, and have just started using Molasses...

Tis all good so far...Though I'm still learning the Ropes and just approaching 2nd Year of Growing mark...

Peace

Click to expand...

So... On the note of "keeping an eye on the N-P-K levels"... I know what you are referring to, however, how do I make sure I am not going over the necessary levels (which are???), and how to I measure the N-P-K in regards to volume of soil/ingredients I am mixing?

dankmandan said:

So... On the note of "keeping an eye on the N-P-K levels"... I know what you are referring to, however, how do I make sure I am not going over the necessary levels (which are???), and how to I measure the N-P-K in regards to volume of soil/ingredients I am mixing?

Click to expand...

Most of the products should state the N-P-K on the box and bottle, couldn't tell you the Right/Wrong Levels..Bit Baked @mo..but its different for Me, I know you have got the different Ratios depending on what stage > Veg/Flower..and IF chem then I really couldn't begin to say..will Check sumat I've got in a File,got nip shop..but will get back to you.

Still looking through Files..this might explain what I mean about Ratios..Plus I think I've found an Old R.I.U. Thread?? anyway first up ~

This write up is from a "03" edition of HT Organically speaking

UNDERSTANDING NPK

Cookin' up chronic requires an understanding of N-P-K. This stands for nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium

respectively. These are your primary nutrients. All plant-food labels include the percentage of these three

elements in numerical form. N-P-K levels must change to correspond with the different stages of your plant's

growth. There are secondary nutrients and micronutrients also, but these are needed in very small amounts, and

will be present in sufficient quantities as long as you use quality organic fertilizers. You will not need to

know specific amounts , nor will you need to manipulate them.

Within the vegetative cycle, there are separate of growth to recognize. Seedlings with one or two sets of leaves

requires very low primary nutrients to encourage growth. Plants with five-bladed leaves and rooted clones qualify

as early vegetative, and graduate to mild feeding. The next stage is mid-vegetative, and requires aggressive

feeding for robust growth. The week be for initiating flowering is called late vegetative, and is a good time to

throttle back nitrogen by 25% and prepare plants for flowering by feeding 50/'50 mix of bloom and grow

formulas[see below for details]. The flowering cycle also has early, middle and late stages

growth that call for diet adjustments.
Here's my recommendation for N-P-K ratios throughout your garden's life. The length of time between stages

is up to you. You might want to grow six foot trees or a table of one Sea of Greens.


VEGETATIVE:
Seedlings 2-1-2
Early Vegetative 4-2-3
Mid-Vegetative 10-5-7

FLOWERING:
Cycle Changeover 7-7-7
Early Flowering 5-10-7
Mid-Flowering 6-15-10
Late Flowering 4-10-7


Even more important than the actual numbers is the ratio of each of the primary nutrients to each other. The

reason why one farmer can grow using nutrients with a rating of 15-30-15 and another can get identical results

using 5-10-5 is because the proportion of each nutrient is the same. During the vegetative-growth stage,

phosphorus levels should be maintained at 1/2 that of nitrogen and potassium at 1/2-2/3 that of nitrogen. During

flowering, phosphorus takes the lead: Give nitrogen at 1/2 and potassium at 1/2-2/3 the strength of phosphorus.

Notice that potassium is consistently maintained throughout both stages at 1/2-2/3 the level of the main

nutrient. Staying close to this ratio will make sure you don't have a nutrient lock up, when unused nutrients

combine to form compounds that your plant can't use.

And R.I.U. Thread ~

https://www.rollitup.org/t/the-best-n-p-k.282713/

And a Nice bit of General N-P-K Info ~

In this post we will learn what N-P-K is all about and what are ‘macro-nutrients’ and ‘micro-nutrients

(Posted by Lisa Lynn@Little Homestead on the Hill)

Macro-nutrients are the three main elements needed for plant growth: nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium (also called potash). The percent of these elements that make up any commercially available fertilizer are listed on the package label. Look for the letters N-P-K to determine the contents of your fertilizer. For example, a fertilizer that lists a make-up of 12-6-0, contains12% nitrogen, 6% phosphorous, and 0% potassium. A 100 pound bag of this fertilizer would contain 12 pounds of nitrogen, 6 pounds of phosphorous and 0 pounds of potassium. The rest is filler or inert matter. If you have ever wondered what a balanced fertilizer is, that is referring to equal amounts of each of these macro-nutrients. A typical N-P-K ratio for a balanced fertilizer is 5-5-5 or 10-10-10.
So why do you need to know this? You will want to choose your fertilizer based on the requirements of the plants that you wish to feed! Here is the breakdown of what these macro-nutrients are needed for in plant growth and development:

Nitrogen - promotes green, leafy growth and is needed for overall plant health. Lawns, shade trees, and green, leafy vegetables use more of this element. Choose a fertilizer with a higher first number, such as 10-5-5, for these plants. It is necessary for photosynthesis (production of sugars from sunlight and air) to take place. If nitrogen is deficient, the plant will be weak with yellowed leaves. Too much nitrogen can burn the roots of a plant or cause weak, leggy growth at the expense of flowers and fruit. Excessive amounts may also leach into water supplies, where it causes health problems, especially for young children.

Phosphorous - is necessary for root, flower, and fruit development in plants. Supplying this nutrient for fruiting vegetables and flowers, as well as new transplants, helps them perform. Choose a fertilizer with a higher middle number, such as 5-10-5, for these plants. Too little phosphorous will cause stunted growth in new seedlings and transplants and a lack of fruit, or small, poorly formed fruits. Too much phosphorous can run off, causing algae blooms in bodies of water. This is also the reason that many laundry detergents are now formulated to be 'phosphate free' to protect the environment.

Potassium - promotes overall plant health and vigor. It helps plants fight off pests and disease and is necessary for strong cell walls. A lack of sufficient potassium may not be evident immediately, but could be the problem in plants that generally don't appear healthy. Too much potassium can interfere with the absorption of other nutrients necessary for plant health, including nitrogen, magnesium and manganese. Signs of too much potassium include yellowing of the leaves between the veins.

Since these are the three elements that are needed in greater amounts for plant growth and health, they are called macro-nutrients (macro=large). Many fertilizers only contain these nutrients and plants fed with them will need to absorb necessary micro-nutrients (micro = small) from the existing soil. In some cases the soil is deficient in micro-nutrients and you may need to supply them with a fertilizer that contains trace elements.

Micro-nutrients, or trace elements, that are necessary for plant growth and health include boron, magnesium, manganese, iron, zinc, copper, molybdenum, and selenium. In large amounts they would be damaging, possibly lethal, to plants (as well as humans). I was answering questions at the Master Gardener Hotline a long time ago (back when I was a Master Gardener!) and a gentleman called to ask why his fruit trees were dying. I asked the normal questions about water, fertilizer, soil, pest, and light conditions and could not figure out what might be the problem blighting his fruit trees. I wondered if maybe there was a lack of trace minerals. He insisted that this could not be the problem because he had been “fertilizing” his trees for years with the scrap iron leftover from work. I told him that too much iron could be the problem, since it is a toxin in large quantities. He didn’t like that answer and told me what a dummy I was and slammed the phone down on me. Ahem.

The best way to provide micro-nutrients is with regular applications of compost, compost tea, or organic fertilizer that contains trace elements. It is very difficult to over fertilize with compost, and if you follow the application rates on the organic fertilizer package your soil and plants will be much healthier for it!

A very good quality coco mix, feed with hydro nutes.

If you've got a few minutes, take a read thru this guide to making your own organic soil...

http://forum.grasscity.com/organic-growing/1116550-easy-organic-soil-mix-beginners.html