Bluejeans, thanks again for starting this thread. Since moving to the country, I have slowly been learning to grow my own vegetable garden, with many successes and failures. Tomatoes are just not my thing. Anyway, I have learned so much, especially about soil and stuff. I would love to get a copy of that recipe from Karma that you have, as I am looking around for different ingredients locally and will be heading to the big city for all those frog and ocean forest what nots that you guys seem to say are good. I think I might be able to find a worm breeder around here, not sure how to find one. I imagine that would get some funny looks at the local bait shop, "You guys know where I can find a worm breeder?" Anyway, I have learned so much, and it's definitely important to get off to a good start with what your plants are going to be living in for 3 or 4 months.
Oh, mad props on putting your uncle sam money to work for you on the lights. You will have quite the operation going soon, just keep us newbs informed on this grow, b/c I am learning a ton from it. Oh, what is your current CFL wattage?
Peace
Noah, I'm glad you are learning stuff! I tell you, when I came to RIU back in September, I was greener than my plants. I knew exactly zip about how to grow marijuana. In one sitting (nearly 24 straight hours) I read Ed Rosenthal's book on Growing Marijuana. It was great book and it really gave me a ton of information, but it also left me what a lot of questions that I knew no book would help with. So I headed online and here I am.
As for organic mixes, mine seems really great. Karma swears by it and I have a lot of faith in him. However, just like growing pot, there are as many variables as there are growers. If you can't find the exact same ingredients as someone else, you can always find something that works. Go to a local farmer or nursery/greenhouse and talk to them about organic soils. There is nothing magic about this mix that will only grow pot or that grows the ultimate pot...it's just a good, healthy soil, built on a solid understanding of what plants need. Any good organic grower can tell you what you need and if you are talking to someone in your area, they can tell you where to get it.
Also, my personal experience has always been good online for those things that I think I need and cannot find anywhere else.
And here's my recipe, as given to me by Karma's a Bitch. I have created my own measurements because Karma has a much bigger grow than I do so his recipe was quite large (can you say "feeds an army"? LOL) -- Karma, feel free to let me know if I've missed the mark on any of the measurements.
For every 16 cups of soil or coco (gallon), add:
1
| tsp
| bat guano
|
5
| cups
| earthworm casings
|
1
| tsp
| kelp meal
|
2
| tsp
| bone meal
|
1
| Tbsp
| marine cuisine OR
|
2
| tsp
| fruit & flower
|
1
| tsp
| Plant Success
|
2
| Tbsp
| blood meal
|
4
| cup
| perlite
|
| | |
Karma also adds Silica Stone or DynaRok 2. I couldn't find that and therefore made the decision to go without this time. I will continue to look for it and add it into the next mix. I'll mention again that this recipe was created for coco. After this grow, I will not be reusing this particular soil again. I will be switching to coco and using this same recipe.
Then just mix it up and use it. It's best to use r/o water with a mixture like this, but I don't have that ability right now. I pH my water to 6.5 and that's it.
Enjoy! I've been impressed so far.
