Based on bits and pieced of info I've picked up, I'm trying a few things. I've lived on a couple of organic farms with 5+ years of soil amending, and they just put them in the ground along with their other crops. On the other end of the spectrum, I've spoken with some folks at a hydroponics store, who were recommending 300 gallon smart pots left on the surface (and then tried to sell me a few hundred dollars worth of nutrients, but their M.O. is 100% optimized plants, and that's beyond my needs).
Being that high yields are not an issue for me (I only have one patient), I'm trying a couple of things. I have two 100 gallon smart pots that I'm going to sink about halfway into the ground. I know this undermines some of the benefits of cloth pots in terms of aeration and drainage, but I have sandy/loamy soil beneath them, and I have plant height restrictions, so I can't start the plants 2 feet off the ground.
Two others are going directly into the ground. I dug a hole approximately 5' x 3' x 2' deep, and I will fill it with a mix of potting soil, mushroom compost, steer manure, chicken manure, perlite... pretty much one of everything I could find at a local feed and grain store that sounded interesting (mostly organic, btw). The final mix is about 50% potting soil, and 50% everything else.
I've seen all kinds of methods work, but it would be great to know the risks and benefits of each, as well as see what's being done.
