All of your soil sounds great and I would jump on it if $$$ wasn't an issue. How does this sound. I need something cheap and simple. I have access to cow manure that's been sitting for over 3 years. They eat plain grass. So cow manure, peat moss and perlite. Would that be ok for an outdoor planters box? I was always using FFOF in the past and shit got too expensive for a 10x20 ft hoop house. Any comments or advise would greatly be appreciated.
Yeah it could work,,,,your going to need more nutrition if your going to grow organic out of it....You should for sure add a broad spectrum (many different strains in one package) of a MYCO's mix because of the old compost.....Dig down into the compost and get it from near the bottom center or lower interior of the pile.
Make something like this: Very basic water only soil...
To make 1 cf of basic water only soil
1/3 Canadian peat
1/3 Compost
1/3 Perlite or little white lava stone
Add 1 cup of Ag lime/Dolomite lime
Add about 1 1/2 cup of Tomato tone or Happy frog Tomato mix organic dry fert.
1 cup Kelp meal
Now you need a mineral
2 cups Garden Gypsum
3 cups Granite dust/glacial rock dust, Azomite.
Mix in well and wet down and mix again..
4 week "cook"....
This can be re-amended and used again like this..
Add 1 part compost to 4 parts of used soil
add 1/2 perlite and 1/2 new mix above.
Now to 1 cf of re-mixed soil add:
1 Cup of kelp meal
1/4 - 1/2 cup of the dry organic fert.
1/4 Ag lime/ Dolomite lime
As long as you don't use more then 1/2 cup dry fert....You don't really have to "cook" it.....Just add pot and plant and water it.
This is an investment in things to start but, well worth the up front cost as you never really have to buy more, other then the amendments when they run out......Well, after a while you should re-amend the Peat. It does break down in time.
Oh, yeah,,,,,You'll need to re-amend the mineral mix once a year - that's it.
Doc