MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
It just looks healthier all around, I have been cursed with some rink a dink harvests and I think that I finally see the light!!!
Speaking of which, I got my Gavita in the mail! Much brighter!!!
Building a compost pile!
- Thread starter MustangStudFarm
- Start date
It just looks healthier all around, I have been cursed with some rink a dink harvests and I think that I finally see the light!!!
Speaking of which, I got my Gavita in the mail! Much brighter!!!
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
Here is a little info that is on the build-a-soil website. I was really interested in the 2 week cook time!
3 Large Boxes will mix into 1 Cubic Yard of base soil. 1 Cubic Yard equals 27 Cubic Feet or 200 Gallons of soil.
Mix and then let sit for 1-2 weeks before planting.
Here is the Mix as written by ClackamasCoots:
Equal parts of Sphagnum peat moss, some aeration deal (pumice, rice hulls, lava rock - whatever is sitting in the garage) and finally some mix of humus - my compost, worm castings some black leaf mold I bought from the local 'worm guy' To each 1 c.f. of this mix I add the following:
1/2 cup organic Neem meal
1/2 cup organic Kelp meal
1/2 cup Crab meal (or Crustacean meal when available - it has Shrimp meal with the Crab meal. It's a local product from the fisheries on the Oregon & Washington Coasts)
4 cups of some minerals - rock dust
After the plant is in the final container I top-dress with my worm castings at 2" or so and then I hit it with Aloe vera juice and Comfrey extract. Or Borage. Or Stinging Nettle. Or Horsetail ferns. Whatever is ready.
3 Large Boxes will mix into 1 Cubic Yard of base soil. 1 Cubic Yard equals 27 Cubic Feet or 200 Gallons of soil.
Mix and then let sit for 1-2 weeks before planting.
Here is the Mix as written by ClackamasCoots:
Equal parts of Sphagnum peat moss, some aeration deal (pumice, rice hulls, lava rock - whatever is sitting in the garage) and finally some mix of humus - my compost, worm castings some black leaf mold I bought from the local 'worm guy' To each 1 c.f. of this mix I add the following:
1/2 cup organic Neem meal
1/2 cup organic Kelp meal
1/2 cup Crab meal (or Crustacean meal when available - it has Shrimp meal with the Crab meal. It's a local product from the fisheries on the Oregon & Washington Coasts)
4 cups of some minerals - rock dust
After the plant is in the final container I top-dress with my worm castings at 2" or so and then I hit it with Aloe vera juice and Comfrey extract. Or Borage. Or Stinging Nettle. Or Horsetail ferns. Whatever is ready.
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
I feel cheap using the copy and paste, but whatever... Here is what comes in the kit that I am looking at:
Nutrients: (Use at 1.5 Cups Per cubic foot of soil or about 3 Tablespoon per gallon of soil)
1. Crustacean Meal - Crab and Shrimp
2. Kelp Meal - Acadian Seaplants Brand
3. Neem Cake - Premium Organic Neem Cake Imported from India.
Minerals: (Use at 4 Cups Per Cubic foot of soil or about 1/2 Cup per gallon of soil)
1. Brix Blend Basalt - Our Favorite Rock Dust for trace minerals. Highly paramagnetic.
2. Gypsum Dust - Calcium and Sulfur
3. Oyster Shell Flour - Calcium Carbonate - Adds available calcium and limes the Peat moss.
What You'll Need To Get To Finish The Recipe:
1. Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss: Available in 2.0 Cubic Foot Bales and 3.8 Cubic Foot Bales at Home Depot and most gardening stores. Notice: The 2.0 Bale will fluff up to about 3.0 Cubic Feet and the 3.8 Bale will fluff to about 6 Cubic Feet.
2. High Quality Compost or Worm Castings: Search for local compost or castings on craigslist or order some here on our website.
3. Aeration Amendment: Something to aerate the soil like perlite does in normal potting mix. We like to use Pumice and Rice hulls but you can use whatever is available to you including perlite, rice hulls, lava rock, pumice etc.
You'll notice there isn't any High P ingredient like Soft Rock Phosphate or Fish Bone Meal and after speaking with Coot about this I realized a few things. This Kit has many ingredients that contain Phosphorous at normal levels which will not be harmful to Mycorrhizal fungi. High P amendments can have a negative effect on the soil Mycorrhizal life, for this reason Coot recommends using this recipe.
Nutrients: (Use at 1.5 Cups Per cubic foot of soil or about 3 Tablespoon per gallon of soil)
1. Crustacean Meal - Crab and Shrimp
2. Kelp Meal - Acadian Seaplants Brand
3. Neem Cake - Premium Organic Neem Cake Imported from India.
Minerals: (Use at 4 Cups Per Cubic foot of soil or about 1/2 Cup per gallon of soil)
1. Brix Blend Basalt - Our Favorite Rock Dust for trace minerals. Highly paramagnetic.
2. Gypsum Dust - Calcium and Sulfur
3. Oyster Shell Flour - Calcium Carbonate - Adds available calcium and limes the Peat moss.
What You'll Need To Get To Finish The Recipe:
1. Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss: Available in 2.0 Cubic Foot Bales and 3.8 Cubic Foot Bales at Home Depot and most gardening stores. Notice: The 2.0 Bale will fluff up to about 3.0 Cubic Feet and the 3.8 Bale will fluff to about 6 Cubic Feet.
2. High Quality Compost or Worm Castings: Search for local compost or castings on craigslist or order some here on our website.
3. Aeration Amendment: Something to aerate the soil like perlite does in normal potting mix. We like to use Pumice and Rice hulls but you can use whatever is available to you including perlite, rice hulls, lava rock, pumice etc.
You'll notice there isn't any High P ingredient like Soft Rock Phosphate or Fish Bone Meal and after speaking with Coot about this I realized a few things. This Kit has many ingredients that contain Phosphorous at normal levels which will not be harmful to Mycorrhizal fungi. High P amendments can have a negative effect on the soil Mycorrhizal life, for this reason Coot recommends using this recipe.
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
I was being serious about the stores not carrying organic supplies. I am having a very hard time finding just pumice or lava rock! Really???
Build-a-soil is not bad for the amendments, but I added a bag of pumice($15) and the shipping jumped up $25. I added 3 bags for the hell of it, and shipping was $75!!! I guess that I am going to have a hard time finding this stuff!?
Build-a-soil is not bad for the amendments, but I added a bag of pumice($15) and the shipping jumped up $25. I added 3 bags for the hell of it, and shipping was $75!!! I guess that I am going to have a hard time finding this stuff!?
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
My local store has a monopoly on the industry, so they can be shitty to whoever they want to be! It is hard to work with them, but they have ordered things for me from SunLight Supply and HydroFarm, but neither one carries pumice or lava rock!?
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
I am looking for designs so that I can build a better rabbit cage! I have them in more of a temporary cage, and I really feel bad about the size of what they are in. Later this week, I should have a real cage for them... I was thinking about adding another catch screen, under the cage, that will catch the manure and let the urine pass through. I can still have hay underneath, but I would not have to worry about the rabbit's bedding, so I could let the hay saturate longer with urine before I harvest the hay.
I really wanted to do a design like this, almost like a chicken wagon. It would be hard to harvest the manure this way.
This would be a little easier to deal with.
I could do a slant screen under the box area, I was hoping that the poo would just roll in one direction. I could still use hay to catch the urine also.
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
These are basic and I was trying to stay away from this and give my rabbits a chance to touch the ground.
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
I was worried about my dogs messing with the rabbits, but they are pretty tame. They let the chickens scratch right next to them! They keep the other dogs from messing with my chickens really. Other dogs dont come in my yard, its a good deal!
DonBrennon
Well-Known Member
Lucky guy..............our last lot of chickens used to front my dog up, he's a big nasty american bulldog and he'd shit it (pmsl, he's scared of his own shadow), so they kind of had a happy stand off, they'd known him from being a pup. But sadly a fox got in and killed all but 1 (2 cocks+7 hens copped for it), the new batch of chickens go berserk as soon as they see him, which sends him crazy and there's no calming either down. Just can't take him down the pen anymore, which sucks.
greasemonkeymann
Well-Known Member
nice lookin plants man, nice and chunky.
I'd say that recipe is pretty good, to be honest i'd add a cup of rabbit manure to each cubic foot of that.
I'd be allll over that
Lookin good though
greasemonkeymann
Well-Known Member
See if you can find landscaping lava rock man.
then crush the bejesus out of it
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
My landscaping store did have some lava rock, but sold out last time I was there. I do remember it being the larger type, so I will have to smash it.
I should have started composting a long time ago, but last year I think that I made hugle kulture beds instead. Now I realize how important compost is, because I am missing it!
Jumfrey13
Active Member
Hey guys, I'm intent on starting my compost pile tonight, but I don't have a nice rock to start one on like that. I was wondering what I should use as my compost floor, because I am assuming it would be wise to use a barrier between the compost and the ground. I have a bunch of rotted fruits and veggies and last night I did a lot of pruning in the flower room, so I have leaves to use. I was thinking of putting the fruits down first and then adding all the ingredients that greasemonkeyman suggested, since I have those, amd then layering with the cannabis leaves. So basically my questiln is, What should I use as the floor and what should I use for my first couple of layers?
Beemo
Well-Known Member
they are at home depot or lowes at $5 a bag
or goto a home brewery and pic up some rice hulls....
better imo... no sharp edges like lava.
but i use both. but mainly rice
Jumfrey13
Active Member
I suppose i could just lay down a big piece of wood and start it on that.
Jumfrey13
Active Member
I'm looking forward to adding 2 Gavitas in my FR, since i am not utilizing a big portion of the space. I'm hoping that will add residual light to my nearby LED Setup. I basically made 2 squares of LED panels and hung a short socket 600w in between both of them. That works out but i noticed my harvest is still a bit airy (I believe the LEDs i bought are not very effective. Cheap LED bulbs from what I hear). I'm hoping that if i have a gavita near each square, that will brighten up those spots a bit. There is like a 6 foot gap between that and my mylar covered wall on the far side of my FR and i'm losing a lot of light. I look forward to seeing how much your average yields increase with that light.
Jumfrey13
Active Member
Hey GreaseMonkeyMann. Is it not a good idea to start a compost pile if it rains? It's pouring down right now and i was intent on starting my pile today. I got a bag full of wet leaf and i don't want to keep it in their for too long. Unless like you've told me before, the nastier the compost material, the better. As long as its fruits and veggies i suppose.
greasemonkeymann
Well-Known Member
hah, ironic you mentioned that... as I built mine in the rain, it's actually sorta cool, because the leaves and amendments get sprinkled and evenly wet as you go..
BUT you need to tarp all compost piles, in my opinion. When finished, that is. Acts like a jacket for the thermo compost
Don't worry about wet leaves, they just start molding, and that's not a prob at all, my leaves were bagged for at least a week before using.
Gotta love that wet leaf smell.
but composting is just the stuff degrading, so bagged leaves aren't doing much different
you just accelerate it by the layering and such
--side note---
wet rained on shoes will attract your amendments if you have to stomp down your pile..
My boots got a nice crusty fish meal/shrimp meal on em...
mmmm yummy..