Please Critique my soil recipe!

meangreengrowinmachine

Well-Known Member
Curious if over 5 years made a diff.
I’ve been mixing my home made that has rock dust with promix and 444. I was wondering if I should be adding rock dust. I guess not. The 444 has some in it not much.
I also saw a related video where some one used these results for rock dust and did there own similar testing with the same lab but using leaf mold. And the leaf mold far out performed.... go figure I guess mother nature has it all set up... ;-) leaf mold takes so freaking long to break down especially in my cold area but I'm in process!
 

myke

Well-Known Member
I also saw a related video where some one used these results for rock dust and did there own similar testing with the same lab but using leaf mold. And the leaf mold far out performed.... go figure I guess mother nature has it all set up... ;-) leaf mold takes so freaking long to break down especially in my cold area but I'm in process!
With everything I’ve learned this winter I’ll be on the hunt for leaf mould ewc etc. Now that I know what to look for.
 

Northwood

Well-Known Member
Huh... soooo what do I do with all this freaking rock dust!? Lolz

That guy is my favorite Albertan gardening youtuber. He puts a hell of a lot of work into his videos, not to mention cash. I'm still a proponent of certain rock dusts though, provided they don't contain unwanted bioaccumulative toxic heavy metals. It's not for the elemental nutrients locked up in them though, instead I think they have a positive influence on soil structure. Bacteria bind these mineral particles together with decayed organic matter, forming aggregates that affect soil tilth and drainage. After all, real soil contains mostly "rock dust" of whatever the parent material was, with a lesser amount of organic matter. We are not growing in soil indoors, but instead a medium made up of nearly 100% organic matter. This is great in the horticultural sense in that we can grow a crop, but if we want to reuse it 100 times like we would with true field soil I feel a mineral component (dusts & clays) provide a more stable medium that for all intents and purposes is permanent in our beds or pots.

Plus it makes great grit for our worms! ;)
 

Dreminen169

Well-Known Member
With everything I’ve learned this winter I’ll be on the hunt for leaf mould ewc etc. Now that I know what to look for.
I know it takes a couple years to make leaf mold however I figured I’d get started so I’ve been collecting my trimmings. Can I throw in fresh auxiliary branches like the one shown below into my leaf pile? How about woody stems? Or does it have to just be regular leaves?031FBBC2-FFCE-40FB-855A-E4FD59685D69.jpeg
 

natureboygrower

Well-Known Member
I think I'll back off the rock dust too. I only use my soil mix once then add it back to my compost pile at chop, so i guess in a way, I'm reusing it. How long does it take before GRD is useful to the plant? I'm guessing the dust is more available to the plants after it's been composted awhile.

The problem with collecting local rock/granite where I am( and there are a few quarries around me) is you'll never know how much metal is in it. New houses require a radon test done before move in. The houses that fail these tests are usually built on top of ledge.
 

natureboygrower

Well-Known Member
And leaf mold is something I've just started to add to my compost as of fall 2020. I read pound for pound it adds just as much to a pile as manure. Since I'm trying to stay away from manures, leaf mold is a nice, easy alternative. Just requires a little shredding with the mower before adding to the pile.
 

Dreminen169

Well-Known Member
And leaf mold is something I've just started to add to my compost as of fall 2020. I read pound for pound it adds just as much to a pile as manure. Since I'm trying to stay away from manures, leaf mold is a nice, easy alternative. Just requires a little shredding with the mower before adding to the pile.
I also see that some people are substituting in leaf mold instead of Peat Moss in their soil mixes. Is anyone here doing that & how is it working out for you? How’s the soil structure & water retention?
 

Offmymeds

Well-Known Member
I can tell you without even seeing it that it will taste like dirt. Other than that, it looks great.

How does the pH fall out with that much peat?
 

Northwood

Well-Known Member
Like... if I eat it??? Or the bud I grow in it lol.
I wouldn't recommend it, but I'm sure as a child I've eaten leaf mold before. I wouldn't recall what it tastes like, but I'm sure I've tasted worse having grown up on a small farm. Heck, we used to pull up carrots straight out of the field and rub most of the dirt off on our jeans before munching it straight down, radishes too. Once as a kid I accidentally ate cow paddys, or at least tasted them. I was bareback riding our horse "Shylow" and galloping down a hill in the pasture when she stopped suddenly and put her head down. I must have slid a good 20 feet on my belly with my mouth not fully closed. I was picking pieces of cow paddy out of my mouth. That was bad.
 

meangreengrowinmachine

Well-Known Member
I wouldn't recommend it, but I'm sure as a child I've eaten leaf mold before. I wouldn't recall what it tastes like, but I'm sure I've tasted worse having grown up on a small farm. Heck, we used to pull up carrots straight out of the field and rub most of the dirt off on our jeans before munching it straight down, radishes too. Once as a kid I accidentally ate cow paddys, or at least tasted them. I was bareback riding our horse "Shylow" and galloping down a hill in the pasture when she stopped suddenly and put her head down. I must have slid a good 20 feet on my belly with my mouth not fully closed. I was picking pieces of cow paddy out of my mouth. That was bad.
Hahaha that sounds very much like my childhood!
 

meangreengrowinmachine

Well-Known Member
I wouldn't recommend it, but I'm sure as a child I've eaten leaf mold before. I wouldn't recall what it tastes like, but I'm sure I've tasted worse having grown up on a small farm. Heck, we used to pull up carrots straight out of the field and rub most of the dirt off on our jeans before munching it straight down, radishes too. Once as a kid I accidentally ate cow paddys, or at least tasted them. I was bareback riding our horse "Shylow" and galloping down a hill in the pasture when she stopped suddenly and put her head down. I must have slid a good 20 feet on my belly with my mouth not fully closed. I was picking pieces of cow paddy out of my mouth. That was bad.
I also now again live on a small farm and LOVE it!
 
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