Recycled Organic Living Soil (ROLS) and No Till Thread

DANKSWAG

Well-Known Member
I wasn't really finding the answers I was hoping too about Bokashi composting, how to create your own EM-1 (effective microorganisms)/BAM (beneficial active microorganisms) till I came across this researching how to make my own EM-1 Inoculant (BAM). :clap:

Now I've learned I can actually produce my very own EM-1 and when used properly in Bokashi style composting I now know that I can produce quality
EM-1 microbes that I can use in variety of ways not just in my grow but around the house as well.

Anywise if anyone here appreciates this nugget of info please add rep.

Now that I understand how to create quality beneficial microbes from scratch for Bokashi. I can't wait for I am going to master these little microbeasties I am their task Master and I've got plenty of work ahead for them.

Hope to hear others find that link very useful as well.

DS
 

boblawblah421

Well-Known Member
You don't top dress for creepy crawlers or do you just rely on neem?
The only top dress I apply is with my compost. I just make sure to keep 40ish gallons of the same exact soil recipe as what my gals are in on hand for top dresses. This contains DE, as well as all of the other ingredients in the typical ROLS soil recipe. I also water it in with compost tea that contains Earth Compound by Progress Earth. This product contains a bunch of the botanicals from post #8 from this thread. Progress Earth has already fermented all of these ingredients for you.

In my opinion, organic pest control is all about throwing every known plant with pesticide qualities at the pests as you can. More importantly though, is to have the absolute healthiest plants possible, by creating a perfect little ecosystem for your micro heard.
 

NickNasty

Well-Known Member
I think its also about having good bugs/predators already in your system. Its a lot harder for bad bugs to take hold if there is already a population of good bugs defending things.
 

jcdws602

Well-Known Member
The only top dress I apply is with my compost. I just make sure to keep 40ish gallons of the same exact soil recipe as what my gals are in on hand for top dresses. This contains DE, as well as all of the other ingredients in the typical ROLS soil recipe. I also water it in with compost tea that contains Earth Compound by Progress Earth. This product contains a bunch of the botanicals from post #8 from this thread. Progress Earth has already fermented all of these ingredients for you.

In my opinion, organic pest control is all about throwing every known plant with pesticide qualities at the pests as you can. More importantly though, is to have the absolute healthiest plants possible, by creating a perfect little ecosystem for your micro heard.
Whoa! that earth compound product is ridiculously expensive! I saw a 1 gallon bag for $280 and a 5 gallon for $1265 @ amazon.......
 

boblawblah421

Well-Known Member
Whoa! that earth compound product is ridiculously expensive! I saw a 1 gallon bag for $280 and a 5 gallon for $1265 @ amazon.......
I get the 24 oz bag and use it sparingly. It has all the biodynamic preparations in it, which if you were to purchase individually would be more than that.

I hit my soil with the Earth Compound once while it's cooking, once immediately after transplant, and save the rest for foliars.

It is a ridiculously expensive bag o dirt, but it saves me tons of time in sourcing and fermenting all the wonderful botanicals it contains.
 

Dennis Stein

Active Member
just used 2 gal airpots for veg. I don't like them. No matter how slow you pour. Water still goes out the holes. Then there's dry spots in the soil.
You're not pouring slow enough I'm afraid. Mist the top of your soil first with a surfactant to break the surface tension. Then water around the stem keeping away from edges. The water will find it's way to the edges.

Four one gallon air-pots takes me about an hour to water. I water first with cal/mag, then hit them up a second time an half hour later with your favorite nutrient solution or some more cal/mag + (organicare) at 10 drops /g. Keep watering slowly until you get some run-off out of bottom, not the sides. Do not pour this run-off back into your plants. I only re-poor runoff when the water didn't go through my soil. i.e - water that came out the sides because I poured too fast.

One gallon is all you need to veg. These will last close to two months before they get root bound thus creating absorption problems (probably around 6 weeks so keep your eyes peeled). I look for purpling striping on main top stems as an indicator that it's time for a transplant. From these 1 gallon air-pots, I like to go into regular 3 gallon nursery pots, because watering just takes too long to do it right in those air pots. One gallon isn't that bad. Dry down times are a little faster I've noticed as well which is a big positive. 10-14 days after transplant, they go into flower. I try to water only the outside of my containers during transplants to encourage the roots to travel and find water and new resources. I probably only use a half gallon of water during my tp from one gallons to 3 gallons with no runoff. I'll shoot for some runoff my second watering when I hit them up with a nice all purpose tea and some soluble mycos. Plants are usually into flowering by now if everything goes well. Sometimes I'll leave them in veg mode If I feel there's a problem I can work out before flowering or if I feel the plant is having a hard time drying down after the transplant. I like to establish the wet/dry cycle before I flip the lights.
 

hyroot

Well-Known Member
You're not pouring slow enough I'm afraid. Mist the top of your soil first with a surfactant to break the surface tension. Then water around the stem keeping away from edges. The water will find it's way to the edges.

Four one gallon air-pots takes me about an hour to water. I water first with cal/mag, then hit them up a second time an half hour later with your favorite nutrient solution or some more cal/mag + (organicare) at 10 drops /g. Keep watering slowly until you get some run-off out of bottom, not the sides. Do not pour this run-off back into your plants. I only re-poor runoff when the water didn't go through my soil. i.e - water that came out the sides because I poured too fast.

One gallon is all you need to veg. These will last close to two months before they get root bound thus creating absorption problems (probably around 6 weeks so keep your eyes peeled). I look for purpling striping on main top stems as an indicator that it's time for a transplant. From these 1 gallon air-pots, I like to go into regular 3 gallon nursery pots, because watering just takes too long to do it right in those air pots. One gallon isn't that bad. Dry down times are a little faster I've noticed as well which is a big positive. 10-14 days after transplant, they go into flower. I try to water only the outside of my containers during transplants to encourage the roots to travel and find water and new resources. I probably only use a half gallon of water during my tp from one gallons to 3 gallons with no runoff. I'll shoot for some runoff my second watering when I hit them up with a nice all purpose tea and some soluble mycos. Plants are usually into flowering by now if everything goes well. Sometimes I'll leave them in veg mode If I feel there's a problem I can work out before flowering or if I feel the plant is having a hard time drying down after the transplant. I like to establish the wet/dry cycle before I flip the lights.
why would anyone want to do all that. It takes me 15 min to water 9 7 gal fabric pots. Another 5 min to water all my soil mixes and rols pots. I veg in 2 gal plastic pots for 6 weeks no prob. As long as they get teas they don't root bound. I water about 16 oz per gal of soil. 1 gal of water is enough for 7 gals once a week. I don't drown my plants. Nor the rain method. That's for newbs who over feed. At the end of flower 1/2 - 3/4 gal. They take up half as much the last 7-10 days. Purple stems is not an an indication of anything. I've had several strains that have purple stems from the second they root all through growth. Its a characteristic of a strain like the shape or color of bud.
 

Dennis Stein

Active Member
"Why would anyone want to do that?" - saves me a gallon of soil over the two gallon pots. Then it saves me even more soil because I can flower in a 3 gallon pot instead of 5 or 7. And also you have a faster dry down time with these smaller containers. Nearly impossible to over-water. And this is the way you have to water with these air-pots. Your way wasn't working evidently. I'm not saying air-pots are better than other containers, but merely showing peeps how to water there air-pots if they have them. They don't need to throw them away and waste there money.

I spent a lot of time explaining my watering techniques with these one gallon air-pots as I feel your watering and transplanting are your two most important parts of your grow. I also explained how it takes so long to water these pots. There are shortcuts you can take to water a bit faster, but wanted to explain the slow method so peeps will get the hang of it and to know how much water is actually going into there container. To know the difference between a light container and a heavy container.
I feel like I have more control when watering only a few plants at a time. Gives me a chance to hold each one and determine how much more water it needs to completely saturate the soil. My chances of completely saturating my soil go down tremendously when I drink beer and water all my plants at once. :wink:

When they've been growing for 50 years like yourself hyroot, then they can just throw in the exact amount of water they need and not worrying about any dry pockets or runoff.

And what's this shit? "Purple stems is not an an indication of anything?"
Than what is it if it's not hereditary? Something is going on...right? I don't remember reading anywhere that halfway through your grow your plants stems will start turning purple.
And please don't say cold temperatures, although this will cause it too.

I'm talking about an inside grow with a perfect environment. A strain that doesn't normally purple up.

Not trying to bash you hyroot but you're giving peeps false negatives on these air-pots and now you throw this purple stem bs in there like peeps have nothing to worry about if they see this.

As much as you have had several strains that have purple stems from the onset all the way through flowering, I've had not one.
 

Tazbud

Well-Known Member
My last grow was coco, hydro in 11L airpots. No problem at all with watering and no run-out at the sides at all. This time i'm in big tubs of dirt with blumats from equally big reservoirs...

I feel much more relaxed, like a chilled farmer rather than a stressed out chemist.:hump:
 

Mohican

Well-Known Member
I have seen some air potters dip the pot in water to let it soak in from the sides. I did this the other day with my clones in regular pots because the Promix had dried away from the sides and was letting the water drain right out without wetting the soil.
 

hyroot

Well-Known Member
Why didn't anyone tell me worm castings have chitin like crab and shrimp meal. I could be using that against those mites in a foliar.
 
Top