Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
If it were me, I'd throw some cover crop in there also.
SIP thread -- (Sub-Irrigated Planter)
- Thread starter Humanrob
- Start date
meangreengrowinmachine
Well-Known Member
I usually use a plastic cover or mulch. I have been thinking about cover cropping in between grows and then tilling it in.
meangreengrowinmachine
Well-Known Member
Maybe I'll try a few different things
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
Cover crop with nitrogen fixers is what I would use.
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
What do you use for mulch?
meangreengrowinmachine
Well-Known Member
Either straw or bran. Or bokashi bran I make myself
meangreengrowinmachine
Well-Known Member
That is a good idea
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
Use some straw for mulch. It's good practice to mix brown and greens.
Shiggity
Well-Known Member
Be careful with too much straw as mulch. It can rob soil of nitrogen if you are not careful. This may be part of your issues with nitrogen.
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
The earthbox hasn't gotten too much straw. Just what was on top of the transplant. That is a good point though. I feel like something is taking N. Besides the plant.... lol
Shiggity
Well-Known Member
In wet soils with little oxygen denitrifying bacteria process nitrogen and it is lost as a gas. That is why I added air channels in my 27 gal SIP this round. Last time I had trouble with loss of too much nitrogen so I wanted to avoid it.
https://vegcropshotline.org/article/nitrogen-loss-from-wet-soils/
https://vegcropshotline.org/article/nitrogen-loss-from-wet-soils/
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
Never heard that before, but it makes sense. So the wet soils lose N by denitrifying and leaching, and mines almost always wet. So how do you add the air channels to your sip?
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
I believe there's a ratio of brown to green that I can't remember off the top of my head, but with the sips, yea maybe the browns aren't a good idea.
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Shiggity
Well-Known Member
So I wrapped some corrugated pipe with drain cloth after using scissors to cut more holes in the pipe. Then I put two of them vertical in my SIP. I figured the soil loss wouldn’t be bad because it’s a 27 gallon SIP. If I had a smaller SIP I would use a smaller diameter pipe. My SIP has a plastic cover so I’m not worried about any light getting down there.
here is my SIP in action this morning. I may add some far red to get her to stretch.
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
Ok I see how that works. I'll try finding something similar only smaller. I don't like the idea of taking any more soil volume out of mine, but then again I don't believe I'm going to get it so big next time. When I make a bigger sip, ill grow them bigger. Lol
It would be nice to implement the sip res with a bed. Lol
weedstoner420
Well-Known Member
Getting my fall/winter grow ramped up, using recycled/amended soil in a pair of Growboxes. I decided to shake things up a bit, planted some wheatgrass and crimson clover a month or so before the clones go in:
And here's some peppers I grew in the growboxes over the summer. There's no AC in the basement so it gets too hot and humid to flower weed, but the peppers didn't seem to mind.
And here's some peppers I grew in the growboxes over the summer. There's no AC in the basement so it gets too hot and humid to flower weed, but the peppers didn't seem to mind.
raggyb
Well-Known Member
Are you going to let the re-amends cook for 4-6 weeks before planting? I never compared but see that recommendation all the time. I guess it depends what you amend with.
Hollatchaboy
Well-Known Member
What did you re amend with.
weedstoner420
Well-Known Member
So between cycles (this is #4 for me) I've been dumping both growboxes into a big tote and adding:
- 4 cups KIS Organics nutrient pack (their all-in-one blend)
- 2 cups organic Tomato Tone (because the KIS seems kinda low in K and Ca)
- 1 gallon perlite
- 1 gallon compost and/or ewc
So each growbox gets roughly half of that, and there's a bit of soil left over.
This time I also put the cut-down pepper plants in with it. It cooked for about 2 months and when I went to fill the boxes, the old plants were totally broken down except the stumps.
myke
Well-Known Member
Very similar to what I’ve done.when I planted my 2 gallon girls tips burned a little. Maybe a tad hot on N but they use it up so fast.