DankTankerous
Well-Known Member
I’m under the suspicion that my homemade worm castings have a higher N value. Do you topdress with castings all the way to the end?
When do you stop topdressing with Worm Castings?
- Thread starter DankTankerous
- Start date
PadawanWarrior
Well-Known Member
Do you buy new FFOF each time?
DrDukePHD
Well-Known Member
That's what I've been doing. Outside plants have junk soil, so all my good/used FFOF happily goes to them.
Budzbuddha
Well-Known Member
Even some of the “ depleted “ FFOF can be reused in solo starter cups for new seed starts.
CaliRootz88
Well-Known Member
You could have it tested.
youraveragehorticulturist
Well-Known Member
Pluck a leaf from near the top of one of your plants and taste the juicy sap from the petiole.
If it's acidic and sour there's too much nitrogen and your plant is busy dealing with the nitrogen, and not focused on getting super dank.
If it's sweet, everything is awesome, your Brix are high and you don't need to worry about the nitrogen.
If it's acidic and sour there's too much nitrogen and your plant is busy dealing with the nitrogen, and not focused on getting super dank.
If it's sweet, everything is awesome, your Brix are high and you don't need to worry about the nitrogen.
myke
Well-Known Member
What? Your taste testing now?
I can see hundreds of growers running to their tents to eat some leaves
youraveragehorticulturist
Well-Known Member
Here's a long video where Harley Smith talks to a couple knuckle heads.
At about 7:30 Smith mentions tasting sap to get an idea of the Brix levels. And then using that info to decide how much nitrogen vs potassium to feed plants.
Around 12:30 Harley mentions that microbes in the soil will probably eat the nitrogen from your castings before it can get to the plants.
At about 7:30 Smith mentions tasting sap to get an idea of the Brix levels. And then using that info to decide how much nitrogen vs potassium to feed plants.
Around 12:30 Harley mentions that microbes in the soil will probably eat the nitrogen from your castings before it can get to the plants.
Magic Rabbit
Well-Known Member
How are you growing? Organic?
DankTankerous
Well-Known Member
yeah growing in Coots Mix in a 12gal SIP. This soil is in its 2nd round of no-till, but before that half the soil had been recycled in 3-4 rounds same recipe mix). I do use Dr Earth’s mixes 4-6-3 and 3-18-0 in flowering. I know the Phosphorus is high, so I usually go halfway with it. I also topdress with bokashi, insect frass, and Great White Mycos. I handwater in LaB, Banana FFE, and silicate. My mulch is pasteurized hay (did it myself) along with the cover crop (crimson clover, buckwheat, and Snow Peas) that I grew for 60+ days before this grow.
I’m considering buying Build A Soil bloom, it’s really pricy. Dr Earth’s is ok, I just don’t care for them using alfalfa in the bloom mix. Alfalfa acts quickly in my soil, with my gal being in flowering I would want N to be slow release.
i’ll post a picture tonight, she’s asleep.
Snap! I just saw this. I gotta run to my tent for a leaf to taste test. Increasing the sugar? What is your favorite thing you do for higher Brix?What? Your taste testing now?
I can see hundreds of growers running to their tents to eat some leaves
DankTankerous
Well-Known Member
where can I get it tested?!You could have it tested.
DankTankerous
Well-Known Member
That’s my suspicion, that the plant is dealing with all that nitrogen. If that’s the case, other than stop feeding it N, what else can you do?
New soil each time? I think it depends on your situation, right. If we grow with little input the soil has not changed much and we can supplement with what we feel will suit our purposes. If we HAMMER on the nutes, because some strains like that, we will likely upset the balance of minerals and should start with new soil. Sort of like a race car, the harder you push it the more likely it will fail. What did your plants consume and what is still there? Easier for most to get fresh soil. A couple of grams of weed should buy a new bag of soil.
youraveragehorticulturist
Well-Known Member
You could maybe;
Add a little dash of potassium with the nitrogen to keep the balance of N and K more even.
Make a Compost Extract, then water that in instead of top dressing the EWC. That way you get the microbes in the water of the extract, without the N from the actual castings.
Add some carbon source like dried leaves or woodchips to the EWC so the carbon grabs up nitrogen as it decomposes.
Add malted barley or molasses or yeast extract or some other microbe food with the EWC to stimulate more microbes, to eat up more of the nitrogen.
DankTankerous
Well-Known Member
that’s a great point!
Like 2 weeks ago I gave it a top dressing of Roots Organics Cal Mag, hopefully that didn’t lock up nutrients. It looks like it’s doing great, no purple striping on the stems. She just started week 5
