Good compost mix?

[itchybromusic]

good stuff pug 

masking up & pumice , both good ideas 

[evatil]

The shopping list

Edited March 10, 2018 by evatil

[evatil]

Didn't even see these new replies until just now. So sorry guys.

 

Itchy, that's a lovely idea about the spelling names in seeds. I'm going to do that. The kids will think I'm magic!

 

I actually live 30 mins from a tonne of beaches and we go frequently as the kids love it there.

Forgive me -- my novice is about to show through with some questions I have, that I'd be so grateful if you legends could impart your wisdom.

 

I've ordered a couple seeds. Not many at all because A ) I was pretty skint this week B ) couldn't buy from where I wanted due to payment shit that will be amended next time. Seeds cost a bit more through this bank, and C ) these seeds are already in Aus and won't take as long to get here as Seedsman. Want to start these off asap before we end up going through a cooler period with not much sun. Need to get some smoke going asap. Sick of paying huge for stuff that sucks. These seeds should be arriving next week and I'm keen to get them cracking along.

 

Hoping to save some cash through the year and get a small hydro set up happening for next winter so I can do some photo seeds before going outdoor with them. That'll be what I use for my butter, oil etc. The autos are just to get some decent smoke fast to hold me through.

 

First questions are for soil.

 

I'm going to go grab a bag of this compost next week. I have a reliable supply of free worm castings to pick up whenever I want after learning that someone I know (who is an avid gardener with amazing veg patches and flowerbeds) has a well-established worm farm. They've offered to hook me up with worms too for my own farm.

Is the above richgro mix any good to mix with the compost and scoria?

 

Going to look into the Canna Terra Pro when I'm not such a novice. I just want to keep shit as simple as possible but not ineffective.

 

If I was to do a mix of:

 

40% This compost mix

30% Richgro

20% Scoria(or)Pumice(or)Perlite

10% Vermiculite

 

The above images of scoria and vermiculite is what I'm looking at buying.

 

Would that be a good outdoor/greenhouse growing medium? As I've said, this is my first time growing from seed. I want to do it right. I'm still wrapping my head around it all, but I'm determined to get this shit done right and take onboard everything I can so I, myself, can grow my knowledge capacity. Eventually, I'll know enough to help others like me that are just starting out with so much information at their fingertips that it just makes ya head spin.

 

Second question is for nutrients in the uploaded pictures above. I went to my favourite shop the other day and they have these on the shelves. Thinking of grabbing them when I'm in next week. Thoughts?

 

In case you're wondering, the seeds I've ordered are White Widow auto and Girl Scout Crack auto.

 

Thanks guys, sorry for the overloaded post. Happy to be corrected and told the right information. It won't go unheard (or unread, I guess in this case haha)

 

❤

Edited March 10, 2018 by evatil

[itchybromusic]

i wouldn't use that richgro & to be honest ,

 

equal amounts of those castings/compost , the 10mm scoria & canna terra pro would be a pretty good soil mix i reckon 

 

otherwise i'll assume the richgro has a bit of sand & wood chip init , which wouldn't have as good air to 

water ratio as peat or canna terra pro but would be close enough , 3 even parts , aeration , compost & pre made richgro mix ,

i'd prob go a lill heavier on the aeration , like 40% air 30 castings & 30 richgro , that would work 

 

i can't really help on the bottles i'm sorry & i've mentioned growing auto's as your first grow , good luck 

 

i'm sorry but i can't unlearn what i've learnt & i can't not see potential probs & keep my mouth shut even though 

i do try to "go gently into the night" , so to speak , when i do open my mouth , trying to be gentle , which sometimes is a fail 

 

i've spent a bit of time trying to simplify things as much as poss to pass info forward but we aren't all the same 

we don't all have a need to lean , some , maybe more than some , just want the steps to full jars of dank-ness 

 

well , i think i've found it in sub irrigated planters but more work to be done there 

 

i'm sure someone will jump on & talk to you bout the bottles  

 

the only other thing i'd add is do some reading on Integrated Pest Management IPM, be preemptive / offensive 

not defensive , when it comes to pest & disease , don't wait to see probs , act B4 to try not get them in the first place 

 

i'm always round & happy to help

along with many others  

Edited March 10, 2018 by itchybromusic

[evatil]

You're an absolute dude, Itchybro! Thanks for writing back.

 

I'm really interested in learning all I can from the ground up. Unfortunately, I'm still right down the bottom range of the learning rung, but in a year, who knows! When I'm interested in something, I obsess over learning about it. My diagnosed OCD helps with that, but sometimes it kicks into overdrive and I just get overwhelmed with info.

 

Richgro can go. It's not like I have my heart set on it. I was just browsing a couple of old threads and it was mentioned a couple times.

 

No worries on not knowing much bout the bottles. Can always go googling and find some info on it.

 

Will definitely give IPM a read up!

 

You mentioned peat, would either of these be good to put into my soil mix? Just looking for stuff I can grab locally that is affordable.

 

Thanks man!

 

 

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[evatil]

Peat actually does sound like the go, considering I'll be germinating in jiffy pellets which are peat. Might make for an easier transfer? Heard it's better to start autos in the same pot they'll be harvested in, but I think I'll start one lot in the jiffy pellets and just start the other in the pot and see if it makes much difference.

Just bought some 3 gallon fabric pots on eBay, too. Heard they're great for all canna but for autos especially as you don't have to worry heaps about root binding during the most vital part of the growing for them.

 

So, equal parts compost mix + peat + aeration (scoria) into a fabric pot

Chuck in a seed about 1cm deep (or transfer jiffy pellet to soil mix pot)

???

Profit of dank buds from mother nature.

 

Too easy haha. Expect to see lots more posts during the '???' step. Truly, thank you, your knowledge really is so appreciated. You're a good egg.

[Auqadoll]

Hi. Ive got a new grow going atm using pretty cheap stuff and easy. Pots outside in day and inside at night. Also good for when storms hit. Using Bunnings purely because its down the road from me. Got a few autos about to sprout. Also got a few outdoors on day 2 in seedraising mix if you look at my grow diary. First time i did everything wrong so using kiss this time. A bad of seedraising mix is less than $9. First pots cut down slurpy containers with a few holes in the bottom.

[itchybromusic]

2 diff things there coco peat & peat moss 

coconut fiber , & peat moss taken from peat bogs round the world 

peat much better but coco more sustainable 

 

the reason to start the seed in the finishing pot is to remove any days of transplant shock 

remembering you have X number of growth days with autos , you don't want growth to stop 

cos it has a direct relationship to yield , not that i've grow an auto b4 

 

the prob with starting a seed in a mix with scoria , stone isn't something a seed could move with a root 

or have enough roots to grow round it when only just germinated , so maybe just in a small spot where

you plan to put the seed , keep that area free from scoria 

1cm deep is prob about right , look up auto seed breeders or other canna forums for auto seed growing guides 

 

& hey stop calling me an egg !  

[pug1010]

hiya evatil

 

Itchy gives great advice and recommendations. The fun thing about growing is that there are heaps of different ways you can do it and fine tune as you go along. If you want an excellent place to start (and finish) with good no-hassle yields, I would go with all of itchies recommendations - they are tried and true and in the long run, will make your life way easier - once you set up no-till soil pots, they require very little maintenance. Most of us who follow the no-till growing method, use very similar techniques, amendments and preventative pest management methods. I have grown using basically every hydro method and have come full circle to organic, no-till growing - I'm never going back.

 

I've never grown autos before either, so have no idea about transplanting with them. The problem with starting a seed in a big pot is that the watering is quite difficult to get right. If you are planning on transplanting and are worried about the right amount to water, I've copied a post I wrote on another thread ... it works well for me ...

 

____

get some jiffy pellets (the flat ones about 1 cm high) and place them on a saucer. just add water to the saucer over a few hours until they expand and no longer suck up any more water. they should be moist all the way through, but not dripping wet - be careful not to squeeze them, as the peat separates.

 

after the seed has soaked for a day (regardless of whether the seed casing has opened) I like to plant the seed about 5mm deep in to the bottom of the jiffy pellet, as I can make my own hole and get the depth and width I like - just rip the pantyhose around the bottom a bit to access the peat. on the top of these pellets, they have a hole already made ... but I don't think it offers enough control and have found that the seed can go too deep.

 

wait a couple of days for the seedlings to pop through the peat in the jiffy - during this time get a water sprayer and gentle spray the jiffy pellet on the edges (not on the top), when they start to get a bit light or dry - you will notice the difference in weight and it's a good way to see how much water is needed. even in areas with humidity of 50%, you will only need to do this two to three times a day. when you start to see a taproot come out of the bottom of the jiffy pellet ... it's time to transplant in to a small soil container - around 8-10cm diameter and about 10-15cm tall would be great. remove the pantyhouse completely and transplant with the crown above the soil level in the pot ie. the top of the jiffy pellet should be around 1cm higher than the soil level in the pot - this helps with overwatering.

______

At this stage, with an auto ... I would be tempted to avoid the transplant from the jiffy to the 8-10cm diameter pot and perhaps go straight into your 3 gallon fabric pot. Just make sure to keep the jiffy pellet about 1cm higher than the surrounding soil level in the fabric pot.

 

As to other things to add to your equal parts soil mix (peat moss, scoria and worm castings) ... these really depends on whether you intend to keep growing with soil. If you are going the hydro path, then these amendments (neem meal, basalt rock dust, kelp meal, biochar, gypsum, Malted Barley, myco, a liming agent and perhaps crab/prawn meal) will not be of much use to you, in the long run. The integrated pest management amendments however will always come in handy, no matter how you grow. I would highly recommend getting some neem oil, aloe vera powder, potasium silicate and fulvic acid.

 

If you need help with sourcing these, there are a few of us, who can point you in the right direction.

 

nearly forgot ... the peat moss is usually fairly cheap, comes in big bags and is easy to find - try gardening stores (don't think bunnings has the bigger and cheaper bags). It typically comes from New Zealand, Canada or Lithuania. Remember that it expands once you add water to it (it normally comes in compressed bags) ... itchy has dome some maths on this in the past and if i remember correctly ... 8l of compressed peat to 4 litres of water ... sit overnight and results in 14 litres of fluffy, well saturated peat - you might need to correct me on that one itchy ... been looking through my old notes.

[xtro]

once there past the seedling stage, coupla wks, i just run mine into searles premium potting mix, i supplement flower with a handful of potash usually, water well a couple times a wk and thats it, give them a good flush out at the end of the grow