Total Noob using teas and I am a believer

GandalfdaGreen

GandalfdaGreen

Well-Known Member
st0wandgrow said:
Question for you coco coir users: I want to cut my base with 50% coco coir for various reasons. I've never used it before, so any pointers would be appreciated. I picked up a bag of Sanctuary Soil "Dutchman Brand" coco coir. It looks ready to use right out of the bag (they claim it's triple washed and buffered) but is there anything that you guys think I should do before dumping some in to my soil mix?

link: http://sanctuarysoil.com/sanctuary_soil_products/dutchman-brand-ultra-premium-expanded-coco-coir/
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I am gone for a few days and everyone is just full of changes. What the hell is going on here? St0w, Red, Hamish are all in the midst of change.

May......I really love the LOS myco web bro. You are going to shit when you run that mix.
 
GandalfdaGreen

GandalfdaGreen

Well-Known Member
st0wandgrow said:
Question for you coco coir users: I want to cut my base with 50% coco coir for various reasons. I've never used it before, so any pointers would be appreciated. I picked up a bag of Sanctuary Soil "Dutchman Brand" coco coir. It looks ready to use right out of the bag (they claim it's triple washed and buffered) but is there anything that you guys think I should do before dumping some in to my soil mix?

link: http://sanctuarysoil.com/sanctuary_soil_products/dutchman-brand-ultra-premium-expanded-coco-coir/
Click to expand...
I am gone for a few days and everyone is just full of changes. What the hell is going on here?

May......I really love the LOS myco web bro. You are going to shit when you run that mix.
 
Trousers

Trousers

Well-Known Member
Mad Hamish said:
I REALLY dig the croutons. They work like little sponges. Stacks of air but holds quite a bit of water, letting it go sloooooowly. I think you will really dig them in your position. You can offset their Ca-sucking nature with some Gypsum. Really works a treat. I took that route with my 'outdoor' soil cooks this year. Lookin great.
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I used to run 100% coco. Then I added 30% croutons and they did much better.
I am going to use more croutons than I did perlite.

st0wandgrow said:
Question for you coco coir users: I want to cut my base with 50% coco coir for various reasons. I've never used it before, so any pointers would be appreciated. I picked up a bag of Sanctuary Soil "Dutchman Brand" coco coir. It looks ready to use right out of the bag (they claim it's triple washed and buffered) but is there anything that you guys think I should do before dumping some in to my soil mix?

link: http://sanctuarysoil.com/sanctuary_soil_products/dutchman-brand-ultra-premium-expanded-coco-coir/
Click to expand...

Very interested in this. I was looking into adding EWC to coco when I decided to go organic.

I would think you are going to have to feed 50% (?) more and add something to make up for the Ca sucking, as Ham put it.

Please keep us informed.
 
st0wandgrow

st0wandgrow

Well-Known Member
Trousers said:
I used to run 100% coco. Then I added 30% croutons and they did much better.
I am going to use more croutons than I did perlite.




Very interested in this. I was looking into adding EWC to coco when I decided to go organic.

I would think you are going to have to feed 50% (?) more and add something to make up for the Ca sucking, as Ham put it.

Please keep us informed.
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I don't use fabric pots, so I'm hoping that I don't have to bump up my waterings that much more. I guess I'll find out.

The main reason I'm cutting the peat with coco coir is that peat is so acidic. I guess it would defeat the purpose of doing this if I have to add a bunch of calcium to the coir. I'm hoping by "buffered" they mean that they have already addressed this calcium sucking issue that coco coir seems to have. I'll find out soon enough ....
 
RedCarpetMatches

RedCarpetMatches

Well-Known Member
Mad Hamish said:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perlite

You will have to be a bit more specific with your definition there Red so ol MH knows what you are talking about. You know us savages, we have no volcanoes and slow interwebs LOL. But seriously, link me up to what you mean there. Interested.

EDIT: I looked it up quickly. Can only find Lava dust, beads (as in gypsy bracelets) and glazed counter tops... Nothing for plants? Link link link please :) I HATE perlite dust. Makes me sick as a dog.
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I prefer lava rock for several reasons. One you've already mentioned...can't stand that dust. Lava rock is cheaper, more available to me, doesn't float, is very porous (which gives it a much greater surface area for bennies to live and multiply in), and is great for aeration. With such great aeration and surface area I would think you'd need less as a drainage mat'l right? I'm sure you have access to a lot of lava rock that you can crush to sizes ranging from dust-1/2". However, it does make pots a little heavier...so wear a back support :) That's off the top off my head and remember a lot of shite popping up when interweb'n it. I crushed a $3.50 bag of lava rock up with a sledgehammer to get about a 1/2 cu ft. of 1/4"-1/2" pcs. I'll give you links soon me mate.
 
RedCarpetMatches

RedCarpetMatches

Well-Known Member
st0wandgrow said:
I don't use fabric pots, so I'm hoping that I don't have to bump up my waterings that much more. I guess I'll find out.

The main reason I'm cutting the peat with coco coir is that peat is so acidic. I guess it would defeat the purpose of doing this if I have to add a bunch of calcium to the coir. I'm hoping by "buffered" they mean that they have already addressed this calcium sucking issue that coco coir seems to have. I'll find out soon enough ....
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Another grow buddy jumping the peat ship :clap: I've never heard of that brand and have always used the bricks that're more bang for your buck. I assume they just broke the PH buffer when rinsing. You can always 'charge' your coco for a day with whatever cal/mag PHd water you want to use. I'm sure you're going to love the stuff in a mix. Problem with coco is the price (why I buy the bricks and deal with the labor) and its ability to hog up Cal. Some people claim to have Mg def. and High K probs...haven't run into that personally.

Here's a baseline (not for organics), but gives you an idea of what to expect. http://forum.grasscity.com/coco-coir/620656-askeds-coco-guide.html
 
st0wandgrow

st0wandgrow

Well-Known Member
RedCarpetMatches said:
Another grow buddy jumping the peat ship :clap: I've never heard of that brand and have always used the bricks that're more bang for your buck. I assume they just broke the PH buffer when rinsing. You can always 'charge' your coco for a day with whatever cal/mag PHd water you want to use. I'm sure you're going to love the stuff in a mix. Problem with coco is the price (why I buy the bricks and deal with the labor) and its ability to hog up Cal. Some people claim to have Mg def. and High K probs...haven't run into that personally.

Here's a baseline (not for organics), but gives you an idea of what to expect. http://forum.grasscity.com/coco-coir/620656-askeds-coco-guide.html
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Great thread Red (I'm a poet and I didn't even know it)!

Thanks for the info!
 
Mad Hamish

Mad Hamish

Well-Known Member
I finally found the stuff, Red. Imported of course. DAMMIT. Just... DAMN. Same as Sphagnum. Imported stuff is just prohibitively expensive :(
 
st0wandgrow

st0wandgrow

Well-Known Member
So Hamish, I want to learn more about your organic-hydro method that you're about to embark on. Specifically as it relates to our microscopic friends in the soil.

I'm trying to wrap my head around this. If you're using an ebb and flow system, I will assume that microbes will be present in whatever medium you're using, correct? They wouldn't do much good, and may have a tough time surviving long stretches in a reservoir. Is their a specific type of medium that would be well suited for this? I don't think hydroton wouldn't work well, and I would imagine that rockwool wouldn't work either. Would you use well rinsed coco coir for this? Also, wouldn't a bunch of them get flushed when the table drains? Is this something where you'd constantly have to be re-inoculating your medium?

I guess keeping a tea well oxygenated in a reservoir for weeks at a time is do-able, but I'm kinda stumped on how this all comes together. Either way it's a really interesting topic
 
RedCarpetMatches

RedCarpetMatches

Well-Known Member
st0wandgrow said:
So Hamish, I'm want to learn more about your organic-hydro method that you're about to embark on. Specifically as it relates to our microscopic friends in the soil.

I'm trying to wrap my head around this. If you're using an ebb and flow system, I will assume that microbes will be present in whatever medium you're using, correct? They wouldn't do much good, and may have a tough time surviving long stretches in a reservoir. Is their a specific type of medium that would be well suited for this? I don't think hydroton wouldn't work well, and I would imagine that rockwool wouldn't work either. Would you use well rinsed coco coir for this? Also, wouldn't a bunch of them get flushed when the table drains? Is this something where you'd constantly have to be re-inoculating your medium?

I guess keeping a tea well oxygenated in a reservoir for weeks at a time is do-able, but I'm kinda stumped on how this all comes together. Either way it's a really interesting topic
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I've been thinking about this too as bubbling bennie brews {3Bs} is so damn fun! Dare I say lava rock as a medium...just look at all those microbe motels.
View attachment 2901666
 
GandalfdaGreen

GandalfdaGreen

Well-Known Member
st0wandgrow said:
So Hamish, I want to learn more about your organic-hydro method that you're about to embark on. Specifically as it relates to our microscopic friends in the soil.

I'm trying to wrap my head around this. If you're using an ebb and flow system, I will assume that microbes will be present in whatever medium you're using, correct? They wouldn't do much good, and may have a tough time surviving long stretches in a reservoir. Is their a specific type of medium that would be well suited for this? I don't think hydroton wouldn't work well, and I would imagine that rockwool wouldn't work either. Would you use well rinsed coco coir for this? Also, wouldn't a bunch of them get flushed when the table drains? Is this something where you'd constantly have to be re-inoculating your medium?

I guess keeping a tea well oxygenated in a reservoir for weeks at a time is do-able, but I'm kinda stumped on how this all comes together. Either way it's a really interesting topic
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Everything genuity puts out is off the charts. I mean true art. When I found out he was doing it in a DWC with Xtreme tea I was floored. He grows in many mediums and is playing a different game. He really is amazing. Genuity and SkunkMunkie really inspire me. He's a cool cat too. I can't wait to watch Hamish take this method on.

I finished several Kali Mist clones in an ebb and flo just a month ago. They were neglected and in horrble light. I decided to use them to produce some Kali crosses. Worked incredible using teas the whole way with airstones. I did nothing.
 
May11th

May11th

Well-Known Member
Just ran across alpalca beans or shit. Anyone try it? Loaded with npk and ca and sulfer and mg. They said that on the package. Was $6 for 1lb.

Ps I just made a awesome investment that everyone should do. Spent $30 on 3 aloe vera plants. Whooo been wanting some forever now. Next stop worm farm. I think ill use up 100 gals of coco for the lil critters. Any suggestions or pics of good worm setups would be greatly appreciated.
 
st0wandgrow

st0wandgrow

Well-Known Member
May11th said:
Just ran across alpalca beans or shit. Anyone try it? Loaded with npk and ca and sulfer and mg. They said that on the package. Was $6 for 1lb.

Ps I just made a awesome investment that everyone should do. Spent $30 on 3 aloe vera plants. Whooo been wanting some forever now. Next stop worm farm. I think ill use up 100 gals of coco for the lil critters. Any suggestions or pics of good worm setups would be greatly appreciated.
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I read somewhere (can't remember where) that alpaca poop and rabbit poop are the two best manures to use for gardening.

Score for May!!
 
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