Making the change to organic, got some ?'s

What's up fellow growers so after reading a few articles on organic growing I was really interested in a water only soil like subcools recipe and was wondering if anybody has used ff ocean forest as the potting mix? And what would be the right temperature to cook soil, I live in southern California and the weather has been around between 70-80°

Another question is about dolomite lime. How much do you need for one bag of soil? Without adding other Ingredients to make "super soil" I got a hand me down of some genreal organics just in case I can't make the super soil.

Thanks riu fam!

Ff soil would best be suited for early veg. You can mix up some store bought bagged soil into a water only recipe but if your already going to ammend anyway why not save the $. 1/3 parts Ewc. Peat. Aeration works well with 3-4 cups minerals. 4 cups nutrients. Also I have been skipping te lime recently and useing oyster shell. Gypsum to buffer ph in soil. Most pea sources have some dolo lime in It already anyway.

Lucifder said:

What's up fellow growers so after reading a few articles on organic growing I was really interested in a water only soil like subcools recipe and was wondering if anybody has used ff ocean forest as the potting mix? And what would be the right temperature to cook soil, I live in southern California and the weather has been around between 70-80°

Another question is about dolomite lime. How much do you need for one bag of soil? Without adding other Ingredients to make "super soil" I got a hand me down of some genreal organics just in case I can't make the super soil.

Thanks riu fam!

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Glad to see another person making the change to organics! If you're looking for a water only recipe you can get much more bang for your buck by building your own soil. Compost is cheap, free if you have a source, and is one of the best growing mediums/amendments you can use. Check out the rols notill thread for some good recipes and tips on how to build your own soil and maintain optimum soil health.
If you want to go with the bagged soil route there are much much better ones than FF. Though I'm not the person to ask on which one would be the best, I just have a lot of experience with FF soils and products.
Please, for the sake of your own frustration, skip the dolimite lime. It's more hassle than its worth, replace it with oyster shell flour. You can let soil mature in freezing temps all the way up to triple digits, it just depends on what rate of decomposition and what kind you're looking for. Basically you're in perfect weather, spread it out on a tarp and cover with another.

Lucifder said:

What's up fellow growers so after reading a few articles on organic growing I was really interested in a water only soil like subcools recipe and was wondering if anybody has used ff ocean forest as the potting mix? And what would be the right temperature to cook soil, I live in southern California and the weather has been around between 70-80°

Another question is about dolomite lime. How much do you need for one bag of soil? Without adding other Ingredients to make "super soil" I got a hand me down of some genreal organics just in case I can't make the super soil.

Thanks riu fam!

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you sure you want to go with one made on your own?
in my opinion its sorta hard to do it with great success unless you have a compost or wormbin going.
In socal you could find some vermifire, i'd use that, add one quarter cup of soft rock phosphates, and an eighth of a cup of crab, kelp, and alfalfa meals.

If you don't make super soil you won't need to add lime since the bagged soil already has PH buffer added. You only need to add more lime or oyster if you are amending the soil further to keep a good balance.

Are you planning to do an indoor grow?

Damn I wish I would of read your guys post earlier I already went and ordered some dolomite lime online and its been sent out already! :/ what's the difference between the oyster shell and dolomite lime?

I only thought the dolomite lime would be a good purchase to buffer the ph if did end up using the general organics grow and bloom because they say you dont have to ph there formula which I'm a little iffy and just wanted to be on the safe side and have the dolomite lime in the soil already idk if thats makes sense to you guys but this info is definitely helping

@MjMama

Im going outdoor for now only because of heat issues only 3 weeks till I harvest. Little nervous because its my first time going outdoor also

That lime should come in handy later on even if you don't use it now. It provides calcium and magnesium as well as the ph buffering.

Lucifder said:

Damn I wish I would of read your guys post earlier I already went and ordered some dolomite lime online and its been sent out already! :/ what's the difference between the oyster shell and dolomite lime?

I only thought the dolomite lime would be a good purchase to buffer the ph if did end up using the general organics grow and bloom because they say you dont have to ph there formula which I'm a little iffy and just wanted to be on the safe side and have the dolomite lime in the soil already idk if thats makes sense to you guys but this info is definitely helping

@MjMama

Im going outdoor for now only because of heat issues only 3 weeks till I harvest. Little nervous because its my first time going outdoor also

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if they are flowering already DON'T put them outside, most varieties will "quasi-flower"
days aren't short enough man.
the difference between d-lim and oyster flour is like asking whats the difference between water and soda.
Totally different.
And please don't take this the wrong way, as I mean it with respect, just do your research PRIOR to ordering stuff brother.
could save you some time, effort, frustration, and most of all money.

There's a book called true Livung organics - it's designed to help those growers (like me) who are used to working with bottled nutes to grow natural organic mj. Now I have my own worm bin and recycle my own soil. It's easy to do and you'll wish you made the transition to a more natural growing style earlier. That DL will surely come in handy but it takes awhile before it can have an affect on your soil ph...read up on organics because there's a lot to know yet keeps it simple at the same time.

greasemonkeymann said:

if they are flowering already DON'T put them outside, most varieties will "quasi-flower"
days aren't short enough man.
the difference between d-lim and oyster flour is like asking whats the difference between water and soda.
Totally different.
And please don't take this the wrong way, as I mean it with respect, just do your research PRIOR to ordering stuff brother.
could save you some time, effort, frustration, and most of all money.

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They're not flowering they're seedlings just feeding em Ph'd water for now. Non taken my friend thats how we learn, I did do some research and dolomite lime was mentioned alot I think I saw a few post about oyster powder.

Lucifder said:

They're not flowering they're seedlings just feeding em Ph'd water for now. Non taken my friend thats how we learn, I did do some research and dolomite lime was mentioned alot I think I saw a few post about oyster powder.

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The oyster powder(finely crushed shell) works only when in contact with roots- it buffers ph at the root zone which helps if you've got a rich mix- the dolomite lime buffers ph over time; it must be broken down by the microbes in your soil unless it is dissolved in water (hydrated lime). I use dolomite, oyster flour, and garden grade gypsum in my mix- I cook recycled root balls at room temp for at least 30 days after adding fresh amendments & ph is a solid 7 on my soil ph meter- once it gets above 6.5 it should be ok to use

Lucifder said:

What's up fellow growers so after reading a few articles on organic growing I was really interested in a water only soil like subcools recipe and was wondering if anybody has used ff ocean forest as the potting mix? And what would be the right temperature to cook soil, I live in southern California and the weather has been around between 70-80°

Another question is about dolomite lime. How much do you need for one bag of soil? Without adding other Ingredients to make "super soil" I got a hand me down of some genreal organics just in case I can't make the super soil.

Thanks riu fam!

Click to expand...

Get the amendments and compost your soil it's super cheap. I like to let my mix compost for at least 3 months. It works great I only feed 2 or 3 times in late flower. Some people don't care for subs ss but I just think it needs to compost longer and then be recycled and recharged. Subs super soil with mycos and beneficial bacteria with sugers and 3 light feedings in week 6, 7, and 8 on a 10 week fire og. This is a pic at 8 and 1/2 weeks.

Richard Drysift said:

The oyster powder(finely crushed shell) works only when in contact with roots- it buffers ph at the root zone which helps if you've got a rich mix- the dolomite lime buffers ph over time; it must be broken down by the microbes in your soil unless it is dissolved in water (hydrated lime). I use dolomite, oyster flour, and garden grade gypsum in my mix- I cook recycled root balls at room temp for at least 30 days after adding fresh amendments & ph is a solid 7 on my soil ph meter- once it gets above 6.5 it should be ok to use

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you sure man? I've never heard that about oyster flour, some people I know use it to adjust the ph of there aquariums so i'd speculate it doesn't have to do with root contact, are you thinking of mychorrizhae?
I could be wrong, just never heard that before...

Not to be rude, but the book referenced - written by the Rev, is stoner science.

Consider Teaming with Microbes. Much better and more insightful

greasemonkeymann said:

you sure man? I've never heard that about oyster flour, some people I know use it to adjust the ph of there aquariums so i'd speculate it doesn't have to do with root contact, are you thinking of mychorrizhae?
I could be wrong, just never heard that before...

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You are right. Oyster shell flour isn't a bacteria like mycos. It doesn't need roots like mychorrizhae. It's basically like a rock dust. I use it in my mix. I'm convinced that it makes buds denser too. Works great for Cal mag and other minerals too.

Richard Drysift said:

The oyster powder(finely crushed shell) works only when in contact with roots- it buffers ph at the root zone which helps if you've got a rich mix- the dolomite lime buffers ph over time; it must be broken down by the microbes in your soil unless it is dissolved in water (hydrated lime). I use dolomite, oyster flour, and garden grade gypsum in my mix- I cook recycled root balls at room temp for at least 30 days after adding fresh amendments & ph is a solid 7 on my soil ph meter- once it gets above 6.5 it should be ok to use

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Wow thanks for the info dude, I'm definitely gonna check out that book. And trust me I did wanna make the switch earlier I just didn't go out and buy the soil and materials because I didn't want to mix it and cook it lately in socal where I live the weather's been weird its real hot for a few days and then by night its real cold and we been getting rain on random days, two days of straight heavy rain I guess its good to collect some water from it!

Abiut how much Dl do you add for one bag of soil? I have ff ocean forest and just wanted to mix some Dl in it, it looks like I'm going to use the General organics line if this weather keeps up and they claim their formula doesn't need to be Ph'd I think I read it comes out at 6.5

Rrog said:

Not to be rude, but the book referenced - written by the Rev, is stoner science.

Consider Teaming with Microbes. Much better and more insightful

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Thanks brotha

norcal mmj said:

Get the amendments and compost your soil it's super cheap. I like to let my mix compost for at least 3 months. It works great I only feed 2 or 3 times in late flower. Some people don't care for subs ss but I just think it needs to compost longer and then be recycled and recharged. View attachment 3460986Subs super soil with mycos and beneficial bacteria with sugers and 3 light feedings in week 6, 7, and 8 on a 10 week fire og. This is a pic at 8 and 1/2 weeks.

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When you say compost my soil you mean just that one bag I'm going to use? In my case ocean forest. Im not sure if it was subcools recipe but it was something like this. Your potting soil, your compost and amendments. I also bought molasses the other day and i was going to use that and then mix some mycos from great white in it but I wondered that if the ph is not correct do you still go ahead and ph the solution anyways? Wouldn't wanna wipe out all mycos

Well it depends how you make your soil, if you put dolomite lime in your mix, it's a ph buffer. I never ph in my grows but I also don't feed with much more than sugar and mycos and bacteria.

Cooking soil/composting the temps just need to not freezing. When you compost the breaking down plant matter releases heat. It can get very hot. Talk a minute and read about composting, it's kind of cool and very easy to understand.

So your making soil using one bag of ocean forest and amendments? What amendments do you have, and what kind of grow do you have in mind ?

I've been asked what's my prob with the Revs book. It's not based on science. No educated horticulturist would bother with the things he recommends.