Total Noob using teas and I am a believer

Coco plants I nearly killed off, starting to come back. Im trying to keep them short this time. They grow stupid fast.
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I flushed out the medium and put ir In recycled soil and fed it someOyster shell teas at 6 ph and here lately I been feeding it a mix of fish emulsion, seabirdquano and kelp, cant wait to see the shit take off, its about to. I need more plants in veg room 2, it only has 4 right now and they are about to be sent into flower.

You know what, I been doing a all in one tea in flowering and its working pretty well, I just started to do good for them, remember my big plant wide lack of ph'ing lol well that set me back and im just now starting to see health coming back, temps are in the 50s but should be around 65 this weekend after my co2 generator is built.

Yes sir I top dress, especially w coco, shit will dry out real quick up top then atart really moist down at the bottom, I been using fox farm soil conditioner as a top dress, I like it besides some fungus nat issues, I need to jump train on the vermicompost and prokashi, I just need to become good at what im doing now, which I am not but I ahould bw able to figure stuff out eventually, reading everyone's goods and bads on here has helped a ton.
 
I just finished The Rev's book. I see many people kinda knocking him, but his ideas are making a whole lot of sense to me. My gramps taught me to use layering when planting fruit trees. And you can buy all sorts of 'spikes' over here, none organic so I won't use them, but it is clear to me the theory is more than sound. I know a kid that grows using spikes only. They call them 'grow sticks' over here.

I will be using both techniques in my next transplants. I did some layered pots last nigh. I have an extra layer of mycos though hehehehehe.... I think these two ideas were what I needed to finally get to the 'just add water' stage. My soils were cooked pretty hot and could hardly take my ladies through veg and 3 weeks of flower before hassle started.

I fed The Rev's All Purpose Tea last night. Gandalf, you were not frigging kidding. Praying? They look like they want to tickle the roof. This is the happiest I have ever seen plants indoors. My heart is BURSTING with joy.

Indoor Organics. This stuff just keeps getting better and better. I am almost embarrassed that I ran hydro now. I might just go burn my ebb and flow tables and take a nice long slash on the ashes.
 
What I want to do, is write a 'grow guide' to be distributed for free, featuring guys like Rrog and Gandalf's work along with a few others. Put together a few 'grow templates', instructions a noob can follow to the letter. I had the idea a while ago already, was going to make a start on it but then my free time evaporated for a bit. I am still keen. It would pretty much be a condensed version of a run from each grower. All info used with permission of course. Pics, soil mixes, teas (that bit might get tricky, tons of intellectual property involved there. Perhaps just reference the name of the recipe without publishing it in full, still figuring that one out).
 
Mad Hamish said:
What I want to do, is write a 'grow guide' to be distributed for free, featuring guys like Rrog and Gandalf's work along with a few others. Put together a few 'grow templates', instructions a noob can follow to the letter. I had the idea a while ago already, was going to make a start on it but then my free time evaporated for a bit. I am still keen. It would pretty much be a condensed version of a run from each grower. All info used with permission of course. Pics, soil mixes, teas (that bit might get tricky, tons of intellectual property involved there. Perhaps just reference the name of the recipe without publishing it in full, still figuring that one out).
Click to expand...

I feel bad for all the bottled water buyers, financially unable, or just misguided growers who know nothing about real organics. I love the idea of a baby step into organics thread. A thread with just the basics to get people started in the right direction to making their own cheaper better soil. Big ups Ham!

I remember a certain credible member telling me how much fun teas are, but how you really don't need them for the most part. I'm starting to read and see what he meant. Teas are wonderful for a quick boost/need, insurance, soilless mediums, and foiliar sprays. If you have a real living soil...you really don't need teas. To each his own really, but I'm going to save a little time and money by cutting down on the brews...or should I say my addiction lol.
 
I think enzyme (seed) teas have a valuable roll as part of a regular amandment schedule, otherwise I look to the fortified VC as the main nutrient source. Just my opinion as I re-examine what's going in the soil and why. I'm now looking to reduce products that I have to bring in from far away.

Clay powders are likely off the future soil list. My own Biochar and Humus take care of the roll clay would have.

No mineral powders made in MI that I'm aware of, yet it is critical that we re-mineralize all soils, so I'm bringing in a rock crusher and MI will have its own small supply of MI rock powders.

Looking at growing Horsetail for Si

That sorta thing. Bring the access up and the cost down for MI folks is my thinking. Not a business venture for me. Hell, someone can run it and sell it cheap locally for all I care. We just need local access.
 
Can someone post the Rev's all purpose tea recipe?




I am done with bags and air pots.
They dry out way too fast in my tent with low rh and lots of air moving through.

Didn't Subcool hate on them as they dry out too fast?

I took my superoots airpot, 5 gallon size and lined it with landscape fabric. Then they were filled with soil and I put in clones.
The damn things are still drying out too fast.

I just ordered a mess of square, 5 gallon pots. I am going to drill holes in the bottom and line it with landscape fabric. That should be just enough air flow and hopefully not too much.

I like square pots because of the way roots react. In looking at the clones' roots in square cups versus clones in round cups - the roots like square better, they are less likely to do the spiral thing.


I am going to try super soil mix, but add some potassium phosphate and possibly some coco. I may go with coco chunks.
 
You just have to water more. Too bad, as the fabric pots are the best for microbes and roots, but one size solution can't fit all, I know.
 
Trousers said:
Can someone post the Rev's all purpose tea recipe?




I am done with bags and air pots.
They dry out way too fast in my tent with low rh and lots of air moving through.

Didn't Subcool hate on them as they dry out too fast?

I took my superoots airpot, 5 gallon size and lined it with landscape fabric. Then they were filled with soil and I put in clones.
The damn things are still drying out too fast.

I just ordered a mess of square, 5 gallon pots. I am going to drill holes in the bottom and line it with landscape fabric. That should be just enough air flow and hopefully not too much.

I like square pots because of the way roots react. In looking at the clones' roots in square cups versus clones in round cups - the roots like square better, they are less likely to do the spiral thing.


I am going to try super soil mix, but add some potassium phosphate and possibly some coco. I may go with coco chunks.
Click to expand...

How much drainage mat'l is in your mix?
 
Trousers said:
Can someone post the Rev's all purpose tea recipe?




I am done with bags and air pots.
They dry out way too fast in my tent with low rh and lots of air moving through.

Didn't Subcool hate on them as they dry out too fast?

I took my superoots airpot, 5 gallon size and lined it with landscape fabric. Then they were filled with soil and I put in clones.
The damn things are still drying out too fast.

I just ordered a mess of square, 5 gallon pots. I am going to drill holes in the bottom and line it with landscape fabric. That should be just enough air flow and hopefully not too much.

I like square pots because of the way roots react. In looking at the clones' roots in square cups versus clones in round cups - the roots like square better, they are less likely to do the spiral thing.


I am going to try super soil mix, but add some potassium phosphate and possibly some coco. I may go with coco chunks.
Click to expand...

The coco chunks are BADASS. I absolutely love them. Makes a soil drain like you won't believe, but the chunks themselves can hold onto it like sponges too. You can water almost as often as you want and still have a huge buffer. Highly recommended from my side! The difference between my mixes with chunks/croutons v/s pyth is incredible. Roots... KABOOOOOM. The literally explode in there. My plants are like ice-bergs in veg, more bio mass under the soil than above, and I mean a LOT more. In flower this has come into play in a BIG way. I am getting bud sites all over the branches, each branch is one huge cola already.

Let me share another tip from The Rev, and I know Gandalf also finds this works for him: Water twice. Once until there is slight seepage, wait an hour, then water again. This makes sure you have no dry pockets in the soil. Even moisture content. I have also taken to this practice now. When I feed teas, I also water, wait, then feed.

Anyhow, the 'All Purpose Tea'

1 tablespoon kelp meal
1 teaspoon high-nitrogen bird/bat guano
1 tablespoon all-purpose dry organic nutrient
1 tablespoon all-natural molasses
BUBBLE FOR 24 HOURS

And then

¼ cup liquid Big Bloom by Fox Farm (or something with similar N-P-K ratios)
1 teaspoon liquid fish fertilizer
½ cup fresh, healthy living compost, or earthworm castings
10 drops CaMg+ by General Organics, or something comparable with no EDTA logos on the label
and no added iron.
BUBBLE FOR 24 ADDITIONAL HOURS


It is pretty damn clever this one. NOT an ACT strictly speaking. It is a 'nute tea' that then has microbes added once it is already super-rich in all the nutes. I left out the guano as I can't find it, and replaced with an additional teaspoon of a chicken-poop based fertilizer. Another tweak I made is to use TWO gallons of water, firstly my brewer can handle it, secondly it gives me an EC of around 1.5, which is where I used to feed my Hydro babies at, so I know it is max power minimum risk. This way I can literally switch off the bubblers and feed IMMEDIATELY. THAT is my definition of fresh.

Trousers, this stuff kicks ass.
 
Rrog said:
You just have to water more. Too bad, as the fabric pots are the best for microbes and roots, but one size solution can't fit all, I know.
Click to expand...


The microbes go dormant in completely dried out soil, right?
I should have taken a picture, it dries out around the edges really fast. I do not want to have to water more than once a day.

RedCarpetMatches said:
How much drainage mat'l is in your mix?
Click to expand...

I've been using coarse perlite, about 10 cups in a mix with one bag of ffof. I don't think that is the problem, I think it is that I move so much dry air through the tent that fabric, or air pots just dry out too fast. I have a plant in a regular 3 gallon pot and only need to water it every 3 days. The clones in lined 5 gallon airpots are drying out in almost a day.
 
These fabric pots are very popular among some of the most respected growers I know, so it would be great to figure this out a bit before abandoning, maybe.
 
Mad Hamish said:
The coco chunks are BADASS. I absolutely love them. Makes a soil drain like you won't believe, but the chunks themselves can hold onto it like sponges too. You can water almost as often as you want and still have a huge buffer. Highly recommended from my side! The difference between my mixes with chunks/croutons v/s pyth is incredible. Roots... KABOOOOOM. The literally explode in there. My plants are like ice-bergs in veg, more bio mass under the soil than above, and I mean a LOT more. In flower this has come into play in a BIG way. I am getting bud sites all over the branches, each branch is one huge cola already.
Click to expand...

I noticed a big difference when I added coco chunks to pure coco.

What % of your mix do you add coco chunks?
I'm about to mix some more soil and am going to add them.

Mad Hamish said:
Let me share another tip from The Rev, and I know Gandalf also finds this works for him: Water twice. Once until there is slight seepage, wait an hour, then water again. This makes sure you have no dry pockets in the soil. Even moisture content. I have also taken to this practice now. When I feed teas, I also water, wait, then feed.
Click to expand...

That is a good call. I have done that with tea, basically trying to jam as much tea in there as I can without runoff. I should do the same for regular waterings.

Mad Hamish said:
Anyhow, the 'All Purpose Tea'

1 tablespoon kelp meal
1 teaspoon high-nitrogen bird/bat guano
1 tablespoon all-purpose dry organic nutrient
1 tablespoon all-natural molasses
BUBBLE FOR 24 HOURS

And then

¼ cup liquid Big Bloom by Fox Farm (or something with similar N-P-K ratios)
1 teaspoon liquid fish fertilizer
½ cup fresh, healthy living compost, or earthworm castings
10 drops CaMg+ by General Organics, or something comparable with no EDTA logos on the label
and no added iron.
BUBBLE FOR 24 ADDITIONAL HOURS


It is pretty damn clever this one. NOT an ACT strictly speaking. It is a 'nute tea' that then has microbes added once it is already super-rich in all the nutes. I left out the guano as I can't find it, and replaced with an additional teaspoon of a chicken-poop based fertilizer. Another tweak I made is to use TWO gallons of water, firstly my brewer can handle it, secondly it gives me an EC of around 1.5, which is where I used to feed my Hydro babies at, so I know it is max power minimum risk. This way I can literally switch off the bubblers and feed IMMEDIATELY. THAT is my definition of fresh.

Trousers, this stuff kicks ass.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I'll give it a go.
 
Rrog said:
These fabric pots are very popular among some of the most respected growers I know, so it would be great to figure this out a bit before abandoning, maybe.
Click to expand...

I agree here. Seen results in those pots like nowhere else. I wish I could get some.

Trousers said:
The microbes go dormant in completely dried out soil, right?
Click to expand...

Not at all. They use what is called 'Hygroscopic water' and to remove that from soil you actually have to cook it, like in an oven. Even when your soil feels bone-dry, the microbes are thriving. As long as your roots are not getting air-pruned back into the pot there is no problem mate.

Don't complain about having to water often. One of my goals in mixes and drilling the holes in my pots is to be able to do exactly that! You are sucking fresh atmosphere in DAILY. That is EPIC. THAT is how you get organic yields surpassing hydro! Matter of fact, it is exactly for that reason that coco croutons in hydro and ebb and flow rigs yield so well.

Might be a hassle, but what about automating your watering instead? All I can say further is, I wish I had your problem ;)
 
I may try the coco chunks when I switch to 20 gals in 2 months and I start all over with rols... That almost seems sac relig to breakdown round 6 of rols pots.. I gave away my tall 7 gal fabric pots. Wider is better.


Do you use the coco chunks in lieu of perlite or pumice or lava rock or all together?
 
I really advocate keeping the soil optimally moist. I mean, if you looked at two scenarios:

Soil constant perfect moisture level

Soil intermittently dried out

I think scenario #1 will have a LOT more going on microbially. While they don't die in the dry, they don't thrive. Sort of an emergency stasis. That's why I love the blumats. Keeps the moisture optimal, and I really feel this keeps everything else burning on all 8 cyinders
 
Rrog...I am absolutely a complete dumbass when it comes to being handy. How easy is it to hook up blumats? Does some of it have to be done professionally?
 
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