Quickest way to break down a root ball??

[MistaRasta]

Hi guys, just finished my cc mix and am going to be recycling this mix to the best of my ability.

I've noticed my root balls take up the whole 7 gallon pots by the time I harvest..

Would a barley seed extract break these roots down in time for reuse?


Can I use hygrozyme??


I'm on a monthly perpetual and I've mixed up a yard (200 gals) of soil. So each round will get a month to break down. Is this a proper amount of time?

Any and all help is appreciated

 

[Southerner]

Hygrozyme would help. I usually shake out as much of the dirt from the rootball that I can and then toss what remains of the main section with the bottom stem attached into my lawn compost. You get good at it after a few and the little pieces of root left in the dirt will decompose pretty damn fast, definitely by the time your soil has "recooked" and is ready for use again.

Or you could just go no till.

 

[Alienwidow]

Flip the seven gallon pot over and remove the dirt. Then stab an X in the bottom and reach in and tear the root ball out. Works best if theyve been sitting for a couple months.

 

[MistaRasta]

Hygrozyme would help. I usually shake out as much of the dirt from the rootball that I can and then toss what remains of the main section with the bottom stem attached into my lawn compost. You get good at it after a few and the little pieces of root left in the dirt will decompose pretty damn fast, definitely by the time your soil has "recooked" and is ready for use again.

Or you could just go no till.

Cool, I've never really looked into what's in hygrozyme I just know it has enzymes.

I was thinking about going no till. What size pots would you recommend as the minimum for no till?

I flower 4 big trees under 600 hps if that helps. I was thinking 10 gallons would be perfect..

 

[hyroot]

plant cover crops. Water with seed sprout enzyme tea and compost tea., topdress with vermicompost also. Add worms to the pot. Roots will be gone and the soil will be alive in 2-3 weeks. Dont let dry out either. .

you can replant a clone or small plant right away. The dead roots will break down as the plant grows.

 

[Pattahabi]

plant cover crops. Water with seed sprout enzyme tea and compost tea., topdress with vermicompost also. Add worms to the pot. Roots will be gone and the soil will be alive in 2-3 weeks. Dont let dry out either. .

you can replant a clone or small plant right away. The dead roots will break down as the plant grows.

^^^ Yep, this. I don't know about being gone in 2-3 weeks, but they will break down pretty darn quick and become foodstock for microbes. This happens in nature and there is nothing to worry about. My last transplant the roots were so thick, it was work to dig a small hole to put the new plants in.

Cool, I've never really looked into what's in hygrozyme I just know it has enzymes.

I was thinking about going no till. What size pots would you recommend as the minimum for no till?

I flower 4 big trees under 600 hps if that helps. I was thinking 10 gallons would be perfect..

Ime more soil = more of a buffer and less chances for things to go wrong. I used 10-15 gallons pots for a few years. I've now upgraded to one large pot per light and I'm loving it. So imo, go with as much soil as you can.

Peace!

P-

 

[Jack O'Neill]

add some em-1

 

[docter]

add some em-1

Have you used it before for this? Curious?

 

[MistaRasta]

add some em-1

Didn't consider this for some reason..

Have you used em for rootballs? If so how did it work?

@Pattahabi and @hyroot

Would you guys recommend this?

 

[a senile fungus]

All I did was cut the stem as low in the pots as I could, then just keep the soil moist. After a few weeks the old root mass was mostly gone. I planted the next ones right in there.

It seems too easy, way too easy lol.

 

[Jack O'Neill]

Have you used it before for this? Curious?

Didn't consider this for some reason..

Have you used em for rootballs? If so how did it work?

@Pattahabi and @hyroot

Would you guys recommend this?

grow the soil, not the plant. where ever you are LD thankyou
http://forum.grasscity.com/organic-growing/639057-soil-recycling-thread.html

 

[Pattahabi]

All I did was cut the stem as low in the pots as I could, then just keep the soil moist. After a few weeks the old root mass was mostly gone. I planted the next ones right in there.

It seems too easy, way too easy lol.

^^^This is my thoughts as well.

Didn't consider this for some reason..

Have you used em for rootballs? If so how did it work?

@Pattahabi and @hyroot

Would you guys recommend this?

Will adding em-1 hurt? No, not at all. It's good stuff. Would I run out and spend $35 on a bottle to help break down root balls? No way. Our soils are a huge microbe consortium. Keep the environment hospitable and the population will explode. I'm in week three of flower, and I bet if I pulled on one of the stalks from last round, it would come right up. I'll leave it there till they fall over and decompose in the soil.

Peace!

P-

 

[greasemonkeymann]

^^^This is my thoughts as well.


Will adding em-1 hurt? No, not at all. It's good stuff. Would I run out and spend $35 on a bottle to help break down root balls? No way. Our soils are a huge microbe consortium. Keep the environment hospitable and the population will explode. I'm in week three of flower, and I bet if I pulled on one of the stalks from last round, it would come right up. I'll leave it there till they fall over and decompose in the soil.

Peace!

P-

that's exactly what happens to mine, the roots sorta dissolve and the stem will topple over easily.
I have to literally slice a spot open to allow my new plants to wedge into the existing roots of the prior harvested plant, the roots are very dense even in my 15 gal pots, and it actually works better than transplanting into fresh soil, the conventional way. The soil is already established, I use smartpots so it's nice to have a "structure" already there, the soilweb holds the perfect amount of water also, and that's not even mentioning the microbial life and worms/vermicompost in the soil.
One of the reasons I keep my legumes growing too, I have some that are into their second harvest and I have to tie them down to not shade my new round of flowering girls.
It's all a happy family. We are simply creating a smaller microcosm of the natural world (the un-molested part, that is)
Another thing is an established soilweb seems to retain the perfect amount of water too, sometimes when transplanting clones or seeds their root system isn't large enough to help transpire or "use up" the water in the container, which can sometimes lead to root issues/gnats/ or even the contrary with dryspots forming near the roots because you wait too long for the entire pot to dry out.
All that happens frequently when you are relatively new to the whole concept. Sometimes I can see why people are intimidated by all the science and biology involved.
Not that hard though, especially if you make your own vermicompost and reg compost, those two things done correctly will give you a HUUUUGE margin of error.

 

[greasemonkeymann]

^^^ Yep, this. I don't know about being gone in 2-3 weeks, but they will break down pretty darn quick and become foodstock for microbes. This happens in nature and there is nothing to worry about. My last transplant the roots were so thick, it was work to dig a small hole to put the new plants in.


Ime more soil = more of a buffer and less chances for things to go wrong. I used 10-15 gallons pots for a few years. I've now upgraded to one large pot per light and I'm loving it. So imo, go with as much soil as you can.

Peace!

P-

ahh no shit? i missed that, so you grow under one pot? With what like 4 plants in it? or 6?
I've been mulling over that idea for a long time now, problem is my landlord uses my flowering room for 2 months out of the year to dry his outdoor crop.
that and i'd want to simply build a big-ass box and fill it with like 20 cubic feet of soil....
Man.... i need a greenhouse...
Another problem is i grow like anywhere between 6 and 12 different strains at a time, and it's hard to harvest at different times if you can't pull the pots out to sort through them.., that and i always have to inspect for mites too... gotta stay proactive on those bastards

 

[DonTesla]

Stow has a good recycle game going too.
I used to use 1gal root balls to make "worm-cities" in the farm but now I use them as cloths if they aren't a CBD strain.
I dry them out a fair bit then roll the old soil into a recycling bin where they get re-moistened and re-inoculated.. Maybe sprinkle some rice flour too for fungal frenzi.
But now I built a 45 gallon smart bed on wheels and will be tinkering with an OLS no till bed, but I was curious what you guys recommend for the single plants.. 15 gal? I was gonna do ten or twelve minimum but I'm thinking larger now..maybe even up to 22 US gal or 85 L..
Appreciate any feedback ..
Peace!
donTesla

 

[Pattahabi]

ahh no shit? i missed that, so you grow under one pot? With what like 4 plants in it? or 6?
I've been mulling over that idea for a long time now, problem is my landlord uses my flowering room for 2 months out of the year to dry his outdoor crop.
that and i'd want to simply build a big-ass box and fill it with like 20 cubic feet of soil....
Man.... i need a greenhouse...
Another problem is i grow like anywhere between 6 and 12 different strains at a time, and it's hard to harvest at different times if you can't pull the pots out to sort through them.., that and i always have to inspect for mites too... gotta stay proactive on those bastards

Yessir, multiple plants per pot!

Stow has a good recycle game going too.
I used to use 1gal root balls to make "worm-cities" in the farm but now I use them as cloths if they aren't a CBD strain.
I dry them out a fair bit then roll the old soil into a recycling bin where they get re-moistened and re-inoculated.. Maybe sprinkle some rice flour too for fungal frenzi.
But now I built a 45 gallon smart bed on wheels and will be tinkering with an OLS no till bed, but I was curious what you guys recommend for the single plants.. 15 gal? I was gonna do ten or twelve minimum but I'm thinking larger now..maybe even up to 22 US gal or 85 L..
Appreciate any feedback ..
Peace!
donTesla

I think this is a strictly opinion question/answer, but for me, I'd say a minimum of 15 gallons per plant. Could you do it in 5's? Sure, but you're going to have to pay closer attention to your watering, and it gets a little tricky with the no-tilling. If I have a 10 gallon pot and I want to transplant 3-4 gallon plants in the final pots, now I just took out 30-40% of my no-till soil. At some point I'm not sure I would consider it no-tilling (ie putting 7 gallon plants in 10 gallon final pots).

hth,

P-

 

[DonTesla]

Yessir, multiple plants per pot!

View attachment 3391657


I think this is a strictly opinion question/answer, but for me, I'd say a minimum of 15 gallons per plant. Could you do it in 5's? Sure, but you're going to have to pay closer attention to your watering, and it gets a little tricky with the no-tilling. If I have a 10 gallon pot and I want to transplant 3-4 gallon plants in the final pots, now I just took out 30-40% of my no-till soil. At some point I'm not sure I would consider it no-tilling (ie putting 7 gallon plants in 10 gallon final pots).

hth,

P-

Makes sense to me, P.. Tho I would hate to transplant anything bigger than a 2.5 or 3 gallon myself. 5 gals are just way too small tho, agreed.
What size pot do you rock for your triple plant no till there?

Fifteen gal is sounding like the new goal, now..
thanks man.
Tes

 

[Pattahabi]

Makes sense to me, P.. Tho I would hate to transplant anything bigger than a 2.5 or 3 gallon myself. 5 gals are just way too small tho, agreed.
What size pot do you rock for your triple plant no till there?

Fifteen gal is sounding like the new goal, now..
thanks man.
Tes

What I have found is with a larger bed of soil, veg times are reduced dramatically. Therefore, I go 2-4" squares for cloning/sprouting, transplant into 1 gallon pots (the 7" white hydrofarm squares cause that what I have), and then I put 4-5 plants per 100 gallons of soil. They veg two weeks, and flip. I had a friend that put two cuttings just rooted into a 200 gallon bed. In less than 5 weeks the two plants almost fill up the whole bed.

So, to end my stoned rant lol, I think 1 gallon pots into 15 gallon pots would be great!

Peace!

P-

 

[DonTesla]

What I have found is with a larger bed of soil, veg times are reduced dramatically. Therefore, I go 2-4" squares for cloning/sprouting, transplant into 1 gallon pots (the 7" white hydrofarm squares cause that what I have), and then I put 4-5 plants per 100 gallons of soil. They veg two weeks, and flip. I had a friend that put two cuttings just rooted into a 200 gallon bed. In less than 5 weeks the two plants almost fill up the whole bed.

So, to end my stoned rant lol, I think 1 gallon pots into 15 gallon pots would be great!

Peace!

P-

I have found that too, crazy explosive growth once embedded in a large bed..
I put 6 one gallons into a 45 gallon bed, a couple weeks later you couldn't see thru it!!
So you're rocking 20-25 US gallons of soil per plant then? That's awesome man..
I think you're on to something.

I've gone from thinking 7-12 gal/plant to thinking 15-22US gallons per plant now..

Tanks man,
Good rant,
Peace!
DonTes

 

[UncleBuck]

a shovel does the trick pretty nicely.