I'm switching to organics and I don't know what soil to get

SchmoeJoe

Well-Known Member
Kinda just seems like u don't have a clue so I thought i'd clear that up for you Mr. cant imagine how much soil cost to ship...
So let me clarify. I didn't say a single thing about whether or not it's possible to buy soil off of Amazon.

The op said that they don't have Roots Organic Fox Farms brands available in the EU. I was talking about the cost of shipping big, bulky, heavy bags of potting soil across the world since somone else suggested getting it that way. Not whether or not it's possible to buy soil from Amazon but the fact it would be so ridiculously expensive to have it shipped across the world that it's not an option to get those specific brands. The only reason the manufacturers don't sell it there, or any distributors for that matter, is because of the cost of shipping.

Now, to respond to your poorly placed condescension, you should either actually read the full thread to know the context of someone else's comments before making an sa of yourself or, if you did read through them, you really need to work on your reading comprehension and/or information retention.

FYI, you have the distinct honor of being the first person I've blocked on RIU.
 

SchmoeJoe

Well-Known Member
SUre, you can throw shit on the ground, but it needs that year cycle to perfect the mix.
I'm having a hard time explaining. say you look at plants and trees that can live in Alaska.
Some plants could survive there for short parts of the year, but can not survive the yearly drift down in winter temperatures.
Even if you plant a shitload full, in a season or 2 nature will cull them all. Outdoors our soil is like these climate zones. The microbial and fungal life should not only thrive one time of year, but survive until the next year's season. There are more living organisms in a hand full of forest topsoil then there are stars in the heavens. Good luck throwing the right mix at your soil.
That might work for someone planning a long term sustainability/permaculture but it's completely impractical to think that someone whis about to make the switch to organics is going to wait a year for there pile of soil outside to be ready. Not to mention how cringe worthy many would find the idea of all of the potential pests you'd be bring in with that soil.

As far as your analogy about soil in stable ecosystems that takes centuries or, more often, millennia . I get that the principle is the same but a pile of soil left sitting outside for a year will peak in microbial activity and then most of it will die off from running out of resources. Not to mention leaching all of the meaningful nutrients from rain.
 
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Nutria

Well-Known Member
Unless you do a true super soil. Even though you don't have to feed a super soil there are some things you just can't get in a dry soil amendment that I like to use so even with a super soil type set up I'll still feed with a few liquids. Mostly things that stimulate microbes.

As for using things like hydroton in soil mixes the general rule is not to use more than 20% total volume. I like to also use a 20% bigger container. So, for clarity, I'll just make sure that I'm talking about using something like hydroton in rich soil mixes like a super soil.
Sir i really appreciate your help and the advices from the other members.
I would like to make a super soil but I am afraid to fuck up with the ingredients and at the end I would have an imbalanced soil, I can't risk an harvest.

Starting from the commercial soil I linked what can I add dry to make it even better? I posted the products I can source some posts ago. I will use this soil to flower clones, so no veg time
 

SchmoeJoe

Well-Known Member
Sir i really appreciate your help and the advices from the other members.
I would like to make a super soil but I am afraid to fuck up with the ingredients and at the end I would have an imbalanced soil, I can't risk an harvest.

Starting from the commercial soil I linked what can I add dry to make it even better? I posted the products I can source some posts ago. I will use this soil to flower clones, so no veg time
That's why I suggested getting an organic dry amendment mix from a company that's already done the work of working out the the logistics on balancing the inputs. Mix it in just a little under their max recommended ratio into a ready made potting soil that doesn't have much in the way of added amendments to make sure it's not too hot.

For reference I use Roots Organics B2 soil which only has glacial rock dust and ewc for nutrients. I add Down To Earth Bio-Live which I think is best thing on the market of its kind. It has a balanced nutrient input. A bit high on the N but with at least a 3-4 week veg it's just the right amount. It also has a comprehensive set of mycological and microbial inoculants. I know you said that Roots isn't avaiable and the DTE almost certainly won't be since it's from the same town in Oregon but if you look them up you'll get a good idea of what I'm talking about. It makes running a super soil style of garden a lot easier since you don't have the headache of having to sort through dozens of potential amendments and then trying to figure out the right amounts after that.
 
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SchmoeJoe

Well-Known Member
Sir i really appreciate your help and the advices from the other members.
I would like to make a super soil but I am afraid to fuck up with the ingredients and at the end I would have an imbalanced soil, I can't risk an harvest.

Starting from the commercial soil I linked what can I add dry to make it even better? I posted the products I can source some posts ago. I will use this soil to flower clones, so no veg time
After looking through what you have available I'd say that i like the bio-bizz for the method I was describing. Specifically the light mix if you're able to find a complete blend to mix in with it. Since you're not going to veg the 2-5-3 would probably be perfect.

Since the biobizz all mix has a stronger nutrient base and already has the inoculants you could use even less of the 2-5-3 and probably not worry about inoculating, at least at first.
 

Nutria

Well-Known Member
After looking through what you have available I'd say that i like the bio-bizz for the method I was describing. Specifically the light mix if you're able to find a complete blend to mix in with it. Since you're not going to veg the 2-5-3 would probably be perfect.

Since the biobizz all mix has a stronger nutrient base and already has the inoculants you could use even less of the 2-5-3 and probably not worry about inoculating, at least at first.
May I ask you to give a look at Guanokalong products ?
They have a complete fertilizer (2-5-3) to be mixed but they also sell a soil already fertilized.
I have General Organics mineral magic and I can buy THIS beneficial stuff.
 

SchmoeJoe

Well-Known Member
why doesn't it work well with beneficials?
It's just two kinds of peat and earthworm castings as far as it's organic parts. Other than the added guano, anyway. To maintain a variety of soil organisms you want a variety of organic materials in the mix. For example crab or shrimp meal, or insect frass, are high in chitin which some bacteria break down and release nitrogen from. The exposure to chitin mimics the plant being in a more natural ecology and triggers a sar response making the plant more resilient to pests and stress. As the material is broken down the other nutrients are made available. This digestive action from the bacteria also produces most all of the amino acids you could want.
Basically healthy organic soil is made that way by a variety of soil organisms eating a variety of organic waste. The more diverse the better.
 

Nutria

Well-Known Member
It's just two kinds of peat and earthworm castings as far as it's organic parts. Other than the added guano, anyway. To maintain a variety of soil organisms you want a variety of organic materials in the mix. For example crab or shrimp meal, or insect frass, are high in chitin which some bacteria break down and release nitrogen from. The exposure to chitin mimics the plant being in a more natural ecology and triggers a sar response making the plant more resilient to pests and stress. As the material is broken down the other nutrients are made available. This digestive action from the bacteria also produces most all of the amino acids you could want.
Basically healthy organic soil is made that way by a variety of soil organisms eating a variety of organic waste. The more diverse the better.
oh ok got it. It is hard for me to understand what there is inside, I don't know why they don't write the "ingredients" on their site. Do you think the biobizz light mix is well balanced?
On another forum I found these ingredients:
coco
bat guano
peat
sphagnum
sparkle
NPK 133 201 365 (mg / l)
trace elements: Fe, Mn, Zn, B, Cu, Mo, Co, Se

What about the biobizz all mix? It comes with biobizz premix so I shouldnt worry about mixing it with more ferts
 

Ghost of Davy Jones

Well-Known Member
So let me clarify. I didn't say a single thing about whether or not it's possible to buy soil off of Amazon.

The op said that they don't have Roots Organic Fox Farms brands available in the EU. I was talking about the cost of shipping big, bulky, heavy bags of potting soil across the world since somone else suggested getting it that way. Not whether or not it's possible to buy soil from Amazon but the fact it would be so ridiculously expensive to have it shipped across the world that it's not an option to get those specific brands. The only reason the manufacturers don't sell it there, or any distributors for that matter, is because of the cost of shipping.

Now, to respond to your poorly placed condescension, you should either actually read the full thread to know the context of someone else's comments before making an sa of yourself or, if you did read through them, you really need to work on your reading comprehension and/or information retention.

FYI, you have the distinct honor of being the first person I've blocked on RIU.
Must be my good looks.... So long Buddy!
 

SchmoeJoe

Well-Known Member
oh ok got it. It is hard for me to understand what there is inside, I don't know why they don't write the "ingredients" on their site. Do you think the biobizz light mix is well balanced?
On another forum I found these ingredients:
coco
bat guano
peat
sphagnum
sparkle
NPK 133 201 365 (mg / l)
trace elements: Fe, Mn, Zn, B, Cu, Mo, Co, Se

What about the biobizz all mix? It comes with biobizz premix so I shouldnt worry about mixing it with more ferts
The all mix looks good and has the added benefit of only needing the two fertilizers they recommend.
 

Nutria

Well-Known Member
The all mix looks good and has the added benefit of only needing the two fertilizers they recommend.
I would prefer not to use liquid ferts but if I have to
Can I mix biobizz lightmix and allmix at 1:1 and then add a complete fert? Or this way I get a soil too much carged?

One more question if I may: it is not needed to flush an organic soil, am I right?
 

SchmoeJoe

Well-Known Member
I would prefer not to use liquid ferts but if I have to
Can I mix biobizz lightmix and allmix at 1:1 and then add a complete fert? Or this way I get a soil too much carged?

One more question if I may: it is not needed to flush an organic soil, am I right?
If you need to you can just do a top dressing instead of using liquids. According to guanokolong a lot of people actually just use the all mix full cycle with no additives. I'd at least use an inoculant at a couple of points. As far as flushing that can get to be a heated debate but no, as long as you're not using a bunch of synthetic nutrients a flush isn't necessary. Not flushing does make the dry and cure even more crucial though.
 
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