I don't know if this will work...

[ganga gurl420]

So last grow I planted in ground...that had many issues since I was in clay. Soil was like soup every time It rained hard.
I however want to be able to access the native soil here tho which a fabric pot won't allow the tap roots through.
I do like the idea of root pruning so my idea is this... I will be driving wood steaks into the ground and tacking a tight mesh screen to the inside to form a box this year.
It will give the sides oxygen but will allow roots through to the bottom.
The steaks will be high enough that I can attach trellis netting from the top to do Some scrogging for both support of the plant and to get as many colas as possible.
I am very curious to see how this will play out but I think this could work.

 

[ANC]

start working that soil...
Add a bit of biochar and compost to the top layer (or as far as you can till with a fork) Also add lots of calcium, bonemeal etc.
Then cover with mulch and give a watering with earthworm casting or compost tea every now and then to innoculate th4e soil.
Scratch any leftover rice into a pot and go put it under your mulch so it can ferment and grow fungus.
It will take less than a year to break down the clay and turn it into good soil. Remember to top up the mulch if it starts getting thin.
Also look at what you can do to improve drainage.

I've grown in those paper/clothy shopping bags you get, just place it into a larger cardboard box to keep the sun off the bag. Don't try to move those bags while they are wet and heavy...

 

[ganga gurl420]

start working that soil...
Add a bit of biochar and compost to the top layer (or as far as you can till with a fork) Also add lots of calcium, bonemeal etc.
Then cover with mulch and give a watering with earthworm casting or compost tea every now and then to innoculate th4e soil.
Scratch any leftover rice into a pot and go put it under your mulch so it can ferment and grow fungus.
It will take less than a year to break down the clay and turn it into good soil. Remember to top up the mulch if it starts getting thin.
Also look at what you can do to improve drainage.

I've grown in those paper/clothy shopping bags you get, just place it into a larger cardboard box to keep the sun off the bag. Don't try to move those bags while they are wet and heavy...

I'm using 400 gallons of amended composted manure per plant this yr. We can get 12 inches of rain at one shot so I don't want to mess with in ground any more lol! It was a nightmare. So I want to try the raised bed.
I will be using mulches and teas.
The rice idea is really smart...thanks

 

[ANC]

I was gonna say, you might have to landscape your ground a bit so you have a terrace that can drain freely.

There is a 5 step fermenting thing you can do with the rice. I think it is trying too hard...

 

[ganga gurl420]

I was gonna say, you might have to landscape your ground a bit so you have a terrace that can drain freely.

There is a 5 step fermenting thing you can do with the rice. I think it is trying too hard...

So point being is I'm making a garden box out of mesh screen ...

 

[natureboygrower]

So point being is I'm making a garden box out of mesh screen ...

what kind of screen are you going to use?
sounds like a good plan

 

[ganga gurl420]

A tight mesh nylon screen. I will be adding grass clippings between the soil and mesh as well.

 

[Indacouch]

So last grow I planted in ground...that had many issues since I was in clay. Soil was like soup every time It rained hard.
I however want to be able to access the native soil here tho which a fabric pot won't allow the tap roots through.
I do like the idea of root pruning so my idea is this... I will be driving wood steaks into the ground and tacking a tight mesh screen to the inside to form a box this year.
It will give the sides oxygen but will allow roots through to the bottom.
The steaks will be high enough that I can attach trellis netting from the top to do Some scrogging for both support of the plant and to get as many colas as possible.
I am very curious to see how this will play out but I think this could work.

If I set my fabric pot on grass they are literally stuck to the ground at the end of the season......from roots growing straight through the pot into the ground..... My green houses are all sealed tight with slabs as the floor..... But I put seedlings into 5 gallon smarts and then I plant the whole 5 gallon smart into a 100gal smart .....roots go straight through no issues ....hope that helps in some way.....GL

You can always back fill your holes with good soil if you really wana be in the ground.....but Gophers suck

Again GL

 

[ganga gurl420]

If I set my fabric pot on grass they are literally stuck to the ground at the end of the season......from roots growing straight through the pot into the ground..... My green houses are all sealed tight with slabs as the floor..... But I put seedlings into 5 gallon smarts and then I plant the whole 5 gallon smart into a 100gal smart .....roots go straight through no issues ....hope that helps in some way.....GL

You can always back fill your holes with good soil if you really wana be in the ground.....but Gophers suck

Again GL

Right on. I am positive my roots won't go through fabric... maybe some fine feeders but I get some huge roots lol

 

[Indacouch]

Right on. I am positive my roots won't go through fabric... maybe some fine feeders but I get some huge roots lol

Yeah I can't even see the fabric of the five I sink into the 100 when I dump the root balls at the end if the season.

 

[CaptainSnap]

Yeah I can't even see the fabric of the five I sink into the 100 when I dump the root balls at the end if the season.

This seems like a waste of money if you have to buy new fabric pots every season. To each their own but I never understood why people do this.

 

[ganga gurl420]

Either way... I'm excited to see these babies blow up in 400 gallons...

 

[Indacouch]

This seems like a waste of money if you have to buy new fabric pots every season. To each their own but I never understood why people do this.

$1.30 per 5 gallon smart pot.....lol

 

[CaptainSnap]

They must be some knock off brand then. That is cheap!

 

[ganga gurl420]

I don't want to use smart pots. If I do it this way I can just pull up the stakes and roll up the mesh and till the compost into the ground. At least the ground would become healthier when I am done lol.

 

[ThermalRider]

I've done something similar but instead of stakes
I used chicken wire... I did a 4 ft diameter circle twist tied landscape cloth to the chicken wire... sides and bottom.. worked great for 1 season..

 

[ganga gurl420]

I've done something similar but instead of stakes
I used chicken wire... I did a 4 ft diameter circle twist tied landscape cloth to the chicken wire... sides and bottom.. worked great for 1 season..

Nice! That sounds like it would work

 

[too larry]

Nice! That sounds like it would work

I did this with some old 2x4 dog wire. Drove wooden stakes in the ground, wrapped the wire around the stakes. Then lined it all in landscape fabric. I did dig down about 6-8 inches so the ground would help hold it all in place.

 

[waterproof808]

I would go ahead and plant a cover crop like clover/buckwheat/alfalfa to help break up that clay soil while fixing nitrogen.

 

[too larry]

When making your own pots, remember size equals soil needed to fill. It is easy to make big pots. Filling them, not so much.

Cylinder Volume {in cubic inches} = 3.14159265 x radius squared x height

. . . . and to put that into gallons, you would divide by 231.

So a pot 32 inches across and 18 inches high would be 62 2/3 gallons.

3.14159265 X (16 X 16) X 18 / 231 = 62.668