yes and I can be a douche too man sorry
Good ole' trial & error... On the error side again; What went wrong with this soil batch?
- Thread starter NewGrower2011
- Start date
MustangStudFarm
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This batch of rabbit manure is from a warehouse that had over 100 rabbits. The guy taking care of them was old and he didn't clean anymore. I found out about it from Craigslist and he was offering it for free if you come and shovel it yourself. I had a family member that needed some money, so I had him take his trailer and load it up. Probably not the highest quality.
Since then, I had some rabbits donated to me and I have been feeding them most of the veggie scraps instead of the worms. Still, the worms get the rotten food. I am certain that my rabbits get a better diet than the warehouse bunnies. Rabbits actually eat a wider variety than I first thought. They go after bananas first and then pears. They like leafy greens too but sometimes they go after fruit first. Anyways, I mixed a little rabbit bedding with leaves for my first layer of my worm bin. The leaves were not breaking down, so I added grass clippings to speed things up. I started keeping the rabbit bedding separate from the worm bin and I have 3 separate compost piles right now. Pure leaf mold, rabbit bedding, and my worm bin that has a little of everything. I only amended the worm bin with barley and rock dust... It's under a shade tree and I cover it with a tarp.
I'm still not sure exactly what my problem was when I was using compost. My soil tests have shown that I had excessive P and low in micros. So, I stopped using so much manure and used more basalt.
Here is my leaf mold, it's going to take it a while to break down. I used a bagger on my lawnmower last Oct/Nov to pick up leaves and I filled the worm bin plus a 200gal freight sack. Next time, I will put the sack on the pallet.
Half of the leaves look like mud, but there are still layers of leaves that have not been touched. Long, slow process...
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
I wish that we lived closer, I would come and volunteer some of my time. I feel like my 2 1/2 acres is too small! Most of my yard is wooded too, so I would have to clear a spot for a bigger garden.ah I have about 110,000 feet total, but most of this is actually mature fruit groves, avacado, olives, almonds, pistachios, moringa, graviola, figs nispero, walnuts, date palms and citrus. I am however extending the planting in the veggie plots, and i am shoving more N fixers in to the tree groves, mostly shrubs in the citrus right now. i also planted a bunch of toscana prunes, if you havent tried these...wow they are delicious and sell super well at about 5-6 bucks for 2lbs. the plants of these i have are super productive and require next to no effort too. I found organic fruit to be the better sellers over standard veggies but our tomatoes are always sold before we plant
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
I make it a priority of mine to take advice from new members!!!
MustangStudFarm
Well-Known Member
I don't know if my problem is unique to my situation, but I cannot get my compost to work in containers... It's much better on the ground but that is because of the minerals in the soil, it's what my compost is lacking. I don't know if this is one aspect that people over look while container planting with compost, but I am still searching for answers.
Look at the test result from my ground garden. It is perfectly fine in trace minerals except for Fe. I don't get it because Oklahoma is supposed to have red dirt from all of the iron(Rust) in our soil???
MustangStudFarm
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Lordhooha
Well-Known Member
Do you add azomite to your mix?
Lordhooha
Well-Known Member
Oh I’m well aware my mom lives in Lawton and I’m from Louisiana. I know all about that sourthern soil.
NewGrower2011
Well-Known Member
I haven't gotten around to really addressing the micro shortfall yet - and I think I've seen 1st tell tale signs of some issue; Small rust looking spots - just a few small ones but still early on. Maybe a little leaf tip burn going on too but they're still somewhat small and may cope fine later.
I had went light on the Azomite specifically due to all the mentions of the Al in it; But I also read somewhere/something about a high level in another macro (I think) made the Al less available and mitigated it somewhat. I was contemplating top dressing and watering in a little more Azomite since I literally have one of the huge bags of micronized that I bought several years ago (still barely made a dent in it).
I was going to start investigating the 'fix' for my micro def though so if the Azomite would fulfill the needs and do the job - that's a no brainer since I have it on hand.
NewGrower2011
Well-Known Member
So the pots are a little dry and gave them a light watering until I decide my course of action; I think I'll go ahead and give 'em a dose of the Azomite - now my only Q is how much per... Was going to figure out the amount, then mix with water and agitate/top dress... The light drink I gave 'em already was dosed with MammothP, EM1 and a tiny bit o' molasses, a little aminos, enzyme & silica since I had those things handy. Otherwise had been water-only for last couple waterings.
How much Azomite per gallon would folks recommended given my soil test? And what do folks think on the Al debate...
How much Azomite per gallon would folks recommended given my soil test? And what do folks think on the Al debate...
Lordhooha
Well-Known Member
Do you have the powdered form?
I'd check the azomite co website. *I* use 1cup/cf in my mix, but I seem to remember the website had measurements for mixing with water for application.
For "mineral", mineral sources, it's down to azomite and greensand, both @1cup/cf. Other sources include the everpresent kelp meal and comfrey (land kelp), via the worm bin for a very mineral rich VC.
I no longer use *rock dust* in my mixes, even though granite meal is next to free here. Just too heavy and even the 'slow' greensand is way faster to release.
Wet
NewGrower2011
Well-Known Member
Mmmm greensand is another thing I have on-hand and some was included in the original mix; That and I've got a big bag of kelp meal too. Too bad the place that had bulk cheap & local closed down - but I use so little what I have will last quite some time. Targetting 7gal pots I'm thinking maybe on the lighter side (just in case) and 1/2 cup/cf of azomite. After this round I can always retest the soil.
The biggest constraint/goal would be to not add any more N or K especially. And I added some rock phos for the P shortcomings already - so whatever I do add I was hoping to avoid any macro inputs...
The biggest constraint/goal would be to not add any more N or K especially. And I added some rock phos for the P shortcomings already - so whatever I do add I was hoping to avoid any macro inputs...
Here's my take on it: The very first organic mix I did was LC's #1. His macro amendments & amounts were:
Blood meal @1/2cup/cf
Bone meal @1cup/cf
Kelp meal @1/2cup/cf
Dolomite lime @1cup/cf
That was it for the base mix, but then, other amendments like greensand and azomite were mentioned as like 'basic +' amendments.
But the point for me was how light those original amounts were and the ratio of 1/2 - 1 - 1/2 of the npk items. I still follow that basic ratio. I use different N sources now, but the bone and kelp meal remain the same.
IDK about the rock phosphate, no experience, but you could go super light on the N and the K (like less than 1/2cup/cf), but keep the azomite and greensand @1cup/cf. Greensand supplies K, but is on the slow side doing it (nothing compared to the speed of kelp meal). Get those micros and trace up!
But, however you handle it, you at least have a clue to where you're heading.
Cheers
Wet
NewGrower2011
Well-Known Member
So erring on the lighter side of things, I threw a 1/4 cup Azomite into a gallon of water along with a small dash of some ancient forest & ewc (was within reach - figured can't hurt anything). Did this for 2 gal to spread across 6 plants so just a 'smidge' at first to see how things respond. This was then shaken every time I walked past it for the course of the evening and then finally applied before I crashed.
Small adjustments is my goal this time - don't want to overshoot and then have soil to toss out in a "can't be used" pile (again).
Small adjustments is my goal this time - don't want to overshoot and then have soil to toss out in a "can't be used" pile (again).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_soil
we have this here in Spain too
The red color is usually a result of alteration of clay minerals, so it usually occurs in the argillic horizons. Weathered clay minerals release aluminium and iron oxides such as hematite (Fe2O3). This process is favored in hot climates with a long and intense dry season, as the Mediterranean climate. Reddish colors indicate good drainage and aeration of the soil, allowing the existence of oxidizing conditions to form oxides. In the Mediterranean basin, red soils are known as “Terra rossa” (Italian expression for red soil).