So who here is growing in true organic living soil?

Rrog

Rrog

Well-Known Member
Ah- Got it. No place to isolate for a few days? You can give it a drench and spray and have a look in a couple days. Aloes are kept in pretty dry soil so seems like isolation / inoculation would be pretty successful. It'll keep growing and supplying for years, so you only have to do this once.
 
Rrog

Rrog

Well-Known Member
Exactly, Buckaroo. And the worms are supposed to be the engineers. I'm hoping my little worm experiment will show that you can make your own VC in a small square in your basement or somewhere warm. I'm at 64F. Everyone should make their own.
 
gladstoned

gladstoned

Well-Known Member
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130837323999&quantity=1&autorefresh=true

Aloe Vera Plants.....(pic 1 shows the 3 sizes I sell) No Kitchen or garden should be without one. They are very prolific plants and with just one plant you will quickly have a pot full of aloe's. Takes very little sunlight or water to keep these happy... (I have my largest personal plant (pic 1) between 2 windows in the kitchen where it gets no direct light and it thrives) Generally grown indoors where it gets cold in the winter, but in southern climates can be grown year round outdoors. A must have for small scrapes and burns, just break a leaf off and squeeze the liquid on the burn to prevent blisters (in most cases) and to relieve the pain. Sent as single 6-12" plants or double 3-6" plants depending on availability (weight approximately the same) Shipped without pot or soil but guaranteed alive, just pot in moist potting soil as soon as it arrives. If you order this plant from a cold climate, I cannot guarantee alive on arrival. Make sure that your climate is above freezing during the day on the projected week of delivery, and that you will be available to get the plant from your mailbox shortly after delivery before temps drop below 40 degrees or you risk losing the plant (and I can't guarantee it under those conditions). If you have any questions feel free to send me a question.


I just ordered this one. I will take pictures when it gets here. $5.
It's cold as fuck outside, wonder if it will survive the trip.
I donated $1 to the humane society at the checkout for more good karma to help
navigate aloe plant through the tundra.
 
abe supercro

abe supercro

Well-Known Member
saw a rack of em at a walmart in the indoor-outdoor gardening section.. forgot to circle back.
and that whole room was on clearance. i get overwhelmed in those mega stores even in the middle o the night.
 
buckaroo bonzai

buckaroo bonzai

Well-Known Member
Rrog said:
Exactly, Buckaroo. And the worms are supposed to be the engineers. I'm hoping my little worm experiment will show that you can make your own VC in a small square in your basement or somewhere warm. I'm at 64F. Everyone should make their own.
Click to expand...

when I grew up Rrog...there was know such thing as 'hydro'....

i didn't hear about that till the 80s.....
the only way was the dirt way...?
 
Rrog

Rrog

Well-Known Member
This is an interesting revelation (to me, anyway). We all know there are cations and anions in the soil that we need to lock up so it doesn't wash away. Cations such as Ca+, Na+, K+, Mg+ are well known to be sequestered to the humus in compost, as well as to clay. But what about the anions? Specifically N- , P-, S- and B-.

There has been data to show that aspects of the soil can hold anions, but then along comes this revelation from my Tazmanian pal SilverSurfer:

The large surface area of biochar can attract and hold all mineral ions - not only cations
(+) such as ammonium, calcium, magnesium and potassium, but also anions (-) such as nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and boron. By attracting and holding both positive and negative nutrient ions in the soil, biochar can reduce both leaching (into groundwater) and out-gassing (into the atmosphere). These loosely-held nutrients are bio-available to microbes and plant roots in the complex root zone.

http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.echocommunity.org/resource/collection/F6FFA3BF-02EF-4FE3-B180-F391C063E31A/Biochar-An_Organic_House_for_Soil_Microbes.pdf

This is a BIG deal. Get the biochar activated in high N and some EWC.
 
T

tomcatjones

Active Member
Rrog said:
This is an interesting revelation (to me, anyway). We all know there are cations and anions in the soil that we need to lock up so it doesn't wash away. Cations such as Ca+, Na+, K+, Mg+ are well known to be sequestered to the humus in compost, as well as to clay. But what about the anions? Specifically N- , P-, S- and B-.

There has been data to show that aspects of the soil can hold anions, but then along comes this revelation from my Tazmanian pal SilverSurfer:

The large surface area of biochar can attract and hold all mineral ions - not only cations
(+) such as ammonium, calcium, magnesium and potassium, but also anions (-) such as nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and boron. By attracting and holding both positive and negative nutrient ions in the soil, biochar can reduce both leaching (into groundwater) and out-gassing (into the atmosphere). These loosely-held nutrients are bio-available to microbes and plant roots in the complex root zone.

http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.echocommunity.org/resource/collection/F6FFA3BF-02EF-4FE3-B180-F391C063E31A/Biochar-An_Organic_House_for_Soil_Microbes.pdf

This is a BIG deal. Get the biochar activated in high N and some EWC.
Click to expand...
sooo charred rice hulls?? i wanted to use rice hulls instead of perlite anyways......... hmm ideas of where to find?
 
headtreep

headtreep

Well-Known Member
Rrog, I read some posts back you used a smart pot for a worm bin. I'm in a need of a worm farm so I can make my own castings instead of using commercial or local ones $$$. Got any pics on how it looks or where you got the idea? I need to get on the DIY compost train as well since I've been using a local company called Bio Flora.
 
Rrog

Rrog

Well-Known Member
Hello headtreep. Thanks for stopping by. I got the idea from Coot. I asked what the smallest smart pot was that he thought might work and he thought 30 gal, so that's what I'm trying. It's on a little 2x4 raised platform with a wire mesh top so there's air under the bag. That's what makes this work (theoretically). Very aerated.

I have a sheet of plastic loosely over the top. They like it under there. Water like you would for a plant. I have medium and large lava rock in the mix for structure. They like that, apparently. Feeding them Bokashi, which they love. No smell, even from Bokashi once there's a little dirt covering it.
 
Rrog

Rrog

Well-Known Member
Fattie- sounds really great. Very happy for you. Remind me again- do you have a worm bin in the works?
 
Rrog

Rrog

Well-Known Member
Hello BB- How are you this evening?

My worms are doing very well. They love the Bokashi, they are very active in the soil, and this experiment is going very well so far. The Geopot the worms are in works great. NO SMELL. I've added biochar also.
 
buckaroo bonzai

buckaroo bonzai

Well-Known Member
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
yes namaste' great organic Buddha!--blessed I am-



so are you throwing your kitchen scrapes in there...?....selectively...?....no meat etc--

and if so what?....vegetable and green material? how fast is the bokashi breaking it down?

i guess...?....what r u feeding ur wermz...?:eyesmoke:

did you get red wiggles?
and are they 'massing' yet....creating a single seething mass of orgiastic worm frenzy? lol



you do remember that OP in here somewhere from Colorado telling us his worms consumed 2000lbs horse shit per week....?...!!


---did you put the neighbor kidz in there? or that neighborhood cat that annoys you?:joint:
 
Rrog

Rrog

Well-Known Member
Great Fattie! I used lava rock for some structure. I can screen them out from the castings later. There are many simple sites with pics on how to get worms started. Just make sure the bag is up off the ground on a screen base for air under. Cover the top with a loose-laid piece of plastic.

BB-

I'm feeding Bokashi,and a thin layer of veggie scraps. Red wigglers and yes indeed, they are massing! Bokashi is several months old at this point. Feels very good to be raising them.
 
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