Egg shell seed starters

just came across a cool picture..

use empty egg shells to start your seeds in...poke a few holes for drainage in them...fill with soil and plant your seed. then transplant time comes just put them into your larger pot and break up the eggshell for calcium

http://www.instructables.com/id/Eggshell-Seed-Starters/


the idea is not mine but i though i would share..

bleh probabally should have put this in the organics section...if a mod wants to move that would be great.

I moved the thread for you, so I will make a comment. I don't like this idea for cannabis because there will not be much room for the tap root to grow downward. One thing you don't want to do with cannabis seeds is hinder the tap root growth. The tap root grows faster than the seedling above ground, so the root will be hindered before the cotyledons push off the seed shell.

I rinse\dry my eggshells, then they go into a coffee grinder where they are pulverized and then sifted to yield a calcitic lime that I use along with micronized dolomite.

I dont have any mj seeds atm, but I was about to start a few potted herbs for my gf(sweet x Thai basil, oregano, rosemary)Im gunna try starting the seeds in eggshells.

Thanks for the idea!!

RetiredMatthebrute said:

just came across a cool picture..

use empty egg shells to start your seeds in...poke a few holes for drainage in them...fill with soil and plant your seed. then transplant time comes just put them into your larger pot and break up the eggshell for calcium

http://www.instructables.com/id/Eggshell-Seed-Starters/


the idea is not mine but i though i would share..

Click to expand...

To bad it take 6 months to 2 years for egg shell to break down and RELEASE the Cal into the soil.. but it sounds good, so thats all that matters..

Nullis said:

I rinse\dry my eggshells, then they go into a coffee grinder where they are pulverized and then sifted to yield a calcitic lime that I use along with micronized dolomite.

Click to expand...

NOw that how you use Egg Shell But its still 6 months for any Cal to be released into the soil, which is not bad in a garden, just not to good in a pot.. but its FREE.. so who cares.

rollitup said:

I moved the thread for you, so I will make a comment. I don't like this idea for cannabis because there will not be much room for the tap root to grow downward. One thing you don't want to do with cannabis seeds is hinder the tap root growth. The tap root grows faster than the seedling above ground, so the root will be hindered before the cotyledons push off the seed shell.

Click to expand...

thanks for moving the thread for me

i would think that when the tap root hits the bottom of the eggshell it will start sending out side roots no? i mean an egg shell cant be any worse than starting in one of them jiffy pots.

interesting, cute idea,would be perfect for like preschool project or something for kids.... i dont eat eggs though lol

VX420 said:

NOw that how you use Egg Shell But its still 6 months for any Cal to be released into the soil, which is not bad in a garden, just not to good in a pot.. but its FREE.. so who cares.

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Really don't believe that this is the case. It might take a year or more for larger pieces or whole shells to begin to disintegrate, but the point of pulverizing them first is to speed this up considerably. Just about ten seconds in the grinder, followed by the sifting reduces them to a finer\powder consistency. Basically, the smaller the particles are the more available the calcium is, the quicker it will go to work.

The other lime I use is dolomite (contains Mg) and it is micronized, which means it has been pulverized and sifted to an extent that the particles are extremely fine. This kind of lime goes to work virtually instantaneously and releases Ca and some Mg consistently. Compared to micronized dolomite, the pulverize eggshell will take a little bit longer to act, but not six months (perhaps a couple weeks), and it will also act longer in the soil. The same is true for other more granulated, pelleted or chunky forms of lime (such as crushed oyster shell).

I have crushed up egg shells from a year ago in a water bottle, I use it to make the soil more acidic.

well im sure the shell wont degrade really fast but you kinda break it before you plant it and im sure it will add some calcium to your soil..

i like it because its creative and eco friendly especially for outside plantings, instead of starting your seedlings in the spring inside those jiffy pellets which the netting on them takes forever to decompose, (my vermi bin dosent even touch that shit) start em in the egg shells, which will give back to your soil eventually, even if they do take a year to fully decomp.

xGrimace said:

I have crushed up egg shells from a year ago in a water bottle, I use it to make the soil more acidic.

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Huh? Calcium carbonate wouldn't make anything more acidic, it'll do the opposite.

I got the 6 months to a year from a gardening book. I will see if I can find it again and post the name of the book. I dont think size was the MAjor issue, its the structue of the Eggs VS soil.. Egg shell is just harder and takes longer to break down.. Small pices faster,, but not that fast.. I could be wrong. I will look tommorow and see if I read it right.

The make up of egg shells is much like our teeth or bones, the half life is such that it Would take SUBSTANTIAL time for any whole or partially fragmented peices to be broken down into usable molecules of anything small enough for cannabis to make useful. That being said one can always aid in the breakdown process;

One whole medium sized eggshell makes about one teaspoon of powder, which yields about 750 - 800 mgs of elemental* calcium plus other microelements, i.e. magnesium, boron, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, sulphur, silicon, zinc, etc. There are 27 elements in total.

*Elemental amounts are the amounts absorbable.

So get crackin! Sorry couldnt resist ....very stoned -S0uP

VX420 said:

I got the 6 months to a year from a gardening book. I will see if I can find it again and post the name of the book. I dont think size was the MAjor issue, its the structue of the Eggs VS soil.. Egg shell is just harder and takes longer to break down.. Small pices faster,, but not that fast.. I could be wrong. I will look tommorow and see if I read it right.

Click to expand...

not sure what you mean, when planting the egg you break it so that the roots can travel freely into the soil, then as time goes on the shell bio degrades and leaves your soil richer than it was, yes it may not be usefull to the seedling you planted in it but if you continue doing it year after year, especially in your outside garden then the effects will take place and be maintained..

Has nothing to do with half-life and everything to do with particle size. Liming agents (like dolomite or calcitic limestone) applied to soil outdoors will last or provide Ca\Mg and neutralize acidity for 6 months to a year or longer. Soils with a high cation exchange capacity require more lime, but it can be applied less frequently. People usually apply lime pellets\aggregate to their lawn once or twice a year; in the fall and in early spring.

Applying lime outside on your lawn, it will take some time to work. When we lime a lawn we have to spread pellets on the surface of the lawn. With an existing lawn we really can't till it into the soil at all. So the best time to lime a lawn is just before a heavy rain. The pellets are made of the lime along with a binder and once they get wet they will disintegrate. The rain will wash the lime into the soil and outside this will take some time.

Eggshells are made primarily of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), which is what more than 90% of the shell is. Oyster shell has a very similar\identical composition. Other forms of garden lime are calcite or dolomite or dolomitic limestone, which are from ground up sedimentary rock\mineral deposits that contain CaCO3, CaMg(CO3)2, and potentially other carbonates. Even when you mix it into soil you can think of it as a precipitate or mineral deposits. But, we mix it directly and thoroughly into the potting soil.

Carbonates react will react in the soil in a couple of ways (and this isn't after a certain amount of time). They react with (neutralize) acids, releasing calcium in the case of CaCO3, as well as carbon dioxide (gas) and water. Carbon dioxide dissolved in water or carbonic acid will also react with some of the CaCO3 to form calcium bicarbonate, which is soluble (Ca2+ ions will dissociate). So, basically acids will dissolve the calcium carbonate and it will dissociate into the soil solution over time. The mineral cations such as calcium (Ca2+) will also be adsorbed by soil particles which hold onto them loosely (CEC).

Particle size matters because the finer the particles are, the more dispersed they are, more surface area is exposed and the reactions will occur more rapidly.

I think the best use for egg shells in organic gardening is as an additive to your worm bin. Worms need lots of calcium, and in return provide worm castings with lots of available calcium. Win win situation.