Ocean forest for base soil

Hi everyone,
I am new to organic gardening and supersoil. I have one hydro store in my town and they are the only one like it around and they know it. They are starting to be rude and their prices are climbing. Roots organic and foxfarm was $22 last year now they want $30 a bag for these brands and almost $50 for sunshine#4. I found a landscaping store that carried only foxfarm but I believe they have almost everything for supersoil. I could save about $100 by using foxfarm.. I remember ocean forest/light warrior with 2/1 ratio was popular at one time. What happened? is roots that much better or was it a marketing ploy? I did not see light warrior at the store, would happy frog in it's place be such a bad thing? Also, why rock phosphate instead of P bat guano? I understand that the rock form would release slower, but the girl didn't want to sell it to me cause I live close to a lake... I am new to organics so go easy on me.

I understand that ocean forrest is hotter than roots, but I never had problems. I am adding synthetic fert right now and want to get away from it.

make your own soil. peat, perlite, and EWC. cheap.

I used kellogg organic plus from home depot. Its like 8 bucks for 3cu feet for my outdoor. Works fine on its own, you can put perlite or vermiculite if you feel like it, but no need.

Sent from my LG-LS980 using Rollitup mobile app

you can always order soil online through amazon, if you have a prime membership, that will get you free second day shipping on all orders. really can't be free shipping on soil imo.
or like someone else said, make your own soil..

Pro-Mix BX mixed with EWC (and perlite if needed) is best bet in my opinion

So, there is no set standard then? I was just trying to save $8-10 a bag of soil, 10 bags=$100 savings. I guess that I just wanted to hear someone say "yes, foxfarm makes good super soil". Or tell me it sucks. I am tired of using synthetic fert...
Can you use peat and perlite as a base?

40% FFOF, 40% Happy Frog, 15% perlite, the remaining 5% a mix of worm castings/bloodmeal/bonemeal/dolomite lime. Can't go wrong.....30 days no nutes.

You can absolutely use FFOF as part of your base. Some organic purists scoff at the idea, but I see nothing wrong with it. I pulled off many a successful grow using it when I first got in to organics.

How many cubic feet you looking to put together?

Thanks, it will help me by sticking with all foxfarm because it is all that this landscaping store carries. I mean for name brand soil, $19.99 is not bad for FFOF.

I was going to use 8-10 bags of base soil and 60lbs of worm casting... I will add the rest of the supersoil additives also... They really didnt want to sell me rock phosphate for some reason? They carried it though.

I laugh when i see you guys spending $30 on a bag of soil, oh man my sides hurt. No disrespect but my secret weapon costs $1.65/bag and the results don't lie.
https://www.rollitup.org/t/the-dons-organic-garden.815786/page-8
Also, coco coir is more sustainable than peat and won't effect your pH as much if you plan on recycling your mix.

Does anyone have any suggestions for soil I can purchase? I use FF Happy Frog in veg, FF Ocean Forest in flower. I would switch to something comparable in terms of nutrients but lower in price. Maybe soil off Amazon? The two hydro shops here carry a pretty good selection of soil but it's all about $19.00 for 2 cubic feet.

The hydro shop near me sells ocean forest and happy frog for $11.99 a bag. Pretty reasonable IMO.

The cheapest way to do it is to buy a bale of peat from Home Depot. Premier Sphagum Peat is the brand. 3cf for around $12 IIRC.

I agree with DonP though. Coco coir is a good addition to your base. I do 50/50 peat and coir

Make your own, it will last longer and its cheaper! Fuck fox farm

DonPetro said:

I laugh when i see you guys spending $30 on a bag of soil, oh man my sides hurt. No disrespect but my secret weapon costs $1.65/bag and the results don't lie.
https://www.rollitup.org/t/the-dons-organic-garden.815786/page-8
Also, coco coir is more sustainable than peat and won't effect your pH as much if you plan on recycling your mix.

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Tell us more about the $1.65/bag secret weapon

I admit, when i got it at $1.65 it was on sale. Its usually $3.65. Lol But in all seriousness, you can find it almost anywhere made by numerous brands but its always labelled 'Black Earth'. Its a humus-based soil and if you research the benefits and abilities of humus you may be sold on it. Like i said earlier, the results don't lie. I personally can't justify spending much on a base soil that has to be amended anyway. Not only that but i can control my inputs and tweak it to fit my needs. It allows more room for error and is more forgiving. Don't get me wrong, the big name stuff works but i'm not sold on the fact that the results would be that much better.

DonPetro said:

I admit, when i got it at $1.65 it was on sale. Its usually $3.65. Lol But in all seriousness, you can find it almost anywhere made by numerous brands but its always labelled 'Black Earth'. Its a humus-based soil and if you research the benefits and abilities of humus you may be sold on it. Like i said earlier, the results don't lie. I personally can't justify spending much on a base soil that has to be amended anyway. Not only that but i can control my inputs and tweak it to fit my needs. It allows more room for error and is more forgiving. Don't get me wrong, the big name stuff works but i'm not sold on the fact that the results would be that much better.

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It's a convenience thing DP. I make 12cf of soil at a time, and if I'm a 1/2cf short for a run, do I bust open a 3cf bag of peat, piss around with harvesting ewc, and ammend all that soil...... or do I run up to the hydro shop and spend $11 on a bag of ocean forest?

If my total $ spent on filling a 3 gallon smart pot is about $6, and that plant in that smart pot yields 3 zips of dank, I can live with that. Money well spent.

st0wandgrow said:

It's a convenience thing DP. I make 12cf of soil at a time, and if I'm a 1/2cf short for a run, do I bust open a 3cf bag of peat, piss around with harvesting ewc, and ammend all that soil...... or do I run up to the hydro shop and spend $11 on a bag of ocean forest?

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greenlikemoney said:

If my total $ spent on filling a 3 gallon smart pot is about $6, and that plant in that smart pot yields 3 zips of dank, I can live with that. Money well spent.

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I hear you guys. I just see alot of peeps who don't want to go to the hydro shop or maybe they don't have one in their area and can't source Fox Farm or Roots. There's no question though that they are quality products.

DonPetro said:

I hear you guys. I just see alot of peeps who don't want to go to the hydro shop or maybe they don't have one in their area and can't source Fox Farm or Roots. There's no question though that they are quality products.

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I absolutely agree, you gotta work with whats available. But I never worry about the cost of materials because, when compared to the $ savings of what stuff goes for these days, it's a mere pittance.

$10 a bag for FFOF at Green Coast Hydroponics here in the SFV.