Soil mix

Here's what I have right now after input and looking around locally,
1 cf local promix
1 cf local organic compost
25 lbs local worm castings
.5 cf rice hulls
.5 cf lava rocks
Alfalfa meal
1/2 cup Kelp meal
Neem seed meal
Crab meal
Jobes veg & tomato :2-7-4
Eco scrap organics veg & tomato :5-4-6
Greensand
Azomite
Ganite dust

Is this a good place to start,should I leave any of this out,just looking for some knowledge. Thanks.

Stoneydazed said:

Here's what I have right now after input and looking around locally,
1 cf local promix
1 cf local organic compost
25 lbs local worm castings
.5 cf rice hulls
.5 cf lava rocks
Alfalfa meal
1/2 cup Kelp meal
Neem seed meal
Crab meal
Jobes veg & tomato :2-7-4
Eco scrap organics veg & tomato :5-4-6
Greensand
Azomite
Ganite dust

Is this a good place to start,should I leave any of this out,just looking for some knowledge. Thanks.

Click to expand...

Good morning
i'd say that is a good start, I would change a couple things personally, but that doesn't mean you need to.
i'd drop the nutrient mix
the jobes, and eco scrap.
and i'd also drop the azomite, especially if you plan on reusing the soil
the crab meal, alfalfa meal, kelp meal and neem meal are great choices
i'd do two cups of each/all those nutrients into your mix
and four cups of the granite dust, two cups of the greensand.
also may want more aeration depending on the final result/density of the compost and worm castings, those are badass for CEC but can be dense.
ah, wait, nevermind, the promix is going to have aeration, either way though, you may want a speck more

Also be certain that compost is finished... not wood chunks
and another thing, if you don't plan on reusing the soil, theres no pint to the greensand, that take a good amount of time to be bioavailable, between 8 to 12 months or so, from what I've researched.
good shit though

GMM ... I've started adding greensand to my worm bins. Not so much for the worms, but the microbes to get it started on its lengthy breakdown.

OP ... Yes, you need more aeration, but I would ditch the rice hulls as they break down fairly quick and turn to mush. Lava rock, I'm very MEH on for several reasons. First, the weight. Second, the work involved smashing them small enough to actually work well and lastly, the damage they do to my hands digging around in the mix. Lots of sharp edges!

*I* would really suggest perlite for your first go round so at least you have a well draining, aerated mix. I usually end up with about 40% total aeration from various sources.

HTH

Wet

sounds hot AF!

good grab with the rice hulls, are they fresh or carbonized?
how big are the plants going in it?
carbonized rice hulls can make up a third of the soil volume but like wetdog said, fresh dried rice hulls go to muck and id add the really important step that they should be kept for a home brew beer and then bokashi.

sip sip

Wetdog said:

GMM ... I've started adding greensand to my worm bins. Not so much for the worms, but the microbes to get it started on its lengthy breakdown.

OP ... Yes, you need more aeration, but I would ditch the rice hulls as they break down fairly quick and turn to mush. Lava rock, I'm very MEH on for several reasons. First, the weight. Second, the work involved smashing them small enough to actually work well and lastly, the damage they do to my hands digging around in the mix. Lots of sharp edges!

*I* would really suggest perlite for your first go round so at least you have a well draining, aerated mix. I usually end up with about 40% total aeration from various sources.

HTH

Wet

Click to expand...

Special kitty from wal mart (calcined clay, aka turface). Rinse well. It has the consistency of ground up clay bricks.
Try it & let your plants decide.
I'll never go back to pearlite...