pumice , rice hulls , and biochar, much better quality than perlite , the ones i listed actually have stuff that helps the plant grow, not to mention they don't float to the top or cause respiratory issues when you breath in the dust.
Hooray for Volcanic Pumice, Rice Hulls and Biochar.
This is my first attempt at growing cannabis, so I looked for a KISS approach.
I am using
LC #2 Soilless mix recipe, using Sunshine Mix #4 (the purple bag that is 2.2 cubic ft)). I found this recipe on another forum giving advice on organics for beginners.
6 Parts Sunshine Mix #4
2 Parts Earth Worm Castings (EWC)
2 Parts Perlite (for aeration)
Powdered Dolomitic Lime for yard and garden (which I found at a store called tractor supply. (The Powdered Dolomitic Lime is measured at 2 Tablespoons per gallon of the mix or 1 Cup per cubic foot of the mix).
For this soilless recipe, I took the author's advice and used a 3 Quart Saucepan to measure a Part. Using the 3 Qt saucepan to put together the recipe parts results in a cubic foot of this mix.
I read many complaints about the messiness and buoyancy of Perlite so I searched for other aeration materials to substitute for the 2 parts Perlite called for in the LC #2 original recipe.
For the "2 Parts Perlite" called for in the above recipe, I substituted
1 Part Volcanic Pumice (off-white and fine-grained),
1/2 Part Biochar (the product I bought resembles large grind coffee grains), and
1/2 Part Rice Hulls (which are organic, parboiled, and practically dust free).
I started from seeds which I presoaked in a dilute solution of liquid fulvic acid and fresh Aloe Vera gel (from the plant in my garden) in distilled water. Once the seeds sank to the bottom of the shot glass (I read that you do not have to actually "pop" or "crack" the seeds and see a taproot emerging) I soaked my Root Riot plugs in the same presoaking fulvic acid + aloe vera gel solution to which I added wettable mycorrhizae powder (Mykos). I gently squeezed the Root Riot plugs so they were moist, but not soaking wet, and then carefully placed each seed into its own Root Riot plug.
Because I am growing auto flowering strains (Auto Northern Lights and Auto White Widow), I want to avoid disturbing the roots of my seedlings as much as possible. Much of what I've read on the seed breeder's websites advise minimal and/or no handling of auto flowering plant roots), so the Root Riot plugs containing the seeds will be placed directly into the plant's final big grow pot, taking extra care to monitor the moisture (mostly misting in the beginning) available to the plants.
Once the sprouts have matured into seedlings after 14 or more days, I will feed them using Earth Worm Castings tea and bottled liquid fish and seaweed nutrients.
I am a big fan of "___X____ For Dummies" instructions and was happy to find the above information because all the ingredients could be purchased at my local big box store ("home despot") and my friendly local hydroponics store.
CRITICISMS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME.
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