The term 'organic' can mean many things. True organic fertilizers are actually more accurately termed soil amendments & REQUIRE the activity of soil organisms to break them down into ionic form so they can pass through semi-permeable cell walls. Organic actually means the material once was living and contains carbon. If it has no carbon, it's not organic.



Because plants don't/can't absorb organic molecules, they absorb elements in ionic form (all plant nutrients are salts - except those that come from the air and pure water), organic soil amendments must be broken down by soil biota before they can be assimilated by plants in elemental form. Soil biota populations are extremely unstable in containers, making nutrient delivery via organic amendments erratic and unreliable. It's just the nature of container culture.



Making sure you realize your soil is a living entity and feeding it is important. Organic growing requires planning ahead, but has many benefits.
Just always try to remember organic growing releases its nutes at a much slower pace.

Thank you Oldman for the post. How do you control your organic soils activity in pots? Do you have suggestions that will help us manage this? I am quite interested in hereing what you have to say.

Peace

__________________
Life,
j-angel

aka GP purrie kittie attack cat!


My Little Grow LST'ing w/Hardware

My Outdoor Odyssey 2008 BONSAI MUMS

My Little Grow Indoor To Outdoor 2009

i in no way am trying to answer for oldman, but to put organisms in my pot to help break down i normally add about 20% of outdoor dirt, which already has these organisms. but i do thank you for this post as its very informative and better said than i could have put it.

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they call me ishmael, and mobys music sucks. smile if you get it.

I have always recycled my soil. I use garbage cans to continue the cycle.
When I harvest, the soil gets dumped into garbage cans, where it continues to live.
This soil will be used on my next grow, and the cycle continues.
I never have to go buy more soil this way either.
I love orgainics. I use organic soil and pearlite.
It's kind of hard to make a mistake with organics, unlike chemical based nutes.....which have there place for some people, just not for me.
Chemical based nutes hit the root system immediately, its like your plant
on steroids. But you have a higher chance of burning your plants this way too, if you use too much. You also have a lower salt buildup with organics at the root system.

I also smoke what I grow, so I have an active interest in what I feed my plants, my weed has a unique taste, one that my friends all look for too. smooth n sweet.

oldman im pretty sure we are going to get along fine lol, if i may ask what is your favorite type of manure?

__________________
they call me ishmael, and mobys music sucks. smile if you get it.

Hey moombiscuit....
I like bat guana and bonemeal. I am about to experiment with some chicken poop and Alfalfa Meal. I've used cow and horse **** right off the farm....after it dries of course.

ive actually never had the chance to work with bat guano, i tend to like the milder rabbit and sheep poo, in a 50 50 ratio, chicken poo is good if its aged well, other than that i always use extreme caution with it.

__________________
they call me ishmael, and mobys music sucks. smile if you get it.

hey you guys stop talking S*it to each other. lets all get along.

would you say once you get started organics are easier to maintain then a soil les medium where you have to fertilize and flush often?

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This is all fake, like the matrix it does not count i dont actully do any of this stuff. ifi loadid a pic i ound it on the cyber inter web space.

zuke im a man of simplicity, so yes i consider organics much easier.

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they call me ishmael, and mobys music sucks. smile if you get it.

Of course I believe organics is better and easier.
Given the opportunity to choose in your local supermarket between a free range chicken
or a chicken shot-up with steroids and hormones, which would you choose?

So oldman, please tell me the process you go through. You say you save your soil in a garbage can. Can you walk us through how you prepare say one lot of soil for potting up plants into veg?

I too am an organic grower. I tried recently a suggestion to use MG soil and was very very disappointed. I will never do that again. Back to what I know works best for me. I find growing organiclly not only cheaper as when mixed properly, nutrients aside from what is in the mix, are not necassary. I have it down so I know when my plants start looking sick and sad, they need to be put in bigger pots as they have used all the natural nutrients I have mixed into the soil. Indoors I use bonemeal, dolimite lime, FF americain pride and for flowering I add some bloodmeal. I do like the MG organics which is a mixture of compost and manures. But I have found last year, it was loaded with fungas gnats. many growers found the same thing. i would like to get totally away from buying this. I have my compost cooking, and am planning to start a worm farm to help more.

So any wisdom as to how YOU do it will enlighten me as well.

Thank you sir.

Peace

__________________
Life,
j-angel

aka GP purrie kittie attack cat!


My Little Grow LST'ing w/Hardware

My Outdoor Odyssey 2008 BONSAI MUMS

My Little Grow Indoor To Outdoor 2009

I want to join in on this.I also reuse my soil.I mix it around in my yard and dig it up as I need it,add more perlite and my meals and guanos.
My last plants,about a week before harvest I flooded with heavy molasses water.The next day I realized I had drowned a worm.I felt sad and happy both.Sad I drowned a worm and happy he was living in my plants.
I also started making teas. Well I almost o.d.ed my plants...man you have to be careful with the tea it seems.I put my plants in flower and fed them once... work out.Fed the second time and things went bad fast.
Oldman ,Do you check your water or your runoff? How bout you Jangs?
I always read that you dont have to and I havent untill just recently.I think I have to now.

I haven't checked it in a long time, but you check the runnoff, after it has been well watered in, the last little bit gives you a clue what the whole kibosh is. Otherwise, it just reads what the water is or what the nutes are. Not all together, including your soil.

Peace

__________________
Life,
j-angel

aka GP purrie kittie attack cat!


My Little Grow LST'ing w/Hardware

My Outdoor Odyssey 2008 BONSAI MUMS

My Little Grow Indoor To Outdoor 2009

as i am a guerilla grower, i only have limited experience with reusing dirt when i decided to grow one or two in buckets a few years back and still ues the same dirt, i just turn them into worm buckets in the off season then get most of the worms out when i plant in em.

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they call me ishmael, and mobys music sucks. smile if you get it.

I like Coast of Maine Soil
Monhegan Blend Black Earth
They make several blends, I've used a couple of em.

I mix my soil in my bathtub, its generally an all day affair, between putting the soil in and some perlite and some bone meal and mixing it well, taking lots smoke breaks and cleaning up afterwards, do this a few times in one day and you'll be ready for a fat one!! (and a pizza)

Last harvest, I harvested from 2 and 3 gallon growpots, I just stacked the grow pots aside, and when I needed em for the next grow, I transplanted back into these, no problems at all.

You can always add some form of organic material, if needed, (molasses, bone meal, bat guano or whatever) I do like making my teas too.
If I get hit with bugs, I just gas em with co2, this usually happens twice a year, usually in the warmer months.

Thank you kind sir....doesn't mixing the dirt in the tub scratch the tub???? I use large rubbermade containers and mix and store in there. Now I have to get a clean garbage can and start putting the older soil in that. I was also going to use the spent soil in my compost heap and then use that for my plants...should send them right off to a great start.

Time will tell!

Thank you sir.

peace

__________________
Life,
j-angel

aka GP purrie kittie attack cat!


My Little Grow LST'ing w/Hardware

My Outdoor Odyssey 2008 BONSAI MUMS

My Little Grow Indoor To Outdoor 2009

They would have to be pretty large containers, even the tub takes a few times to complete. It's an old cast iron tub, and I'm a renter, so I don't care if it scratches, but to be honest....I never noticed any scratches.

Point was, the soil is very good and its available most garden centers, you pay cash, take the soil and be gone....poof!

Guys I know a great way to mix.Better than in a tub and its easy.Attatch one side of a tarp to something stationary and slightly off the ground(fence,table,tree,side of house), Put your mix on it.Then lift the left corner,then the right and repeat a few times.Mixes great and thurough.Lots easyer that mixing in a bin.
You will be suprised