Plant Alchemy With KNF: Korean Natural Farming And Jadam

[Azimuth]

Thanks Bode.

Gee has me rethinking my aversion to making teas (because of the hassle) so I've setup a smaller in-grow version which should give me a regular, periodic supply. Since each run will still produce more than I need for my cannabis plants, the outside garden and compost pile will also be beneficiaries.

 

[Azimuth]

Here's a neem spray alternative for mites from Clackamas Coot...

Coot's Mint Spray for Mites

ClackamasCoots's Effective Spider Mite and Pest Spray without Neem​

Jeremy Silva Grower Pro Tips
05/15/2014 2:10pm 3 minute read

Looking for a pest spray that actually works?​

Okay this is Awesome! I have had a few customers write in asking for tips on Home Made Pest Sprays that didn't require the use of Neem. Main reason being that as a grower, you might find yourself in a battle against pests and not have any Neem oil on hand. That being said I fired off an email to ClackamasCoots who is unbelievably helpful and he wrote back with this detailed email that was to good to summarize... here is the email conversation that we had this morning.
All Credit to ClackamasCoots:
Jeremy

Yes, you can use cilantro as well as other members of the Mint family (Lamiaceae or Labiatae) and the link has a list you can review.

The reason that Mint plants are as effective can be explained at this list for both culinary Lavender and medicinal Lavender - link

Look at the compounds and many of these are used commercially in their synthetic forms. Linalool is a good example, the synthetic form is what the Orkin Man sprays around homes, It’s these terpenes, terpenoids and ketones that provide pesticide and fungicide benefits.

So are some better than others? You bet! Fortunately the best ones are the easiest to grow - specifically peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm (!!!), thyme (add Borneol to your list with this one), sage, rosemary (!!!!) and of course cilantro. The problem with cilantro is that it’s a PITA to grow for more reasons than you’re probably interested in reading - LOL!

So generally what you want to do is to take a cup of leaves packed as tight as you can and put this into a blender, food processor, etc. with enough water and you want to turn this into a paste. Get it as smooth as possible. You can see why rosemary leaves are more of a challenge than say peppermint but it’s worth the time & effort.

Add the paste to 1 gallon of water and let that soak for no more than 24 hours. YOU DO NOT WANT ANY FERMENTATION!!!

Now strain & drain and you mix this with enough water to make 3 gallons of mint tea. Add the appropriate amount of aloe vera because you definitely want Salicylic acid in this mix as explained in the book I sent you about this hormone.

You can increase the power by taking a cue from Gil Carandang and add 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger for each 1 gallon of tea. These mint teas have proven to be as effective as neem oil - seriously. I cannot stress the need for aloe vera enough because it is at the core of a plant’s Systemic Acquired Resistance (SAR) functions and processes.

That’s it!

“Ain’t exactly rocket science” - something I read online - LOL!

ClackamasCoots

P.S. - next time you happen to be in a hydro store wander over to where the pesticides and fungicides are displayed and start reading the labels. And understand that in the fertilizer business the phrase ‘inert ingredients’ means water. Tap water. Period.

So what active ingredients are they using? Rosemary oil, cinnamon oil (a HUGE source of Linalool), et al. Pretty much a joke when you look at the actual amount of ‘active ingredients’ which is almost always below 2% - nice guys indeed!!

 

[StoneOtter]

Thanks Azi! This is a good one I think!

 

[Azimuth]

Now strain & drain and you mix this with enough water to make 3 gallons of mint tea.

3 gallons.

That's 384 ounces. I need like 8. I have one plant in a 2 gallon SIP so I scaled the recipe to 8 oz. That gave me about 1 teaspoon of fresh mint leaves into 2.5 ounces of water. I skipped the paste step since there wasn't enough volume of material in the blender to make a paste. I'll let that sit 24 hours then pour it into an 8 oz container, add maybe an inch of fresh aloe Vera leaf, top it all off to the 8 oz with more water and then blend it and strain it into my sprayer for a test.

I really hope this works as I would be a great tool in the toolbox, and made from stuff I can grow myself rather than having something shipped half way around the world. I also hope I don't need it going forward as I am working on getting my soil to produce high brix plants which should be immune to mites and thrips.

I harvested a small storage tub of extra stems and leaves, stripped about half of the leaves off and will dry and crumble them for storage and use throughout the year. When I make it again I'll use 1/8 teaspoon of the dry powder to try to match the recipe potency as best I can.

 

[Azimuth]

I spent some time building out a few more of my NetPot SIPs so I'm going to fill one with a new mix. I'm trying to get my Brix levels up above the bug threshold of 12 but seem to be stuck at a glass ceiling of 8-10 so I'm making some changes with that in mind.

@Gee64 encouraged me to compare my amendments to those in The Rev's soil mix which has been proven to generate high brix levels so I did that and am tailoring this new mix with those results in mind. His recipe makes 16 gallons and I need less than 2 so I adjusted the amounts to fit.

My mix for the next round is:
3L Old soil
3L Organics (50% dried leaf crumble and then equal parts of castings, compost, and leaf mold)
3L Aeration (I'll stay with perlite for this run)

Amendments
1T prilled dolomite lime
1T powdered dolomite lime
1T oyster Shell flour
1T gypsum
1T comfrey
1T nettle
6T flower crumble
2T malted barley
2T organic rice
2T biochar
3T bone meal
6 worms

The major differences this run are an increase in dry leaf carbon, the addition of bone meal, and a reduction in the amount of biochar included (moving it from an equal part to an amendment). Since P is an important part of high brix and that's something I've given no thought to in the past, I wanted to increase it in this mix with the bone meal and add it into the mix so it is a global input since P is not all that mobile in the soil.

I'm not all that thrilled about using the bone meal but if it works well I may switch to fish bone meal instead of the typical cattle.

I think I'm really close to having a mix that can bust through the 12 barrier and am hopeful with the addition of the extra P I'll have enough to get Gee's dumptrucks built. Over 12 and the plant is immune to most bugs and the system is supposed to be self sustaining at ever increasing brix levels, at least to a point, so hopefully the extra P gives it the boost required.

I'll let it cook for 3-4 weeks and then start a new round with a clone.

 

[Bode]

Highya Azimuth,

Good move with the bone meal!! I always put bonemeal in and around the planting hole, and have good success with that. Also, very helpful in the soil for root vegetables (just an fyi). Happy Smokin'

 

[scottreid1966]

I spent some time building out a few more of my NetPot SIPs so I'm going to fill one with a new mix. I'm trying to get my Brix levels up above the bug threshold of 12 but seem to be stuck at a glass ceiling of 8-10 so I'm making some changes with that in mind.

@Gee64 encouraged me to compare my amendments to those in The Rev's soil mix which has been proven to generate high brix levels so I did that and am tailoring this new mix with those results in mind. His recipe makes 16 gallons and I need less than 2 so I adjusted the amounts to fit.

My mix for the next round is:
3L Old soil
3L Organics (50% dried leaf crumble and then equal parts of castings, compost, and leaf mold)
3L Aeration (I'll stay with perlite for this run)

Amendments
1T prilled dolomite lime
1T powdered dolomite lime
1T oyster Shell flour
1T gypsum
1T comfrey
1T nettle
6T flower crumble
2T malted barley
2T organic rice
2T biochar
3T bone meal
6 worms

The major differences this run are an increase in dry leaf carbon, the addition of bone meal, and a reduction in the amount of biochar included (moving it from an equal part to an amendment). Since P is an important part of high brix and that's something I've given no thought to in the past, I wanted to increase it in this mix with the bone meal and add it into the mix so it is a global input since P is not all that mobile in the soil.

I'm not all that thrilled about using the bone meal but if it works well I may switch to fish bone meal instead of the typical cattle.

I think I'm really close to having a mix that can bust through the 12 barrier and am hopeful with the addition of the extra P I'll have enough to get Gee's dumptrucks built. Over 12 and the plant is immune to most bugs and the system is supposed to be self sustaining at ever increasing brix levels, at least to a point, so hopefully the extra P gives it the boost required.

I'll let it cook for 3-4 weeks and then start a new round with a clone.

That is alot of herbs, my friend! You must have a cornucopia of plants to do all that.

If you don't mind mr asking, what is your age? How mant square feet of plant-shelving do you have.

I guess you grow alot out-doors and cure them.

Also... How long have you been growing organically?

You never seem to amaze me.

Have a great week-end!

 

[Azimuth]

That is alot of herbs, my friend! You must have a cornucopia of plants to do all that.

I try to streamline it to make it more efficient. My comfrey, nettle and flowers are the main inputs I grow, and I make my own biochar. I want to be as self contained as I can be but there are trade-offs at least so far.

How mant square feet of plant-shelving do you have.

5 square feet of floor space. Not a very big operation at all.

 

[budnoob3]

Highya Azimuth,

Good move with the bone meal!! I always put bonemeal in and around the planting hole, and have good success with that. Also, very helpful in the soil for root vegetables (just an fyi). Happy Smokin'

Agreed, home made bone meal and crushed/powdered shells have been my only source of amendment for soil other than my EWC and compost for years with good results. Won’t claim great, but definitely very good results without buying OTC amendments or nutrients.

 

[Azimuth]

The day lily season has mostly come to an end, and they are the current majority of the flowers I've harvested designed to provide the increased P input I need for higher brix levels. My plan is to use the dried and crumbled flowers in my soil mix, teas, and top dressings in that order.

I have essentially 4, 2x2 patches of plants that provide most of my harvest so I counted the flowers produced this season to try to get a handle on what I could expect going forward. I had hoped to get a total of around 500, but really had no idea of what to expect.

My total came in just shy of 1860! Pretty good from a patch that was given no thought in prior years and was mostly blocked from direct sun by ornamental grasses.

Those grasses came out last fall so the plants now get direct sun and they'll get a nice cover of compost this fall after the first killing frost, and I'll divide some of them to try to increase future yields.

I lost maybe a quarter of the flower harvest to mold as at the peak I was getting over 100 a day and we got some wet weather at that time so those went to the worms, but overall I'm quite pleased with this year 1 outcome.

 

[Gee64]

From google:

Day Lily (per 100g) Hemerocallis fulva​

Calories 42
Protein 2g
Fat .4g
Calcium 87mg
Phosphorus 176mg
Iron 1.2mg
Sodium 24mg
Potassium 170mg
Vitamin A 3,000 I.U.
Thiamin .16mg
Riboflavin .21mg
Niacin .8mg
Vitamin C 88mg

Those sound pretty darn good. P,K, and a bunch of minerals

 

[Azimuth]

From google:

Day Lily (per 100g) Hemerocallis fulva​

Calories 42
Protein 2g
Fat .4g
Calcium 87mg
Phosphorus 176mg
Iron 1.2mg
Sodium 24mg
Potassium 170mg
Vitamin A 3,000 I.U.
Thiamin .16mg
Riboflavin .21mg
Niacin .8mg
Vitamin C 88mg

Those sound pretty darn good. P,K, and a bunch of minerals

Thanks for that. I've hunted for the npk of flowers with no luck. Lots of entries on what npk to feed flowers, but I wasn't able to find that info.

That protein number at 2,000mg (part of which I assume turns into N) is much higher than I would have expected. But flowering plants still need some N so maybe it will be fine.

So, hopefully my hunch on using them in my mix will turn out legit.

 

[Gee64]

Thanks for that. I've hunted for the npk of flowers with no luck. Lots of entries on what npk to feed flowers, but I wasn't able to find that info.

That protein number at 2,000mg (which I assume turns into N) is much higher than I would have expected. But flowering plants still need some N so maybe it will be fine.

So, maybe my hunch on using them in my mix will turn out legit.

Google "nutritional value" and then the flower. Someone somewhere will have scienced it.

 

[Gee64]

Stinging nettle (note the perfect Ca:Mg ratio):

Portion:
Portion selection: 100 g 1 cup (89 g)

Name	Amount	Unit
Water	87.7	g
Energy	42	kcal
Energy	175	kJ
Protein	2.71	g
Total lipid (fat)	0.11	g
Ash	2.03	g
Carbohydrate, by difference	7.49	g
Fiber, total dietary	6.9	g
Total Sugars	0.25	g
Sucrose	0.1	g
Glucose	0.07	g
Fructose	0.07	g
Lactose	0	g
Maltose	0	g
Galactose	0	g
Calcium, Ca	481	mg
Iron, Fe	1.64	mg
Magnesium, Mg	57	mg
Phosphorus, P	71	mg
Potassium, K	334	mg
Sodium, Na	4	mg
Zinc, Zn	0.34	mg
Copper, Cu	0.076	mg
Manganese, Mn	0.779	mg
Selenium, Se	0.3	µg
Thiamin	0.008	mg
Riboflavin	0.16	mg
Niacin	0.388	mg
Vitamin B-6	0.103	mg
Folate, total	14	µg
Folic acid	0	µg
Folate, food	14	µg
Folate, DFE	14	µg
Choline, total	17.4	mg
Betaine	21.4	mg
Vitamin A, RAE	101	µg
Carotene, beta	1150	µg
Carotene, alpha	114	µg
Cryptoxanthin, beta	0	µg
Vitamin A, IU	2010	IU
Lycopene	0	µg
Lutein + zeaxanthin	4180	µg
Vitamin K (phylloquinone)	499	µg
Vitamin K (Dihydrophylloquinone)	0	µg
Vitamin K (Menaquinone-4)	0	µg

 

[Azimuth]

Stinging nettle (note the perfect Ca:Mg ratio):

Hey, this Azi guy might actually be on to something with his backyard inputs.

 

[Carmen Ray]

Hey, this Azi guy might actually be on to something with his backyard inputs.

I'm in awe of what you are doing with your backyard inputs.

 

[Azimuth]

I'm in awe of what you are doing with your backyard inputs.

Lol. Good thing I don't do pics then.

I'm kidding, of course. Thank you for that. My backyard inputs do grow some nice, deficiency free plants, but now the goal is super healthy, deficiency free plants.

 

[scottreid1966]

Lol. Good thing I don't do pics then.

I'm kidding, of course. Thank you for that. My backyard inputs do grow some nice, deficiency free plants, but now the goal is super healthy, deficiency free plants.

So looking forward to applying this organic grow when I retire in 5 years or so. Hope to heck that y'all are still alive and kickin' to edumacate this ignante chem grower.
Bought the remo industrial size and will be throwing some away when I have the time to learn organic. Work and bending over my canna-ladies is enough on my poor back. Retirement will be easier.

Keep up the experiments, guys. May more will benefit from those efforts.


Getting brown spots what tells me manganese def. but is worse at lower leaves and sreads upwards' What do you think> I have a few supplement pruducts but none with manganese. Thanks.

IMG_20240901_120017.jpg

• scottreid1966
• Sep 1, 2024

Brown spots

 

[Azimuth]

Getting brown spots what tells me manganese def. but is worse at lower leaves and sreads upwards' What do you think> I have a few supplement pruducts but none with manganese. Thanks.

Looks more like a calcium deficiency to me. How's your cal-mag game?

 

[Azimuth]

I'm going to try something new for me with a freshly rooted clone destined for motherhood.

In my space challenged grow, I keep my mothers in 1L containers in organic soil but root my cuttings in straight perlite so there is a bit of a transition period for the roots and so I use an intermediate pot with a gentle mix of castings, compost, old soil and perlite in equal parts.

Normally that intermediate pot is a 9oz cup but this time I want to max out the mother pot with its more robust soil so I'm going to instead try using an old popsicle mold I used to use for cloning and see how that works.

If it does, I'll have a narrow plug that's fully rooted in and ready for the stronger soil without taking up much volume which will allow for a maximum amount of the more robust soil for the longer term mother.