Sweetsue's First Grow - Stealthy Trio of Autos Under CFLs

Sure Rad. We have our fair share of geeks here. :laughtwo::green_heart:
 
Instead of trying to catch up Sue I'll just dive right into the deep end here but I'm here for the duration.
 
ClosedCircuit said:
The Basalt over at Buildasoil was tested in case anyone is interested.

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0248/9641/files/BrixBasaltAnalysis.pdf?1365
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I just checked it. Notice that calcium is only 9%, sodium is nearly 3% and Iron is sky high. But the most troubling part of the composition is aluminum, which is 13.7%!!!!

This can lower soil pH and cause some serious problem with CEC, aluminum being a cation and all.

I would not recommend that product unless you're growing hydrangea's or something. The minerals can be much better had elsewhere.
 
Doc, do we know the make-up of 'ideal' mineralized soil for cannabis ? And/or how long this applied mineralization is supposed to last before the soil is depleted again ? (I heard long .. but that is kinda vague :p )
 
PlanetJ said:
Doc, do we know the make-up of 'ideal' mineralized soil for cannabis ? And/or how long this applied mineralization is supposed to last before the soil is depleted again ? (I heard long .. but that is kinda vague :p )
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No, we're not there yet, IMO. I'm still trying to improve my produce, and that means improving the soil, cultivation methods....pretty much eveything.

That being said, we do know certain things about soil that will cause it to produce nutrient dense, high brix produce and that's what we started with and are "tweaking" as we learn.

Here are the changes I've made to "ideal" high brix soil:

1. added leaf matter, myko and rock powders to recycled soil
2. added a small amount of K-mag
3. increased organic fertilizer content.

There's a few other things as well, but what I'm working with now keeps the bugs away and keeps 'em green (or purple) and waxy/shiny. All good soils are going to have minerals, microbes and magic....which is my little catch phrase.

Once you've got mineral and microbes, we can start talking subtle changes in composition, addition of green mulches, worms, various teas and of course foliar sprays. We're just getting started.
 
Doc Bud said:
Once you've got mineral and microbes, we can start talking subtle changes in composition, addition of green mulches, worms, various teas and of course foliar sprays. We're just getting started.
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I'll be pounding rock soon .. still no luck on crustacean tho .. unless I want to dumbsterdive for it :)
 
B A R said:
Instead of trying to catch up Sue I'll just dive right into the deep end here but I'm here for the duration.
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I wondered how long it would take you Reg. :laughtwo::green_heart:

:welcome: to the fun. I'll be wrapping this one up sometime next week and starting a new one for the next round. You've been quite busy with your perpetual harvest fest.

This turned into a great resource Reg. You might want to skim through at your leisure.
 
Sweetsue said:
I wondered how long it would take you Reg. :laughtwo::green_heart:
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I know, right!

Sweetsue said:
:welcome: to the fun. I'll be wrapping this one up sometime next week and starting a new one for the next round. You've been quite busy with your perpetual harvest fest.

This turned into a great resource Reg. You might want to skim through at your leisure.
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Will do. Already getting some inspiration here from J & the Doc's convo.
 
Doc Bud said:
I just checked it. Notice that calcium is only 9%, sodium is nearly 3% and Iron is sky high. But the most troubling part of the composition is aluminum, which is 13.7%!!!!

This can lower soil pH and cause some serious problem with CEC, aluminum being a cation and all.

I would not recommend that product unless you're growing hydrangea's or something. The minerals can be much better had elsewhere.
Click to expand...

Are there any distributors you would recommend?
 
Daily Update: Pots In Limbo

One last look at the pots awaiting the next stage - transitioning into seed-ready status.

image20912.jpg


Today I finally got to Lowe's and picked up my hardware cloth so I can sift the worm bin and get the top dressing done.

image20914.jpg


The seeds are in the mail. I'll be brewing the weekly malted barley grain enzyme tea for application tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow we do the first harvest of vermicompost. I'm excited!!!:woohoo:

Time to unwind. Buddha? Or the Bomb? Choices! I have a choice! :laughtwo::green_heart:

A girl could get used to this.

:Namaste:
 
PlanetJ said:
Doc, do we know the make-up of 'ideal' mineralized soil for cannabis ? And/or how long this applied mineralization is supposed to last before the soil is depleted again ? (I heard long .. but that is kinda vague :p )
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According to Rock Dust Local, apply supplemental amounts at 1-5 tons per acre at crop rotations (1,3,5 year.)
With initial soil amendment up to 10 tons per acre, it seems they are recommending 10% of initial amount per year
(Initial amendment not to exceed 5% in potting soil.)

Rick Dust Local seems to take their information from remineralize.org, which I believe brings us full circle to the "which is the best kind of rock dust" question from two pages ago.) Sometimes it's a small internet out there.
 
Radogast said:
Terribly anti-climatic news in the world of comparative basalt dust analysis:
My locally sourced Pioneer Valley Basalt from Rock Dust Local in Vermont is the exact same company and 1/31/2014 Analysis Resort as Closed Circuit's pdf from Build A Soil.
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That's eerie
 
Time to jar up more nuggets. These are from Buddha. You can tell by the way the leaves embrace the buds.

Two branches that snap easily.

image20938.jpg


The buds snipped off and now I need to trim off all those embracing leaves.

image20939.jpg


I knew these would take me a while because I'd left all those leaves on figuring it would be easier to knock them off after they'd dried. They were. With the most delicate but deliberate pressure you can give them a little push and twist and they just break off and fall away with very little effort.

All trimmed up. I intend to use the leaves for cannabutter this weekend, and with that intention I took off all the leaves from this bunch. Every last frosty one of them. In the end we had 8 grams of just flower buds.....

image20941.jpg


..... and 3 grams of sugar leaves, to be added to what I have set aside already.

image20943.jpg


I'm only planning a small amount of butter, possibly just 1/2 a stick this time. That's enough for me to test it out and still have enough to make something tasty for Dale. He's feeling left out. If only we lived in a civilized country that allowed patients to self medicate. That's ok, because Dale has his Susan (he thinks everyone should have one :Love: ) and his Susan plans to make some wickedly delicious medicine for him this weekend. It will go a long way to alleviating his borderline depression. It will also lower his blood pressure, relieve the pressure in his eyes and reduce the pain better than 10 medications they're now giving him. Lunacy about to be corrected by his stealthy wife.

This was the largest of the buds so far. A full 3 grams of frosty goodness. They may look small but they hit mighty big! :laughtwo:

image20945.jpg


That means I have 26 grams of Buddha trimmed and jarred for curing so far. I'm definitely going to pull at least 2 ounces from that plant. What a generous girl she turned out to be. What generous girls they both turned out to be.

All the largest branches, and the main colas are still drying. Gosh! This is fun. :yahoo:

Now for that break I thought I was going to take earlier. :laughtwo: It's funny, but having such an abundance available, I find that I don't smoke as often. There was always that low level anxiety that it would soon be gone. That sense apparently has vanished, along with the anxiety attached to wondering where on earth I was going to scrape together another $25 to get a quarter of trash weed so Dale didn't have to suffer for another day or so.

What a relief.

I could have probably grown a decent plant in my garden without ever getting involved in this wonderful community. I know it wouldn't have been as much fun as this grow was. If you're lurking around this journal and you're thinking about running one of your own I heartily encourage you to do so. Not every journal will turn out to be like this one, nor would we want it to be. Each journal should be a reflection of the grower. But I can tell you, both from my personal perspective and as a participating observer in other journals, that you will be privy to the generosity of this band of growers with the most amazing drive to help others succeed in the cultivation of healthy and abundant cannabis. The laughs and friendships that inevitably develop are icing on the cake.

Do that grow. Start that journal. Ask your questions and share your joy with like-minded growers. Take that chance and grow your own. We're here to help you through the rough spots and jump for joy with you. It's been the most fun I've had in years, and we're just getting started.

Now, wasn't there a pipe??.........there it is. :green_heart:
 
ClosedCircuit said:
Are there any distributors you would recommend?
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There's a few that seem to have good products. I don't actually use the stuff, but there's certainly nothing wrong with it and it's something I should play with a bit to see what it might do to the flavors with the subtle changes in minerals.

I use a lot of limestone and soft rock phosphate but I'm quite fascinated with this LOS thing and Sue has a way of sharing it that I find most enjoyable.
 
For your enjoyment.

I stumbled upon the Sustainable Ecological Earth Regeneration Centre Trust in Scotland.

https://https://www.seerrockdust.se/rapporter/Sustainable-Ecological-Earth-Regeneration-with-Rockdust.pdf

The work with volcanic rock dust was fascinating in and of itself, and has me thinking a bit about how to keep the mineralization levels high through top dressing and worms - just trying to determine what levels would need to be replenished,.... let's say yearly?

The ideas of holding off the next ice age with an aggressive worldwide remineralization effort to balance the carbon in our atmosphere was provocative. I'm not so certain I can discount it. If you think of the planet as a single organism there's a level of plausibility to this theory.

I found it a good read that led me to remineralize.org and a rock dust primer that I downloaded and will be looking through tomorrow.

It doesn't take a degree PlanetJ, but it does require a curious nature and a love for the thrill of the chase. I do so enjoy an Internet research blitz. :Love: How much can I learn about rock dust in a weekend?
 
Doc Bud said:
There's a few that seem to have good products. I don't actually use the stuff, but there's certainly nothing wrong with it and it's something I should play with a bit to see what it might do to the flavors with the subtle changes in minerals.

I use a lot of limestone and soft rock phosphate but I'm quite fascinated with this LOS thing and Sue has a way of sharing it that I find most enjoyable.
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It's passion Doc. I was never very good at keeping it bottled up. :laughtwo::green_heart:
 
Why are 'we' sifting the worms out ? Would the plants not benefit from them in the root area ? Bedding would be the top-dressing ? I've seen numerous gardening communities do this, since I started researching this ... why are we sifting them out ?
 
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