Question for soil growers

[Xena]

I’m no where near there yet but would like to be ready when I get there. I’m using 2/3 organic potting soil and 1/3 perlite, according to the bag info the soil should get me through most of my auto grow without using hardly any nutes until towards the end of flower. What kinds of supplements would you recommend especially once she starts to flower. I’m not a true organic but would like to stay natural when possible. I see a lot of posts mentioned blackstrap. Should I be getting it? Anything else?

[growell]

i got soi says lasts so long dont think they last anywhere near what they say i going to wait first sign of defience then feed i use flora trio not organic blackstrap molasses more for liv bacteria soil feeding that plant will get some theres a tall skinny guy on utube posts videos he totaly organic very clever cant remember name thats the great description of him hope this helps

[growell]

also i got general hydroponics ripen for flower havent got there i think a lot of stuff out there fatter this bigger that dont think u need most of it i try not to get sucked in cause buying and feedin them allsorts

[Rwise]

Mine are in 20+ gallon pots, they are running out of goodies so I am using Roots Organics uprising bloom on the soil, and banana tea on the ground around them. I had been using rabbit poo tea until flowers set on, and I burned them with the nana tea.

[Cali]

Xena I would recommend You use kelp meal, also Gypsum dust. You don’t need much. I hydrate my kelp meal then just use one tablespoon per gallon of water and the gypsum just sprinkle a 1/2 table spoon top dressed and water it in that should cover any deficiencies. Look up those two and most important look up true organic soils. Save yourself a lot of time and money and grow with living soils. On you tube you will find a lot of good info now. A couple years ago there wasn’t much. Looks like everyone is realizing now that mostly what’s in those expensive bottled nutrients is water and for a lot cheaper you can make the exact same thing at home. Makes me want to look up who was the “genius” that tried to reinvent the wheel on this one. Think about it if these bottles with water and chemicals from China were that great why aren’t they making billions by over feeding the world with those magical potions lol..

[Gingerbeard]

What's the soil brand?

[Canuck147]

Yeah - how hot is that soil. Hot soil is not my liking - I'll add my own nutrients. I grow autoflowers and I use full strength nutes from the start.

[9fingerleafs]

I agree.i Don’t use soil anymore but as soon as you see fading or get into flowering you should provide nutrients. Unless you are providing a new pot with a lot of fresh hot soil. And even then It should have much more potassium and a lot less nitrogen than the soil you used for veg

[crucialbunny]

I'm a serious soil geek and spend more time on it probably than I do my plants. I have found that there are 2 components that many growers overlook in their soil. One, is coarse sand which can keep your medium draining well and not compact. It also will add many micro minerals that plants and beneficial bacteria love. The other is diatomaceous earth, which will help with pest problems and adds calcium. I look at soil the same way I look at plants, a living organism.

[quirk]

I'm no geek, but one of your added soil components, diatomaceous earth, becomes totally ineffective for pests when moist or wet.

[crucialbunny]

Quirk, I apologize. I should have been clearer in my statement. Sprinkled on the top of your soil diatomaceous earth can help prevent some pests. In your soil it can add calcium. My point was that many growers don't consider these 2 components when mixing their soil.

[Gingerbeard]

I'm with you crucialbunny . I mix perlite and DE with my soil a grow ahead of time, stirring every so every to let it all dry out. Bags of soil from stores are guaranteed to have bugs. A topcoat of DE washes away too readily. It also freaks people out, sometimes. The DE will soak up water from the dirt, making the DE look nasty. Often, it will turn into what looks like fungus, but is probably minerals leaching out.
Let's not forget that a topcoat doesn't get all the holes in your pots. Like, drainage holes. Bugs are just as willing to attack your soil from the bottom. Bugs are very unparticular about that sort of thing.