Build a Soil

[AnotherShittyGrower]

Just watched build a soils episode where they share the ingredients and process on making their soil. I'm new to this all and recently learned the value of large volumes of living soil.

I'm gonna go no till living soil. I am however ignorant and have much reading to do before putting to practice but I'm totally sold that my next cycle will be a 70 gallon self built living soil.

Any living growers here or people that decided against it? Any tips for a first timer, pitfalls to avoid and such. I'm willing to be a sponge, I'm hoping to find out everything I can before my next cycle.

My current cycle is pictured, it's a Skywalker OG at the back and a Single Scoop at the front. Grown in 40 Litre pots with about 35Litres of biobizz soil.

They are fed with shogun grow and bloom.

 

[DMAN]

Lookin' happy and healthy AF!

 

[KreatnKaos]

Living soil is a great way to move forward. It is easy, only need to water only if you do it properly and the soil gets better over time. I usually use 20 gals but that is small for most living soil growers. If you use the builsasoil mixes to get started that would give you a great base to build off of. I personally mix my own soil because I make my own compost.

Tips are watering will take some time to properly hydrate the 70 gals, don’t try to do it all at one time. Using growbags that have a liner on the sides helps the soil from drying out on the edges and allows you to use all the soil in the bag.

I find I don’t get as big of plants as my counterparts using salts but the quality I think is better. I tend to have better terps then friends growing the same cut but using salts. If you want to ask me anything you can. Happy to help.

 

[AnotherShittyGrower]

Living soil is a great way to move forward. It is easy, only need to water only if you do it properly and the soil gets better over time. I usually use 20 gals but that is small for most living soil growers. If you use the builsasoil mixes to get started that would give you a great base to build off of. I personally mix my own soil because I make my own compost.

Tips are watering will take some time to properly hydrate the 70 gals, don’t try to do it all at one time. Using growbags that have a liner on the sides helps the soil from drying out on the edges and allows you to use all the soil in the bag.

I find I don’t get as big of plants as my counterparts using salts but the quality I think is better. I tend to have better terps then friends growing the same cut but using salts. If you want to ask me anything you can. Happy to help.

Thanks for the reply! My plan is to build my own soil using a local compost for half of it and then the orher half will be a semi local pre made living soil to hopefully kickstart the proccess and have a soilid foundation for good biology.

I'm going to sew my own fabric bed for it too, made to measure so I've got plenty room. I'll put 2 or 4 plants in the 3x3ft bed which will contain 70 gallons of soil. I've not calculated hight or fabric requirements yet but I'll figure it out.

What recipes have you used and which %'s do you follow?

 

[Rae]

One thing you will fight in the begining is bugs. They are part of the food web and need to be there. Choose to add things like composting worms and beneficial nematodes so you can control your populations.

I would recommend using a soil moisture meter to help you dial in watering practices in large containers in the begining. currently running a 4x4 and a 3' round. After first two rounds all bug issues went away as I got the populations where I wanted them. The soil does seem to get better and better if you keep adding quality ingredients.

Cheers,
Rae

 

[Slackerbucks]

Pros: water only (ideally), high quality product, minimal waste, low long-term cost/maintenance, good ‘vibes’/sanctimony

Cons: everything is tied to one “pot”. Something goes wrong and everything is at risk. Extremely heavy, can be tough to dial in, it’s hard to solve problems quickly, you are married to it (70 gallons of medium is a lot of dirt)

 

[Donkey_populous]

Just watched build a soils episode where they share the ingredients and process on making their soil. I'm new to this all and recently learned the value of large volumes of living soil.

I'm gonna go no till living soil. I am however ignorant and have much reading to do before putting to practice but I'm totally sold that my next cycle will be a 70 gallon self built living soil.

Any living growers here or people that decided against it? Any tips for a first timer, pitfalls to avoid and such. I'm willing to be a sponge, I'm hoping to find out everything I can before my next cycle.

My current cycle is pictured, it's a Skywalker OG at the back and a Single Scoop at the front. Grown in 40 Litre pots with about 35Litres of biobizz soil.

They are fed with shogun grow and bloom.

I made the switch to living organic soil and couldn’t be happier, but just like what everyone said before me watering is key! That’s the one thing I’ve struggled with was keeping the top layer moist and keeping dry backs contained. Another issue I personally had was playing catch up with amending the soil, but if you plan accordingly and amend 1-2 weeks before needed you’ll be golden.
Build-a-soil is a great place to start they sell everything you’ll need and then some. I’ve picked up a few of their products and have no complaints.
Can’t say much for soil mixes I started out with a few bags of KIS organics bio char soil mix and there nutrients package, but they do have a soil mix article for those looking to build their own soil (using their nutrient package of course).

Mixing Your Own Soil Using The KIS Nutrient Pack

DISCLAIMER: This is a detailed walkthrough created by one of our clients for small and indoor garden enthusiasts. While we cannot take responsibility for the results of following the methods contained within this document, we think it's an excellent guide for new growers mixing their own soil...

www.kisorganics.com

Happy growing!
Donkey_populous

 

[KreatnKaos]

Thanks for the reply! My plan is to build my own soil using a local compost for half of it and then the orher half will be a semi local pre made living soil to hopefully kickstart the proccess and have a soilid foundation for good biology.

I'm going to sew my own fabric bed for it too, made to measure so I've got plenty room. I'll put 2 or 4 plants in the 3x3ft bed which will contain 70 gallons of soil. I've not calculated hight or fabric requirements yet but I'll figure it out.

What recipes have you used and which %'s do you follow?

Here are the notes I have on the coot mix, I do something similar.

Coots mix
To this I add the following amendments to each 1 cubic foot..

1 cup kelp meal
1 cup neem meal or an equal amount of neem & karanja mix
1 cup malted barley
½ cup shrimp / crustacean meal or insect frass

1 cup of powdered/crushed limestone or more exactly Calcium Carbonate CaCO3 so Oyster Shell Powder/flour can also be used as it is also a pure Calcium Carbonate material

1/2 cup (1 TBLS per gal) Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) available at all DIY stores but you must get the material in the garden section and not in the home remodel section. There are 2 forms of gypsum so make sure you get the one for soil and not walls...

Finally there is the rock dust which I recommend 3 cups of either basalt or granite. Only these 2 materials are 'paramagnetic' which is an integral part of the CeC discussion (Cation exchange Capacity).