Potting mix recipe advice

C

Celtic67

Hi All  :dance:
 
This is my first post. I am looking for advice with respect to a potting mixture.
 
I have access to;
 
Westland "Jack's Magic All Purpose Compost" - which appears to be peat based.
Westland Organic farmyard manure
Perlite
Vermiculite 
Lime
Coir bricks
Empathy RHS  Rootgrow Mycorrhizal fungi

 
 
I was wondering what would be the best mix for my application. I had a look on the soil sticky thread but there did not seem to be one that matched my ingredients - so rather than clog up that thread - I started my own.
 
I plan to pot in large air pruning pots and will fertilise with an organic seaweed based pepper feed as instructed. I will be growing fatalli, habanero, chocolate douglah and 7 pod brain strain. 
 
This is my first grow with peppers so any help would be much appreciated!
 
 
*I study gut microbiomes for my living, so the AACT and the whole soil microbiome aspect of growing really interests me; however, I plan to start brewing next year and will try to work with what I have this season. If anyone thinks I am missing something critical from the above list then I can be persuaded to make one more purchase   :whistle:
 
Thanks in advance!
 
PepperLover said:
:welcome:
it may be cheaper to buy already made mix 
Click to expand...
 
Hi Thanks for the welcome and response. I have the above lying about the house. Do you really think it would be cheaper to buy a mix rather than using the above? What would be missing from my list that you would consider essential? Sorry for all the questions. I am just trying to learn as much as I can. 
Cayennemist said:
Ill give you a good rule of thumb for a base mix.
30-30-30

30% peat
30% aerater like perlite
30% compost

Then add what you think is good, ewc, manure, myco, cal, rock dust, whatever.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks, I think where I am getting confused is the compost is peat based, would your mix be
 
30% of the peat based compost
30% perlite
30% Peat
 
So I would need to go out and buy peat?
 
The one word of advice is if live in a rainy area that doesn't get too hot (Not sure, but I'd guess Ireland fits that), don't use too much vermiculite (if any).  Vermiculite will help retain water, which isn't a bad thing, but can be disastrous if you use too much. 
 
Last year I had to water my peppers (in pots) every day, so this year I added more vermiculite to my mix to help them retain water.  Before I knew it was too late the roots had rotted off most of my plants.  I've re-potted and hopefully saved a few, but have lost at least 10 plants.
 
turbo said:
The one word of advice is if live in a rainy area that doesn't get too hot (Not sure, but I'd guess Ireland fits that), don't use too much vermiculite (if any).  Vermiculite will help retain water, which isn't a bad thing, but can be disastrous if you use too much. 
 
Last year I had to water my peppers (in pots) every day, so this year I added more vermiculite to my mix to help them retain water.  Before I knew it was too late the roots had rotted off most of my plants.  I've re-potted and hopefully saved a few, but have lost at least 10 plants.
Click to expand...
 
Yes, you would be correct that Ireland's weather fits that bill and then some!!. I am growing in a greenhouse and can control the watering, but I will go easy on the vermiculite (if any) cheers!
 
Cayennemist said:
Ill give you a good rule of thumb for a base mix.
30-30-30

30% peat
30% aerater like perlite
30% compost

Then add what you think is good, ewc, manure, myco, cal, rock dust, whatever.
Click to expand...
 
The last 10% of your mix would be the soil amendments you have listed above, can you mix them or just stick with 1 type of soil amendment? 
 
tctenten said:
 
The last 10% of your mix would be the soil amendments you have listed above, can you mix them or just stick with 1 type of soil amendment? 
Click to expand...
 
No no no
 
The 30 30 30 is just a base, you can go over 100% a little bit ;)  I just didn't want to say 33.3333333333333
 
So if you ad an additional 20% of amendments... nobody will see :P
 
As for what amendments, well that depends on who you ask. I like worm castings, some sort of organic Calcium like egg shells, and maybe some composted chicken bedding / manure.
 
I just got a bail 3.8 cubic feet of pro mix HP and added 20 lbs of EWC and a nutrient kit from buildasoil.com...then mixed and placed under a tarp for a week then potted my plants....they are loving it...
 
Cayennemist said:
 
No no no
 
The 30 30 30 is just a base, you can go over 100% a little bit ;)  I just didn't want to say 33.3333333333333
 
So if you ad an additional 20% of amendments... nobody will see :P
 
As for what amendments, well that depends on who you ask. I like worm castings, some sort of organic Calcium like egg shells, and maybe some composted chicken bedding / manure.
Click to expand...
 
 
Gotcha, thank you for the info.  I figured it's not an exact science, but I do not want to add too many amendments.
 
You know, my coworker potted my seedlings in a wonderful fertalizer mix from Costco. I just hit it with fish fertilizer every 3 weeks and they are huge for being in hanging baskets.
 
Celtic67 said:
Hi All  :dance:
 
This is my first post. I am looking for advice with respect to a potting mixture.
 
I have access to;
 
Westland "Jack's Magic All Purpose Compost" - which appears to be peat based.[/size]
Westland Organic farmyard manure[/size]
Perlite[/size]
Vermiculite 
Lime
Coir bricks
Empathy RHS  Rootgrow Mycorrhizal fungi

 
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
First is the vermiculite fine or coarse?
Second what size are the coco coir bricks?
The compost and the manure and the perlite are great, a little lime for calcium and to keep the pH balanced.mycorhizae is always a good choice. If the vermiculite is coarse, use it, if the coir is not too big use it. Pretty much all of those things will work ok,just make sure your soil is light enough not to compact down, and loose enough not to absorb too
Much water. I always like to mix up a small batch in one pot, (minus the mycorhizae, cuz why waste it) and run a bunch of water into the pot and see how it absorbs. Does the water drain through it, leaving it damp but not swampy? If yes use it if no adjust accordingly. Just my $.02 take it for what its worth!
 
chile_freak said:
First is the vermiculite fine or coarse?
Second what size are the coco coir bricks?
The compost and the manure and the perlite are great, a little lime for calcium and to keep the pH balanced.mycorhizae is always a good choice. If the vermiculite is coarse, use it, if the coir is not too big use it. Pretty much all of those things will work ok,just make sure your soil is light enough not to compact down, and loose enough not to absorb too
Much water. I always like to mix up a small batch in one pot, (minus the mycorhizae, cuz why waste it) and run a bunch of water into the pot and see how it absorbs. Does the water drain through it, leaving it damp but not swampy? If yes use it if no adjust accordingly. Just my $.02 take it for what its worth!
Click to expand...
Great advice chili_freak...that's my $.02 as well...:)

Edit: not trying to jack the thread but if after the plants are potted and pH is tested and is a little high ,say in the 7 to 7.5 range...can one just sprinkle a little lime on top and water in?
 
yes,  just sprinkle around the edge of the container or a few inches away from the stemin the ground and water in, this will be much more effective in containers, but does help a bit for in ground as well, but 7-7.5 is perfect range for optimal nutrient uptake except iron, and lime is to raise the ph of an acidic soil not to lower the ph of a neutral or alkaline soil, 7-7.5 is ideal for growing most vegetables, i wouldnt mess with it !
 
chile_freak said:
yes,  just sprinkle around the edge of the container or a few inches away from the stemin the ground and water in, this will be much more effective in containers, but does help a bit for in ground as well, but 7-7.5 is perfect range for optimal nutrient uptake except iron, and lime is to raise the ph of an acidic soil not to lower the ph of a neutral or alkaline soil, 7-7.5 is ideal for growing most vegetables, i wouldnt mess with it !
Click to expand...
Yeah I meant sulphur or vinegar powder to lower (organically) I had something else on my mind when I was typing that, and Im assuming I would apply the sulphur or vinegar powder same way as I would lime as if I needed to raise.

I read somewhere that 6.5-7 is where you wanna be but barely in the 7-7.5 so will roll with it ...thanks for the kind help my friend ...
 
No worries! sulfur works as an anti microbial so be careful though! Yes though some say 6.5-7, but I have a friend who was a soil science major at A&T and he said 7-7.5 was perfect for most veggies one would try to grow in a home garden, so that was good enough for me!
 
I will be using Ocean forest happy frog and Pro-mix. ( This is based on results Spankyscolts has had) I will add amendments for drainage and fertilize with a dunk in a solution Again based on what others in my area have had work for them. As long as you use a quality soil. and be sure it drains you will be off to a great start. 
 
chile_freak said:
First is the vermiculite fine or coarse?
Second what size are the coco coir bricks?
The compost and the manure and the perlite are great, a little lime for calcium and to keep the pH balanced.mycorhizae is always a good choice. If the vermiculite is coarse, use it, if the coir is not too big use it. Pretty much all of those things will work ok,just make sure your soil is light enough not to compact down, and loose enough not to absorb too
Much water. I always like to mix up a small batch in one pot, (minus the mycorhizae, cuz why waste it) and run a bunch of water into the pot and see how it absorbs. Does the water drain through it, leaving it damp but not swampy? If yes use it if no adjust accordingly. Just my $.02 take it for what its worth!
Click to expand...
 
 
Thanks! Although I had already made up the mix by the time I saw this. I went with around;
 
 
50% Peat compost (pH is said to be around 6.5) so I omitted the lime. 
20% Coir (it was very fine)
10% perlite
10% vermiculite (I have never used the stuff before, so not sure if it's coarse or not)
10% Farmyard manure - I also added an inch of this on top as a mulch
 
I mixed a bit of the mycorrihizae into the mix, but deposited most in the transplant hole before adding the plant.
 
It seemed to be quite free draining, so here's hoping it works!
 
The two most important things any living thing can get are oxygen and water, as long as your soil is loose enough for the roots to get air and porus enough to retain some water you should be fine, everything else is just gravy, nutes can be added, later, but the manure and compost will help with that!
 
sp33d said:
Great advice chili_freak...that's my $.02 as well... :)

Edit: not trying to jack the thread but if after the plants are potted and pH is tested and is a little high ,say in the 7 to 7.5 range...can one just sprinkle a little lime on top and water in?
Click to expand...
If you have a good living soil with good compost and EWC in it then pH is not important. The soil will adjust it according to the needs of the plant.
 
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