Soil, Watering, Fertilizer and questions for Al (tapla)
greendale
12 years ago
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greendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Question for Tapla/Al re: organic
Comments (1)It applies somewhat, but not entirely. While water behaves in containers that are partially sunk into the ground as it does in raised beds, you still have some of the other cultural issues to contend with that have considerable impact on the population numbers of soil biota, which impacts nutrient delivery and the reliability of that delivery. Rapid pH change, temperature extremes (little buffering from the in situ soil's mass), swings in fertility levels due to frequent watering ..... will tend to make delivery of nutrients more erratic and unreliable than it would be in raised beds, but not quite as unreliable as if you were simply practicing conventional container culture. Putting the positive spin on it would have me saying it will work a little better than it would in conventional container culture, but not as well as in raised beds. Al...See Morewater retentive soil question! aka hello al and josh! lol
Comments (2)If it was a perfect world, you'd be able to keep your soils damp - only about as wet as s sponge that has been wrung out. Soils that have larger particles and hold all or most of the water they hold inside the particles that make up the soil instead of between the particles, are going to offer you a much better opportunity to provide your plants with what they need to grow as close to their genetic potential as possible. Growing is just soo much easier and productive when you don't have to battle your soil on a daily basis. Al...See MoreQuestion for Tapla/Al: vintage indoor plants
Comments (9)Well, we used to think the earth was flat and the sun revolved around it, but as far as we know now, it's not prudent to believe it. ;o) I'm not sure if your question(s) run(s) deeper than the one you asked. but there are/were people then, just as there are now, whose job is to provide great looking plants for television sets, photo-ops, and other needs. For instance, an acquaintance (Roy Nagatoshi), who owns a bonsai nursery near LA, provided all the bonsai trees used in filming "The Karate Kid" movies. No one really believed they were grown on the set? ;o) Vermiculite holds water, but it collapses & makes soils too water retentive when used in volume. Sand does promote drainage because of it's angular shape, but robs aeration because of its usually small size. We've learned that we can use Turface and similar products as a replacement for both perlite and vermiculite w/o compromising either water retention or aeration. Fine sand can be replaced with a coarser product, like crushed granite or coarse silica if a soil maker feels sand is necessary. We just learn how to do things better & more efficiently as science moves forward. We use a Bowflex instead of free weights and a 747 instead of a stagecoach. Microwaves offer quick-heat convenience over a cook stove and I won't even stop to think about the number of drugs that knock us out more efficiently than ether or chloroform. In large part, rearing/nurturing plants is about time. If you want to invest the time it takes to water and fertilize every 10 minutes, you can grow exquisitely healthy plants in a bucket of marbles. If you know what you're doing, and are willing to go to great pains to water appropriately & be sure cultural conditions are always near peak, you can grow good looking plants in a poor soil, but you can rest assured that frustration lurks much closer to the surface than when you grow in a good soil. When I write something, I generally write from the perspective of what's best for plant vitality, but I can't help but let reason temper what I say. I have to take into account that you and I aren't willing to spend a 40 hour week after we work one, tending plants. For that reason, I write for the people who want to make an easy time of it, reduce frustration levels, and see improvement in their growing success w/o the necessity of another big chunk of time invested. I'm not sure if that answered your real question or not? Al...See MoreAl 'The Soil Master' Tapla
Comments (24)Al, Thanks for that explanation. Didn't realize that paper/cardboard would cause N immobilization! (Ya learn something enw every day!). I guess I'll work the paper into the next batch for future use. Spag, Yeah the soil is clay (masquerading as concrete) over here. I am lucky enough to have a neighbor who has a serious rototiller that I can borrow (I did the whole of my plot over the last few months where my raised vege beds will be). The whole section was, at some time, "amended" by some lunitic with pea gravel to "break up" the clay. So in the last 6 months I have screened out about 3 cubic yards of this clay soil and the pea gravel and replaced it with 2 yards of year old horse manure (there was a water run-off issue near the hosue). Now I have put up 3 x 8'x4' raised vege beds (12" in height and dug down another 12" into the clay) and added another 1.5 yards of manure to those with the existing soil. I have then layered on some leaf/chips with a mixture of vege waste and some coffee grounds in a semi lasagna bed to rot over the winter. So hopefully the vege department will be ready next spring. The flower garden beds I have are a complicated mess. My wife wants a "cottage garden" which is damn close to impossible to create when you have a triangular shaped back yard with 15" brick beds to work with. I can't take the beds out as we rent so I am stuck with what I have. I have worked that soil (mainly with miracle gro type stuff) for the last 3 years and finally planted last spring with some vines to run along the fence and spaces for annuals and small shrubs to get a cottage feeling going. I also took a chunk of grass out of the back corner and made a space for a couple of adirondack chairs for my wife. It's a funky triangle shape agaonst the beds and under the one big tree in the corner (no idea what the tree is). It's worked out well but I forgot when I laid the pavers up there that the roots from the big tree would expand and I will now have to rectify this next spring (still deciding how best to do that. But all in all the "projects" have worked well so far and the wife is happy with her "retreat" so it was worth all the swearing and back breaking labor... :)...See Moregreendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoOhiofem 6a/5b Southwest Ohio
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agogreendale
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
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tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)