How much to use when top dressing?

FresnoFarmer

FresnoFarmer

Well-Known Member
How much blood meal and bone meal to use when top dressing per 5 gallon bucket? I am using the Miracle Gro brand.
 
vostok

vostok

Well-Known Member
Blood is the curse i...its very hot to plants and I have used it kill weeds before, and MG is almost just as hot, I urge caution here, no more than 1/2 teaspoon per 5 us gallon bucket, better to make a tea with it

"V"
 
greenlikemoney

greenlikemoney

Well-Known Member
Not sure why you wouldn't have just included that in your soil mix ( although I don't care for, nor have ever used, MG ) but go easy as vostok advises.
 
Pattahabi

Pattahabi

Well-Known Member
I'm going to reiterate what others have said, I wouldn't use miracle grow anything. I don't care for bone meal or blood meal. If you could not get access to any other amendments like others have advised I would go really light and see how your plants react. You can always add more, a little harder to remove. Letting us know what you have in the mix might help us to make better suggestions. If you are in fact in CA and have any budget, I'm sure we could get you some far superior amendments.

P-
 
Pattahabi

Pattahabi

Well-Known Member
Are you going to flower those outdoors in those pots? If so, how long till you think they are going to be finished?

Edit: and will you do me a favor and look on the back of the bag and see if it says it contains biosolids anywhere? I can't find a label, but I'm thinking that is a biosolid using brand. I hope I'm wrong.

P-
 
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FresnoFarmer

FresnoFarmer

Well-Known Member
They are flowering now. Light dep. Started 12/12 approximately 4 days ago. The ones on the table will go in amended holes. I have jamaican bat guano, seabird guano, mexican bat guano, blood meal, bone meal. I'm not fully understanding what I should mix in or top dress with. I want to be able to use only water and guano/ewc teas and skip my powder nutes. I need help man.
 
Pattahabi

Pattahabi

Well-Known Member
FresnoFarmer said:
They are flowering now. Light dep. Started 12/12 approximately 4 days ago. The ones on the table will go in amended holes. I have jamaican bat guano, seabird guano, mexican bat guano, blood meal, bone meal. I'm not fully understanding what I should mix in or top dress with. I want to be able to use only water and guano/ewc teas and skip my powder nutes. I need help man.
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Those are really effin small pots imo. Still not quite understanding if they are indoors or out. There are 100 ways to skin a cat, but this is what I would do. Get a 5lb box of crab, kelp and neem meal. Mix equal parts (just as much as you need), and add like 1 tbsp. Cover with some ewc. Find some dry leaves if you can, crush them up a little and cover the soil with 1-2". This is going to help keep the moisture in, and let the microbes work on the top dressing you put down. At any point if you want to give them a nother boost, pull the mulch back, add more mix and ewc, recover. I use 10-15 gallon containers and think nothing of adding 4-6 tbsps of the mix. Go slow, you can add more, can't take it out.

Bonus points for adding a good compost tea (microbial extrapolation).

P-
 
FresnoFarmer

FresnoFarmer

Well-Known Member
Pattahabi said:
Are you going to flower those outdoors in those pots? If so, how long till you think they are going to be finished?

Edit: and will you do me a favor and look on the back of the bag and see if it says it contains biosolids anywhere? I can't find a label, but I'm thinking that is a biosolid using brand. I hope I'm wrong.

P-
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I have heard before that kelloggs contains biosolids.
 
FresnoFarmer

FresnoFarmer

Well-Known Member
Pattahabi said:
Those are really effin small pots imo. Still not quite understanding if they are indoors or out. There are 100 ways to skin a cat, but this is what I would do. Get a 5lb box of crab, kelp and neem meal. Mix equal parts (just as much as you need), and add like 1 tbsp. Cover with some ewc. Find some dry leaves if you can, crush them up a little and cover the soil with 1-2". This is going to help keep the moisture in, and let the microbes work on the top dressing you put down. At any point if you want to give them a nother boost, pull the mulch back, add more mix and ewc, recover. I use 10-15 gallon containers and think nothing of adding 4-6 tbsps of the mix. Go slow, you can add more, can't take it out.

Bonus points for adding a good compost tea (microbial extrapolation).

P-
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These plants are outdoors. I am running staggered harvests. The plants on the tables are going in 7 gallons and amended holes nd are gonna be on the next wave.
 
FresnoFarmer

FresnoFarmer

Well-Known Member
Pattahabi said:
Those are really effin small pots imo. Still not quite understanding if they are indoors or out. There are 100 ways to skin a cat, but this is what I would do. Get a 5lb box of crab, kelp and neem meal. Mix equal parts (just as much as you need), and add like 1 tbsp. Cover with some ewc. Find some dry leaves if you can, crush them up a little and cover the soil with 1-2". This is going to help keep the moisture in, and let the microbes work on the top dressing you put down. At any point if you want to give them a nother boost, pull the mulch back, add more mix and ewc, recover. I use 10-15 gallon containers and think nothing of adding 4-6 tbsps of the mix. Go slow, you can add more, can't take it out.

Bonus points for adding a good compost tea (microbial extrapolation).

P-
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I cant afford anything other than more soil at this point. Thanks for the tip though. When I get some funds I will have to get some of that stuff.
 
vostok

vostok

Well-Known Member
FresnoFarmer said:
@vostok I am using guano . I wanted to use the bloo and bone as top dressing so I dont run into deficiencies since my soil isnt amended.
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Problem here is the plants most sensitive roots are just under the surface, they don't really suck up food but are for air and water, you need to get the food to the food eating roots further down, without burning those sensitive surface roots ...hence the need for teas, besides your grow looks fine, read up foilar feeding its fun and yes I was in the same situation before too, so I shop locally for my organic soils, and have a great local source cheap too, and they saved me shitloads of study and money ...shop locally ask around!
 
FresnoFarmer

FresnoFarmer

Well-Known Member
@vostok I foliar feed every morning and rinse with plain water in the evening. I guess I will just stick with nutrient teas and maxsea for now. I will amend my soil ahead of time from now on and let it cook. I think I will just stick with guanos this bone meal and blood meal shit confuses me lol. Thanks for the help.
 
foreverflyhi

foreverflyhi

Well-Known Member
FresnoFarmer said:
@vostok I foliar feed every morning and rinse with plain water in the evening. I guess I will just stick with nutrient teas and maxsea for now. I will amend my soil ahead of time from now on and let it cook. I think I will just stick with guanos this bone meal and blood meal shit confuses me lol. Thanks for the help.
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your plants look great, keep it simple homie, stay away from those hot as fertilizers, keep doing what your doing, add VERY VERY little as time progresses. but till then, teas, enzymes, silica, aloe will be your best friends.
 
Pattahabi

Pattahabi

Well-Known Member
vostok said:
Problem here is the plants most sensitive roots are just under the surface, they don't really suck up food but are for air and water, you need to get the food to the food eating roots further down, without burning those sensitive surface roots ...hence the need for teas, besides your grow looks fine, read up foilar feeding its fun and yes I was in the same situation before too, so I shop locally for my organic soils, and have a great local source cheap too, and they saved me shitloads of study and money ...shop locally ask around!
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Seems to me in nature the decomposing, high nutrient things would be more on the top of the soil. That's where the microbes are breaking it down at. Cow shits in the field, it doesn't go down to the roots. It sits on the top and decomposes. This is exactly what a top dress does. I think it is more harmful to get these types of nutrients down in the soil next to your roots.

Frezno, if you don't have any cash, I'd topdress the guanos since you have them. I'd still stay away from bone and blood meal. Then I would go forage some leaves and get a good mulch on the top of the guanos. Make a compost tea. Then later water with enzyme teas, maybe a little fish hydrosolate, silica, aloe (as forever said).

p-
 
FresnoFarmer

FresnoFarmer

Well-Known Member
Pattahabi said:
Seems to me in nature the decomposing, high nutrient things would be more on the top of the soil. That's where the microbes are breaking it down at. Cow shits in the field, it doesn't go down to the roots. It sits on the top and decomposes. This is exactly what a top dress does. I think it is more harmful to get these types of nutrients down in the soil next to your roots.

Frezno, if you don't have any cash, I'd topdress the guanos since you have them. I'd still stay away from bone and blood meal. Then I would go forage some leaves and get a good mulch on the top of the guanos. Make a compost tea. Then later water with enzyme teas, maybe a little fish hydrosolate, silica, aloe (as forever said).

p-
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I have 2 huge compost heaps I will use to mulch. I'm also using dyna gro protekt. I have a few aloe plants around. Thanks guys. Enzyme teas? Im not familiar with this? Is it rather important in organics? Also what ratio of the guanos should I top dress with? I heard seabird guano is rather hot.
 
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