New to forum from West Oz. Preparing for an outdoor, sustainably sourced product grow

Ok so I am preparing for a grow coming up this spring. Im not a big consumer so its going to be a small affair. Doing a lot of reading on supersoils, beneficial bacteria, compost teas etc. All the many things organic growers do. I really wanted to look into the science as far as I could, as well as taking the advice from experienced growers. There is a LOT of information out there, so I wanted to try and sort fact from fiction out as much as possible. There was also the issue around the pandemic. What does that have to do with it, you ask? Well, everything, I think. As a matter of our own survival, we have to start living more responsibly on this planet, including how we grow. While Im not into the crystals, plant by the moon kinda stuff, I also think that honouring the symbiotic relationships in nature, we benefit greatly from what the plant has to offer. So I want that principle to be a part of the way I approach my grow.
Some considerations for me personally.
!. Using fertilisers more wisely. I don’t want to support the animal farming industry unless they are doing it sustainably. Yes this Im not sure that more is necessarily better. me somewhat but I think the compensation will be a lesser quantity but better quality. Im not a particularly big user, so this approach suits my needs perfectly. This means sustainably sourced manure. No amendments that aren’t sustainably sourced and supporting local business where possible.
I found this places really helpful
Manure.Creature Compost |  Nutra Rich, WA Nutra Rich, WA
I also have a worm farm and Im able to produce my own worm castings, plus a large garden which can supply me with a lot of compost.
I found all my soil amendments here. Staff are really helpful and its right near a coffee place if you need it! https://www.greenlifesoil.com.au
There is no need to spend a load of money on soil amendments. I went with biocharchoal, rock dust, humic and fulvic acid, coco coir, perlite. A sachet of beneficial bacteria (including mycoryzae) for $5 so if you live in WA, not need to spend big $$$s on that. . Ive got a pile of my own compost well rotted so Ill start the soil this week, add the manure, castings, and amendments and leave to cook. I will also start a new compost pile to start over summer. Fabric pots are best bet for me as easier to move around in the garden. I might add some bentonite when Im ready, I’ll see how the soil is closer to the time. Something I read about . If you are using lots of phosphates in your soil, you are probably wasting your money regards to mycoryzae. To get the benefit of the microbes, reduce your phosphates and add something like biocharcoal improve the plant’s utilisation and reduce leaching (a big environmental faux pas where I live).
I decided against compost tea. It. seems as far as the science is concerned, the jury is out. I’ll reconsider if someone advises me its a worthwhile, but Im not so sure. I have a large fishpond, I can use a can of pond water once a week. I’ll also be cleaning the pond out soon, there will be a pile of silt on the bottom which I’ll strain and maybe use as well. I already check pH on my pond water and it’s a really healthy pond with lots of fish and pond plant. Being a first grow, I’ll need to monitor and see how the plants respond (or not) to the water. Ive got a huge Aloe Vera plant and will feed fresh juice to them regularly from when they are pups.
I found a great locally made organic fertiliser, also infused with microbes, which I have on hand already for the garden. https://www.growsafe.com.au
If anyone is interested I’ll start a grow diary. Im also open to any suggestions/ideas. Im going to be growing CBD, plus white widow and Amnesia Haze auto. Yes I know I picked a hard one there for my first grow but I much prefer sativa and wanted to try an auto.

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Lot of info and green morality there, fair play to you. There are a few 100% organic growers here so there will be no shortage of information on it’s way shortly. Personally I don’t use chemicals, pest control is via predators or companion planting and water is from rain barrels dotted around my garden. Sustainability is a big thing for a lot of us. @Warkat has a fair bit of organic knowledge. I’ve tagged him so if he’s around he will swing by for a chat. I’ve stuck a link in from a previous post as well. There’s loads of great info there. Good luck on your grow :sunglasses:

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Thank you! Im also going to be doing a lot of companion planting as well come spring. Im going to restart the herb garden. comfrey, yarrow, camomile, coriander, basil. I like medicinal as well as kitchen herbs and use them a lot, so its a good reason to start again. Oh and I did order neem cake and thats going into my soil. Otherwise I have neem oil and a few of the “Eco” brand products should I run into issues.
The pests here aren’t too much of a bother, long as you have plenty of light coming into the garden, which is all getting a big hard prune next week! Better still is hell be mulching all the prunings on site so there should be enough for the whole garden come summer, yippee!
Thanks for the heads up re experienced organic growers. Im sure ill have many questions as things go along. Now that the soil plan has been decided on and I have what I need, I can relax a little and let the soil work its magic!

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No worries, I have wire frame compost bins around the garden and nothing gets junked if I can help it. There’s a few growers from Oz here as well. @Enlightened420 and @Mat, I’m sure @bud420 among others are all from Oz. I’ve tagged them so they will be along shortly :sunglasses:

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Thanks for the tag @Davyg,

Sounds like a well planned and thought out menu. I love how green you think. Another fantastic place I have found is
Organic Gardening Supplies, high quality products.

Good vibes, keep it green :v:

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Yay another Aussie, welcome to the forum, I was born in WA, Port Headland.

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Yes I looked them too. Then decided on these ones because they were more local…thought out maybe, a lot of confusion on the way. Jeepers Ive gardened natives, vegetables, herbs, trees you name it, I don’t think I had anywhere near the headache for deciding all this!
The proof will be in the grow, no doubt! :slight_smile:

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Some Gromies grow fantastic organic weed on here, I’ll tag some, so you can read and absorb their journals.

@Budbrother @Skydiver @Warkat
@shindig153 (uses aquarium water) @Big123 (grows huge plants in lunar cycles)

I’m very inexperienced at growing, but if you need any help, tag away, if I don’t know the answer, chances are good, I know someone who does.

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@YinYang Looks like the stage is set buddy. If you need me I will be around. I’m off for now and @Enlightened420 you’re welcome :sunglasses:.

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Thanks for bringing me in @Davyg.
Very nice to virtually meet you @YinYang. Looks like you’ve been doing your homework and have a good starting plan. Love your concept of staying green.

Absolutely yes, please start a journal and tag us in (or just use this one). Would love to follow along as I’m doing something similar with organics and using my koi fish pond waste and water. Best wishes. This will be fun!

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Anytime @fRIEDfRED, you guys were the first ones I thought about :sunglasses:.
@YinYang do you want me to move this thread to the grow journal section :sunglasses:

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Sure :slight_smile: :slight_smile:

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Done, welcome to your new journal :sunglasses:

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Thanks for the tag @Davyg
Welcome @YinYang
I grow in coco but I’m happy to lend a hand if I can​:+1::australia::australia:

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Yay got the nuts and bolts of soil mix done today and its a cooking. Given I have about. 10 weeks to go before planting, my start is a bit later than ideal. So I used a little home brew compost accelerator.
The beach has been great every time I’ve been down and Ive managed to harvest a load of fresh seaweed which has now been shredded with brown leaves 50/50 in a separate pile. This should work well as a mulch over the summer and if its successful I can make more cheap and easy.
The soil that’s cooking now is
30 litres coconut coir (soaked in my pond water, its aerated healthy water)
15Litires home made compost. (the stuff is old and looked awesome as I was digging it out from the bottom of the bin)
20L worm castings
4 cups bio charcoal
1/2 cup rock dust
1/2 cup ground cuttlefish/crab shell from the beach
2 cups coffee grounds
2 cups pelletised chicken manure
1 cup neem meal
1 cup insect frass
1/2 cup epsom salt
5g fulvic acid
20g humid acid
around 500g of dried shredded seaweed.
150g dried spagmum moss (only because I had it lol)
Ignited the bacterial/mycorrhizae starter sachet so its all in there to start off.
I’ll add the perlite/vermiculite later.
I really tried not going overboard with phosphates. I have some organic all purpose, microbe infused fertiliser thats locally made for our conditions. I can supplement the plants with that, seaweed mulch and any extras depending on how the plant goes.
Im pretty happy with this but if there is anything glaringly obvious do let me know :slight_smile:

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Looking like you got it together for a great start :facepunch:. I’m about three hours from the Pacific Ocean and manage to get there a couple times a year. I take a few 5 gallon buckets and fill them up with beach sand to blend in with my soil and a kelp for my compost bins also.

Curious about how you made your home brew compost accelerator🤔.

Sure, but don’t be grossed out. I used
1 bottle of beer
1 tablespoon molasses in a glass of rainwater
1 cup urine
You don’t have to use pee if you don’t like the idea. You can use ammonia but I preferred not. You also shouldn’t do this if you take any prescription meds or have kidney/liver problems. But if its healthy, its a perfect nitrogen source.
Put the mix into a large watering can. I layered my mix lasagne style, lightly spraying between each layer (my mix was ever so slightly moist to start with). It’s now covered with cardboard and a sheet of hessian. It can actually make you really good quality, broken down compost in as little as 3 weeks, long as you turn it regularly.
Yes planning to make another trip to the beach for a few more bags of seaweed. My dog loves it, especially when we go to a couple of dog beaches! He just goes bonkers at the beach, and we have had some great weather (up to 23 degrees) between all the rain.
The guy is coming to do all my tree pruning in about 10 days. This will get a bit more light into my yard.Im planning to add more seaweed into the mulch I get from that (it will be huge). Ill add some more charcoal and also humid/fulvic acid, along with rock dust.
Im planning on 45 gallon geotextile pot for this, but will only fill to about 30-35. I want to leave a big space for lots of mulch. This is also about the heaviest I can personally manage on my own. Ive got some auto seeds, but won’t start that till October, and wont need such a large pot for it.
Tent greenhouse also arrived today. Its one of those pop up ones that fold up, but it’s a decent size. That should help them along in the first month or so. At least thats the plan!
PS they will have first month indoors. Temps here are still coolish in October, so Ill have the tent option if I need it.

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Awsome, thanks for your detailed reply. I have seen other organic ppl use urine in their soil. Do you let it perk for a few days or go ahead and use it right after it’s made up.

Nah no need to let it perk. You can make it up and use as is. I usually make it so it’s slightly warm. You want your compost to be a little damp but not soggy. Good idea if you can cover your compost pile with something. I just used cardboard and then a hessian cloth. I personally wouldn’t use urine directly on plants of any kind, but I think its a great addition to compost. Nothing wrong with adding some manure and charcoal to the pile as well. You’ll get more out of your compost that way. You can also add some rock dust too.

Im headed to the beach for another seaweed haul on Sunday, before it start raining again. The amount of mulch I’ll make, I’ll be able to do the neighbours yard as well as mine! Ive got a large native garden out the front. Looking forward to getting a few soil amendments and compost out there. Come spring, It should explode with big red kangaroo paw, Geraldton wax, Westringia and a few others.
Thats the ultra cool thing about all this. The fact that Ive learned so much about gardening in general. Its given me a burst of enthusiasm!

Thanks YinYang, definitely following along. My mentor @Warkat is really into everything green also but he is taking a hiatus from the forum for now. Hope he comes back soon. Peace brother.

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