G-tools is a strong supporter of organic farming. If possible, use organic fertilizers and avoid using pesticides and herbicides!
On Instagram we recently came across Kameleo, who takes a very organic approach.
Kameleo grows one cannabis plant in a Bonanza 0.35 grow box for medicinal reasons.
Kameleo puts together the soil in which this plant is grown according to the “living soil” method. It feeds, as it were, the earth instead of the plant. It receives everything the plant needs to grow and bloom healthily from fungi, insects and microorganisms that live in the soil. In return, the plant feeds the soil life with sugars. A symbiosis evolved to perfection through millions of years. Below is his report including the recipe of the living soil.
Living soil, by Kameleo
A plant can only be as good as the soil in which it grows.
A healthy and vital soil life is the basis for this. In other words, “living soil”. Living soil produces large, powerful plants with fruits that distinguish themselves in smell, color and taste. Living soil is suitable for growing almost all types of vegetables, herbs, fruit and flowers. In addition, healthy strong plants have more resistance to pests and diseases, which means that the use of pesticides is avoided.
Biodiversity
A high biodiversity in the soil is therefore essential for growing healthy plants. In living soil, fungi, nematodes and bacteria enter into a symbiotic relationship with the plant. They break down organic material in the soil and convert it into nutrients for the plant. In exchange, the plant releases sugars that feed the soil life. Earthworms provide an airy soil structure and provide the plant with other important nutrients with their excrement.
But how do you make and maintain this living earth?
Recipe
After a lot of research, study and endless testing, I came up with a recipe to mix my own living soil. It is a composition of ingredients to kick start a biotope that feeds itself and the plants. Your plants will explode on it! Here follows the exact composition and a short description of the elements.
-40% Lightmix. This unfertilized soil serves as the basis for the living soil.
You can buy it in any garden center. I myself use Plagron Lightmix.
-20% Worm manure (worm poop). Preferably with live worms. A good worm fertilizer is full of worm eggs that will hatch over time. Worm manure is so special because the excrement of a worm contains up to 10 times as many good microorganisms as were present in the food eaten. Worms are true microorganism factories. This enormous amount of bacteria immediately goes to work to make the minerals present in the soil absorbable for the plants.
-15% Bio Char. Bio char is pure carbon that remains after so-called pyrolysis of woody material. In pyrolysis, organic material is decomposed at a high temperature but without oxygen. Bio char improves the soil structure, provides shelter for beneficial bacteria and retains nutrients so that they do not leach out.
-10% Alfalfa and seaweed. This mix of alfalfa and kelp (seaweed) contains the growth hormone triacontanol. In addition, it contains a lot of nitrogen and potassium, which become available to the plant after treatment by the bacteria.
-10% Insect frass. Frass is the poop of herbivorous insects. It contains a lot of “chitin”, a substance that strengthens the cell walls, making plants less susceptible to pests. In addition, it contains important nutrients such as nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus.
-5% Volcanic ash. These are the smallest particles that are blown into the air during a volcanic eruption. It makes the soil airy and improves water management.
Preparation
After I have mixed all the ingredients in the pot where I will grow my plant, I water the soil with 10% of the contents of the pot. Living soil works best in large pots. The bigger the better. I use a 40 liter pot myself and water the soil with 4 liters of tap water with a tablespoon of sugar cane molasses. Molasses contains a lot of sugars that the bacteria living in the soil love. In addition to stimulating soil life, molasses is also a rich source of nitrogen.
After watering, I leave the mixture at room temperature for about three days.
In this period, all living elements wake up, so to speak, and get to work.
All components are now in the soil and you will only have to water your plant. I keep the bottom covered with a layer of organic material.
Now the seedlings or cuttings can be planted.
Mulching
Covering the top layer with organic material is called “Mulching”. Mulch is not only a source of plant nutrition, but also ensures that the top layer of the soil does not dry out due to direct light and exposure to air.
Mulching is very important and I keep covering the soil again and again with organic material. These can be leaves of the plant or plant material that you supply from outside. I often use straw for this myself. I also sow my freshly mixed living soil with clover. Clover not only contributes to keeping the soil covered, but it is also a very good nitrogen fixer. Clover absorbs nitrogen from the air and returns it to the soil through the roots. Nitrogen is one of the most important nutritional elements during the growth phase of a plant. Partly thanks to the clover, you do not have to feed your plant with nitrogen to allow your plant to grow vigorously. As soon as your plant gets bigger and hardly any light falls on the soil, the clover dies and is reintegrated into the food chain.
I covered the top layer with straw to protect the soil from drying out. To speed up worm production I put a pumpkin cut in half on the soil. They love that!
Water
When growing on living soil, it is therefore no longer necessary to add nutrients to the irrigation water. All that remains to be done is watering according to the plant’s needs.
Once every 2 weeks I add some sugar cane molasses with the water. Molasses contains a lot of sugars that the bacteria living in the soil love. In addition to stimulating soil life, molasses is also a rich source of nitrogen.
Because no nutrition is given, no harmful residues remain in the soil and you can safely use it several times. Root remnants and other residual organic material can be left in place. These will be reintroduced into the cycle.
Readers from countries where tap water is chlorinated should bear in mind that chlorine is a kind of antibiotic that destroys soil life. They will therefore have to work with rainwater or other chlorine-free water.
The plant, a cutting of 2 weeks old, can now be planted in the pot.
Besides food for worms, the pumpkin is a source of useful fungi.
The straw is also a source of soil life.
The clover has already emerged after a few days and covers the soil
Mulch, mold and worms
Week 4 of the flowering period
Week 6 of the flowering period
This promises to be a powerful medicine.
1 day before harvest
If, after reading this blog, you would like to grow on living soil yourself, but you do not feel like looking for all the different components, you can purchase “Sana Preta” in our webshop.
This preparation contains all ingredients described by Kameleo mixed in the correct proportions.
By mixing it with Light mix you can create your own living soil in no time.
