moo poo

[strangebrew]

I used the Bouncing Bear/Nansnook cactus soil recipe which contains 1/4 cow manure when I repotted last spring and I must say the growth on the peds has been better than ever. They grew a "peru blue" coating for about 6 inches but I've noticed that the last few inches of growth has just been normal coloured.

Do you think this is a sign that the nitrogen in the cowshit has been used up? :confused:

I also have my suspicions that this recipe may contain too many nutrients for peds to handle humid weather. We had 2 humid periods over summer that lasted a few days each time and both times the plants broke out in black pimples on the new growth, which I've never seen before when they were grown in sand/soil/scoria. These soon dried up when the weather cleared.

Next time I repot I think I'll go for about 1/6 moo poo instead.

[teonanacatl]

ive always been curious to hear from somone who uses that mix. id say not to many nutes but to much water holding for humid weather. does it get soggy??? i had one cacti peruvian break out in them recently after about 1 week of heavy heavy rain but they cleared up when the sun shone. as for going back to green growth yeah it would prolly have somthing to do with less of a specific nute.

[strangebrew]

Soggy? LOL.

As long as the manure doesn't have steam coming off it and comes out of a bag it's fine. :D

There's still 50% rock and sand in the mix so drainage is excellent.

It probably does hold a bit more moisture but I'm still inclined towards the pimples being a nutrient(soft grown) thing because they didn't show up on the old growth.

I remember reading somewhere that when a cactus is soft grown, bacteria or fungi are more likely to break through the skin.

But the growth really has been incredible this year, I've just measured it. The best has been 43cm(17in) and it's still growing and it's in a pot!

Last year I didn't get all that much and I blamed flowering. This year I got flowers plus amazing growth, so as long as nutrients are high flowering shouldn't make much difference to growth at all.

I give this mix a BIG thumbs up if humidity is never a factor. It's just a matter of determining how much manure your ped can handle in your particular area.

[smogs]

thats some good growth

do you fert on top of the poo?

[strangebrew]

Yeah, this year I alternated between Seasol, Miraclegrow and my own unique blend of watered down piss.

But I've always used Miraclegrow and I've never had more than 20-25cm before. I think a bit of shade helped too at the height of summer.

So I've basically doubled growth just by adding some lime and cowshit.

[teonanacatl]

i add about a handfull of mineral fert a handfull of dynamic lifter and 2-3 handfulls of lime to about 10-15L of cacti mix, i also add a hand full of osmocote and a handfull of my high K high P low N slow release fert. and i add some more sand to that to make it drain better. i might try that cow poo one next time. my growth rate is 1cm a week on established plants, and more on bigger ones.

[strangebrew]

Can't complain about more than 1cm a week.

I was thinking the other night (yes it hurt! ) about Miraclegrow and other level NPK ferts or low N ones, which are recommended for cacti.

People use these for ornamentals in which the flowers are the main aim, doesn't really apply to Trichos in which growth is.

Wouldn't high N ferts really be better?

[teonanacatl]

hmm id say high N isnt bad but more P and K +trace elements makes for a stronger tougher plant. just remember just cos it grows fast doesnt mean its potent.

[mescalito]

found that muracle-grow is good for pupping.

[teonanacatl]

yeah i found potting up not only makes them fatter but they pup to:D all my pach's pupped after potting up. also used a pss fert on them:D

[incognito]

i pretty well do the same ,alternate between miracle grow and watered down urine,,and my trichs fair hammer along and pup their heads off.