Why do you recommend fabric pots and what is Air Pruning?
Beneficial soil microbes require aerobic conditions to thrive, howevery they also need constant moisture. If soil is allowed to dry out too much, much of the microbial population will begin to go dormant and even die off. Our favourite fabric pots are Grassroots Living Soil Fabric Pot due to a balance of both waterproof section to encourage even moisture retention and breathable lower fabric strip for root pruning and breathability. Fabric pots promote an aerobic environment through a breathable fabric. When roots hit the edge of the pot they grow new shoots instead of circling around the pot and becoming root bound.
My mulch layer is getting moldy, is this OK?
Clusters of mycelium can be seen when your soil is first used and mulched or when organic nutrients are applied. This mycelium becomes visible in the mulch layer from beneficial microorganisms in your soil breaking down organic material. This is a good sign and totally normal.
Is there an ideal temperature for cultivation in living soil?
Evidence shows that the right microbes perform best at temperatures that your favourite plants favour. Keep temperatures between 20 to 27 degrees for best performance and nutrient cycling. Cold temperatures with heat loving summer annuals will slow down calcium uptake and trigger various nutrient deficiencies. Winter crops can also be grown in Living Soil but try to expose plants to as much sunlight as possible.
My Easy As Organic Soil will be in storage for a long period, how do I keep my soil alive?
Sell it to a friend and change their lives forever. Or tip into some heavy duty wheelie bins or food grade storage tubs. Poke a few small holes in the lid for ventilation as you do not want the soil to become anaerobic. Make sure the soil does not completely dry out. Or you can plant some cover crop seeds and leave outside with a very occasional watering. tip into some heavy duty wheelie bins or food grade storage tubs. Poke a few small holes in the lid for ventilation as you do not want the soil to become anaerobic. Make sure the soil does not completely dry out or you will need to re-hydrate with Aloe prior to planting.
Where does my Easy As Organic Soil’s ingredients come from?
All soil ingredients are sourced locally whenever possible. We pride ourselves on being a socially conscious and environmentally ethical and sustainable company and will support our local organic industry as much as we can.
Where do the worms come from?
Easy As Organics Soil Blends are mixed with worm castings which contain many cocoons and the occasional worm. The cocoons will hatch and worms will mature. These are extremely beneficial to the overall health of a living soil food web.
I’m a total beginning gardener, do I need anything other than my soil to have great harvests?
No! You can have a successful harvest with only our soil, a 15 gallon pot and fresh water! When you see how easy this is we can help you step up the performance of your organic soil with teas and topdressings.
Do I need to flush my plants in Easy As Organics soil blends?
No. All nutrients are stored in the soil due to a high cation exchange capacity and high levels of microbiology. You do not want to flush these out!
Do I need anything special for the different phases of the plant’s life from seed to harvest?
Plants grown with the soil food web are in control and have a huge bank of all nutrients and minerals needed to thrive. No special timing for plant cycles are needed as the plant will determine its own physiological and metabolic changes as it needs. Only watering frequency is adjusted to maintain even moisture as plant matures. However we can assist these changes with topdressing and or botanical teas prior to flowering. Please contact us for more information about no-till gardening.
Should I use additional fertilisers or nutrients with my Easy As Organics Soil Blends?
Do not use any synthetic liquid fertilisers. Synthetic liquid fertilisers will only harm soil microbiology due to salt content and are counterproductive to the ultimate goal of creating a living soil food web in your container or raised bed. We want to leave the job of feeding the plant up to the soil biology.
What organic liquid extracts can I use as additives to boost plant and soil health if needed?
A number of organic teas and additives can be used to enhance growth by feeding microbes, adding natural growth promoting hormones and providing enzymes for microbes to efficiently break down nutrients in your organic soil. Aloe contains many beneficial enzymes and plant hormones that boost immune health and soil life. Fish Hydrolysate is in excellent fungal food and natural chelating agent and can also be used to boost nitrogen levels if needed. Silica builds cell wall strength, improving photosynthesis and overall robust plant health. Pure neem oil is useful as a weekly foliar for pest prevention due to countless limonoids that inhibit pest feeding and breeding. Many liquid extracts can be used, as long as the extract is natural and designed for organic gardening.
Can I transplant from a synthetically fertilised container into my Easy As Organics Soil Blends?
No. You will see incredible results when planting a seedling, clone or even germinating your seed directly into your final container. A plant grown with artificial fertilisers will not be used to attracting microbes for food on it's own and will have a difficult time adjusting to a new and living, soil food web. Further to this, the salts from the original fertilised root ball may harm living organisms in your soil which could be detrimental to the health of the soil biology as well as the plant. Finally, the soilless rootball will still require liquid nutrients to feed the plant as it will not be able to access the organic, plant available nutrients from the surrounding living soil until it’s roots begin to spread. This will potentially kill your plants. Try to minimise transplants to avoid disturbance of the soil food web organisms. Roots, fungal hyphae, bacteria, nematodes, protozoa, earthworms and soil mites have been building soil structure to create a perfect ecosystem for your plant to grow in and access nutrients every second of every day.