crimsonecho
Self-Proclaimed Don Quixote
Natural Farming (KNF)
Hi everybody,
I see there are some good threads on this subject and i wanted to share what i do and what has worked for me so far. These are all very basic recipes that are open to improvement but thats the good thing about natural farming. Its just a way of thinking and a different perception about what farming is and could be.
The most important idea behind natural farming -also called korean natural farming or knf- is to use whats near you and to rely on your basic understanding about nature. You don’t need labs to analyze the end product. With the right techniques and a little bit of intiution you’ll end up with perfect fertilizers thats gonna cost you almost nothing. Only a little labour.
Microbial Products to Use (LAB, EM, IMO)
Anyway, the idea behind this is to use the microbes which occurs naturally in the environment around you to compost or ferment what grows naturally around you. Now this can be done with many different ways. Using LAB, EM, IMO etc.
Now EM is a patented product and what you can recreate in your house cannot legally be called EM. Its basically three dominant types of microbes with various strains of each. Lactobacillus, yeast, phototropic bacteria. In an homemade product the specific balance of each microbial population will not match the ones that come from a stable mother culture like the ones they use to make actual EM. Tho homemade replacements will work in a similar way, if you want to use “EM” for these process, you are better off buying it.
But to be honest, there is not much EM adds that IMO (indigenous micro organism) or LAB (lactobacillus serum) doesn’t add. Also EM is mainly designed for shifting the balance of soil microbes from detrimental to benefical in heavy and poorly aerated soils especially. Not that it doesn’t work for other purposes but a good aerated soil or soilless mix should already be supporting a very healthy population of beneficial microbes. There is this whole theory behind it and i’m not trying to dispute that. Its just the intented use is not to grow cannabis in pots with well aerated mediums. More for growing crops in clay heavy fields.
LAB and IMO is a better choice imho. Because these rely on the native microbe population which are well adjusted to the native environmental conditions. So i’m gonna leave a couple of links if you are interested in harvesting your own LAB or IMO. Its a bit of work but little goes a long way and you can harvest good amounts of microbial products every time which could supplement your grow with rich fresh microbes for months or more. Good idea to take a look into.
thenutrientcompany.com
Now FPEs,
Fpe is very important and a very useful technique of natural farming. When we talk about boosters especially. Tho it is perfectly possible to use these as a main source of nourishment, natural farmers usually take care of that stuff with rich composts and local sources of manure and such.
This whole deal with natural farming is, you gonna work your ass off for a month mixing your medium for indoors and pickling fish, flowers and getting a compost going etc etc. and gonna kick back and relax on the remaining eleven -well not really but the work load will be minimal and you are gonna enjoy it-.
What i want to get into in this post is the boosters you can make rather than liquid fertilizers. Its possible to use the same techniques to make liquid fertilizers also but most organic soils will be rich with nutrients and microbes already. Especially if you use something like a rich compost or IMO.
Now at this point, i have to mention that there are different paths you can choose to do your fermenting. I’m only going to share what i did and what has worked for me. The simplest method is just adding brown sugar to your unwashed plant material and seal it to start the fermentation. This path i never took. Because some materials smell like shit when they are fermenting and its not really suitable for a household imo.
What i did is i used EM or LAB. Whichever i have on hand at the time. It inhibits smell greatly. The techniques is very simple and you only need couple of things. A bucket or a jar with an airlock. You know that bubbler things to let the gas out from inside the jar but to keep oxygen out. You will also need plant material to ferment and molasses or a sugar source to speed up the fermentation.
The Ferments I Can Vouch For
For Veg (macro-micro-trace)
- Alfalfa is a great plant to ferment. It contains triacontanol which is a naturally occuring plant growth regulator that plants benefit in many many ways. From nitrogen fixation in the medium to essential oil increase.
- Stinging nettles have also been coveted as an incredible farming tool in France especially. Its a tad rich in sodium it seems but it still have been succesfully used by many for a long time now.
Booster for veg (hormones-enzymes etc.)
- Alfalfa for the triacontanol content also can be used as a foliar.
- Other than that any fast growing plants are a great source for natural farming. Look around the garden, around the parks (watch out for any pesticides and all) and the forests. Newly formed green buds and shoots that seem healthy and vigorous. Leaves and growth tips of fast growing plants. All great sources. Pick them off. Ferment them. These will be filled with whatever makes them grow faster. Hormones, enzymes etc. Again an intuitive way of farming.
After the fermentation, strain and use it as a foliar. Because these boosters are not really about NPK or micros its better applied as a foliar spray. The resulting liquid, depending on the material you used can be very strong or very weak. Its better to try different doses on different plants to pinpont the perfect amount. I usually start 5ml per litre and move up to 15ml and see how they react. Only couple of applications is enough to see the benefits.
For Flowering (macro-micro-trace)
- Stinging nettles are again a great fertilizer for flowering but i tend to stay away from alfalfa because i noticed foxtailing when i use it in flowering. It may be because of the triacontanol.
- Banana peel ferment is a great K booster for flowering and ripening. With the same basic technique you can ferment them and use the resulting liquid with waterings as a natural fertilizer. Again couple of applications will go a long way and you’ll see the benefits. Don’t have to banana peels either. All fruit peel containes good amount of K.
- In the P department i rely on all the organic matter and guano i use so i don’t supplement any ferments. And the plants don’t seem to mind at all. Afterall, really, P is not needed in the excessive amounts some of us provide our cannabis with.
Flower Boosters (hormones-enzymes etc.)
- In this department i’m again using an intuitive approach. I pluck the flowers and flower buds i see around me. These are filled with whatever makes them flower. I stay away from anything that may be sprayed with insecticides and anything thats poisonous. Ferment these and the liquid you end up with is a good flower booster. Spray once before the switch and couple more time in the next few weeks.
-Overripe fruit can also be fermented and used as a ripening booster. Whatever it is that ripens them will ripen your cannabis probably. I have to try that too.
Boosters Suitable for Veg and Flower
- The holy grail of fermenting, stinging nettles are again a good foliar to correct deficiencies or generally add micros and trace minerals fast. Its a good plant and a general booster for other plants.
- Aloe vera is a great plant also and filled with amino acids and other goodies. Plant couple of pups around your garden or grow inside. Its really easy to grow and it produces well ime. Pick the blades. Leave the rest it’ll grow again. I use the blades as it is. Just pickle them and wait for the ph to 3-3.5. I think because of the natural latex the outer skin contains, it takes a little longer to completely break down but you can use the left over material in you compost. Couple of sprays thru plants lifecycle is enough.
- Kelp is another great booster. So is spirulina. But i told you i’ll only talk about what i did i still haven’t done kelp or spirulina at home. Tho i’ll and i’ll also share the results. Eventho they don’t comply fully with the making the best of whats around you philosophy they are still viable and valuable option.
Storage
I keep the boosters in the fridge in order to maybe better preserve these natural hormones and enzymes. The fpes for nutrients are stored in a cool dark place. I kept them more than 6 months without any ill effects.
So thats about it. Thats what i’m doing and what has worked well for me in the past. There will be additions in the future and feel free to post whatever works for you in your garden.
Hi everybody,
I see there are some good threads on this subject and i wanted to share what i do and what has worked for me so far. These are all very basic recipes that are open to improvement but thats the good thing about natural farming. Its just a way of thinking and a different perception about what farming is and could be.
The most important idea behind natural farming -also called korean natural farming or knf- is to use whats near you and to rely on your basic understanding about nature. You don’t need labs to analyze the end product. With the right techniques and a little bit of intiution you’ll end up with perfect fertilizers thats gonna cost you almost nothing. Only a little labour.
Microbial Products to Use (LAB, EM, IMO)
Anyway, the idea behind this is to use the microbes which occurs naturally in the environment around you to compost or ferment what grows naturally around you. Now this can be done with many different ways. Using LAB, EM, IMO etc.
Now EM is a patented product and what you can recreate in your house cannot legally be called EM. Its basically three dominant types of microbes with various strains of each. Lactobacillus, yeast, phototropic bacteria. In an homemade product the specific balance of each microbial population will not match the ones that come from a stable mother culture like the ones they use to make actual EM. Tho homemade replacements will work in a similar way, if you want to use “EM” for these process, you are better off buying it.
But to be honest, there is not much EM adds that IMO (indigenous micro organism) or LAB (lactobacillus serum) doesn’t add. Also EM is mainly designed for shifting the balance of soil microbes from detrimental to benefical in heavy and poorly aerated soils especially. Not that it doesn’t work for other purposes but a good aerated soil or soilless mix should already be supporting a very healthy population of beneficial microbes. There is this whole theory behind it and i’m not trying to dispute that. Its just the intented use is not to grow cannabis in pots with well aerated mediums. More for growing crops in clay heavy fields.
LAB and IMO is a better choice imho. Because these rely on the native microbe population which are well adjusted to the native environmental conditions. So i’m gonna leave a couple of links if you are interested in harvesting your own LAB or IMO. Its a bit of work but little goes a long way and you can harvest good amounts of microbial products every time which could supplement your grow with rich fresh microbes for months or more. Good idea to take a look into.
How To: Culture Lactobacillus (LAB) for Horticultural use
Generally when it comes to bacteria and microbes we'd be referring to the aerobic type you'd hope to produce in a Compost Tea (AACT) system, the reason being that the presence of anaerobic bacteria in these systems are nearly always 'bad news'. However there are useful anaerobes out there and it...
thenutrientcompany.com
Now FPEs,
Fpe is very important and a very useful technique of natural farming. When we talk about boosters especially. Tho it is perfectly possible to use these as a main source of nourishment, natural farmers usually take care of that stuff with rich composts and local sources of manure and such.
This whole deal with natural farming is, you gonna work your ass off for a month mixing your medium for indoors and pickling fish, flowers and getting a compost going etc etc. and gonna kick back and relax on the remaining eleven -well not really but the work load will be minimal and you are gonna enjoy it-.
What i want to get into in this post is the boosters you can make rather than liquid fertilizers. Its possible to use the same techniques to make liquid fertilizers also but most organic soils will be rich with nutrients and microbes already. Especially if you use something like a rich compost or IMO.
Now at this point, i have to mention that there are different paths you can choose to do your fermenting. I’m only going to share what i did and what has worked for me. The simplest method is just adding brown sugar to your unwashed plant material and seal it to start the fermentation. This path i never took. Because some materials smell like shit when they are fermenting and its not really suitable for a household imo.
What i did is i used EM or LAB. Whichever i have on hand at the time. It inhibits smell greatly. The techniques is very simple and you only need couple of things. A bucket or a jar with an airlock. You know that bubbler things to let the gas out from inside the jar but to keep oxygen out. You will also need plant material to ferment and molasses or a sugar source to speed up the fermentation.
The Ferments I Can Vouch For
For Veg (macro-micro-trace)
- Alfalfa is a great plant to ferment. It contains triacontanol which is a naturally occuring plant growth regulator that plants benefit in many many ways. From nitrogen fixation in the medium to essential oil increase.
- Stinging nettles have also been coveted as an incredible farming tool in France especially. Its a tad rich in sodium it seems but it still have been succesfully used by many for a long time now.
Booster for veg (hormones-enzymes etc.)
- Alfalfa for the triacontanol content also can be used as a foliar.
- Other than that any fast growing plants are a great source for natural farming. Look around the garden, around the parks (watch out for any pesticides and all) and the forests. Newly formed green buds and shoots that seem healthy and vigorous. Leaves and growth tips of fast growing plants. All great sources. Pick them off. Ferment them. These will be filled with whatever makes them grow faster. Hormones, enzymes etc. Again an intuitive way of farming.
After the fermentation, strain and use it as a foliar. Because these boosters are not really about NPK or micros its better applied as a foliar spray. The resulting liquid, depending on the material you used can be very strong or very weak. Its better to try different doses on different plants to pinpont the perfect amount. I usually start 5ml per litre and move up to 15ml and see how they react. Only couple of applications is enough to see the benefits.
For Flowering (macro-micro-trace)
- Stinging nettles are again a great fertilizer for flowering but i tend to stay away from alfalfa because i noticed foxtailing when i use it in flowering. It may be because of the triacontanol.
- Banana peel ferment is a great K booster for flowering and ripening. With the same basic technique you can ferment them and use the resulting liquid with waterings as a natural fertilizer. Again couple of applications will go a long way and you’ll see the benefits. Don’t have to banana peels either. All fruit peel containes good amount of K.
- In the P department i rely on all the organic matter and guano i use so i don’t supplement any ferments. And the plants don’t seem to mind at all. Afterall, really, P is not needed in the excessive amounts some of us provide our cannabis with.
Flower Boosters (hormones-enzymes etc.)
- In this department i’m again using an intuitive approach. I pluck the flowers and flower buds i see around me. These are filled with whatever makes them flower. I stay away from anything that may be sprayed with insecticides and anything thats poisonous. Ferment these and the liquid you end up with is a good flower booster. Spray once before the switch and couple more time in the next few weeks.
-Overripe fruit can also be fermented and used as a ripening booster. Whatever it is that ripens them will ripen your cannabis probably. I have to try that too.
Boosters Suitable for Veg and Flower
- The holy grail of fermenting, stinging nettles are again a good foliar to correct deficiencies or generally add micros and trace minerals fast. Its a good plant and a general booster for other plants.
- Aloe vera is a great plant also and filled with amino acids and other goodies. Plant couple of pups around your garden or grow inside. Its really easy to grow and it produces well ime. Pick the blades. Leave the rest it’ll grow again. I use the blades as it is. Just pickle them and wait for the ph to 3-3.5. I think because of the natural latex the outer skin contains, it takes a little longer to completely break down but you can use the left over material in you compost. Couple of sprays thru plants lifecycle is enough.
- Kelp is another great booster. So is spirulina. But i told you i’ll only talk about what i did i still haven’t done kelp or spirulina at home. Tho i’ll and i’ll also share the results. Eventho they don’t comply fully with the making the best of whats around you philosophy they are still viable and valuable option.
Storage
I keep the boosters in the fridge in order to maybe better preserve these natural hormones and enzymes. The fpes for nutrients are stored in a cool dark place. I kept them more than 6 months without any ill effects.
So thats about it. Thats what i’m doing and what has worked well for me in the past. There will be additions in the future and feel free to post whatever works for you in your garden.
were two of the same,as i swear by lab for many uses,practise knf,and already make and use most of the ferments you mentioned.
