Close up

Nice looking bark, are you selling or trading lol. It will be nice to see it after its screened. We just can't find that quality of bark in stores.

Mark

Mark,

Come to Louisiana and I will get you all you want. :)

Bill

Mark,

I too live on a state forest where they harvest and re-plant pine. I don't go and get any since I don't do any container growing, but there are fields and fields of nothing but pine ripe for the taking hah.

I was just reading a very good article here on GW. When it talked about lime, it said make the 5 1 1 mix and wait two weeks to plant because of the lime. Is this true? I have no time to wait.

Bill

From the above two containers, I yielded one full container ranging in size from 1/16th to þâÂÂ

Bill

What I used for a sifter was a diamond grate with 3/4 x 1 1/2". Now to find something smaller.

Hardware cloth is pretty easy to find and comes in a variety of sizes. Check your local hardware store, it's usually near the fencing.

Oh, and regarding the two weeks...from what I've read, some prefer it, but, it's not necessary.

This post was edited by tsheets on Sat, Mar 30, 13 at 14:06

Good barkage !!

You might want to screen that finer for smaller pots. But I wouldn't bother for larger pots.

What kind of peat component will you be using?

Thankls Tsheets, I did not want to have to wait for two weeks just because of the lime.

DMForcier, I am planning on using sphagnum peat if I can find it. Better ideas?

My plan is 5 part bark, 1 part corse perlite, 1 part Sphagnum peat, 1 tablespoon per gallon of mix of corse lime and some slow release fert.

This is my first real year growing so I was going to do some experiments but wanted to start out with the true and tested 5-1-1.

All advice welcome and greatly appreciated.

Bill

I just use Miracle Grow Moisture Control (MGMC) soil, since I have it around. (Don't buy it for the mix; it's too expensive.) MGMC already has everything but the bark in it, though not enough perlite and not sure about the lime, so I add perlite and lime as you would with sphagnum. If I'm using year-old MGMC I add some Osmocote on the theory that the nutrients in it have been eaten already, though that isn't necessary if you water with a dilute fert as some do.

No, I don't let my mix sit for a week, but I have no idea whether that is good or bad.

Okay all this is what I ended up with. Took about two hours but I am happy. Now, what do to with it?

Right off my range at work.

3/4" to 1" pieces

1/2" pieces

1/4" pieces

1/16th to 1/8" pieces. Fine dust has been shifted out

Looks AWESOME! I'll take 4 bags of the 1/4" ;-)

Yah me too. Do you ship FedEx?

I Am Also In For 4 Bags Of The 1/4" :)

What would you do with the 1/4"? Seems to small to do anything with.

WAIT ONE MOMENT, That sounded perverted after I re-read it....

The 1/4 inch is fantastic! I'd use that for the 5-1-1 for sure. I'd even add in some of the 1/16 to 1/8 bark.

Great to see this use of fresh bark.

Josh

Looks great Bill, start bagging it up little buddy, i'll pay the shipping. Lol

Thanks guys,

Just want to try and make sure I am doing my 5-1-1 right for my nuclears. is the 3/4-1" to big? Should I make it smaller like the 1/4" or 1/2"?

Also, is the 1/2" still to big? I am thinking the 1/2" would be perfect. I am using all 5 Gal containers besides what will go in the ground.

Also, do any of you think this would be good for ground planting as well?

I am doing:
5 parts pure bark
1 park corse Perlite
1 part pure Sphagnum peat
1 Tablespoon per GalDomolitic lime
Osmocote plus slow release fert. How much of this?

As always, Thank for any input.

Bill

Bill, that is some fine looking bark you got there. Good luck.
Bruce

I dunno. I just throw in a handful.

I suppose you would interpret the directions to refer to the entire volume of the mix, even though only 1/7 of it is soil. But maybe not.

This would seem to be a good question to ask of the Osmocote customer support flaks.

Bill,
3/4 - 1 inch is too big. Either process the big pieces smaller, or else use them for mulch in your garden. The 5-1-1 calls for bark that ranges from 1/2 inch down to fine bark dust. The 5-1-1 is a container mix, and I would not use it in-ground if that's what you are asking. At the end of the season, I dump the old 5-1-1 in my garden to improve the soil-texture.

In a 5-gallon container, I typically add 1 Tablespoon of Osmocote.

Josh

Thanks guys,

Brought some more home from work today. Back to sifting. I will make it all 1/2" or less, mostly 1/4" then as that seems the concensious.

Thank you also for the info about the ferts. a Tablespoon of Osmocote to a final mix of a 5 gal containers sounds good to me.

Bill

I use the 4-month Osmocote, which really only lasts about 3 months with the way I water a bark-based mix. To me, a Tablespoon seems a bit on the light side - but I only intend it to be a starter charge for the early vegetative growth, after which I take over fertilization with the liquid (Foliage Pro). If I ran out of fertilizer, I wouldn't hesitate to add more Osmocote later in the season.

Josh