BillsBayou
Chumono
Hong Kong kumquats, Japanese Akadama (A), crushed Mexican pottery (M), Nevada zeolite (Z), Oregon pumice (P), Colorado lava rock (L), Alabama haydite (H), Mississippi pine bark (PB), and a Louisiana backyard.
Here’s my lineup of soil blends. Using the abbreviations above:
Top row, groups of three: H/PB, H/Z, M/P/L, Z/P/L, A/P/L
Bottom row groups of four, single ingredients: Z, M, A
Hong Kong kumquats were chosen because they can withstand bare-root repotting in the Summer (and I have plenty of seedlings). All pots were soaked in a bath of Miracle Gro Quick Start transplant solution. I’ll follow up with another drenching of Miracle Gro Quick Start in a week. After that, I’ll be fertilizing weakly weekly.
Goals: See if any groups grow more vigorously than others. See how root ramification differs between groups.
Expectations: My daughter’s dog will knock everything on the ground and I’ll have that stroke I’ve been avoiding.
Note:
- All this test will tell me is how Hong Kong kumquats react to these soil blends. Any inferences I draw will be on me.
- I experimented on this species years ago where I compared soaking solutions of plain water, Miracle Gro Quick Start, and a bottle of snake oil which smells like Flintstone vitamins. All plants were bare-rooted and placed in small bonsai pots. I did this in August thinking the plain water group would show signs of stress. Everything grew great. All I found out was I couldn’t kill this tree.
- Miracle Gro Quick Start has been my “go to” soaking solution for years. I’ll fight anyone who says differently.
- The “haydite/pine bark” blend is part of the test because it has been a workhorse blend in our area for decades.
- Our Mexican Chiminea broke during a storm. Like most cheap Mexican pottery, it breaks easily. It took me two days with a 3-pound hammer to crush it into 5+ gallons of aggregate (Mexidama!) This is a lunatic’s idea. I don’t know the pH, cation exchange capacity, or anything else about what it will do to plants. All I can tell you is that it is very absorbent. While I have included Mexidama in my test, it is not a significant reason for me to run the test.
Here’s my lineup of soil blends. Using the abbreviations above:
Top row, groups of three: H/PB, H/Z, M/P/L, Z/P/L, A/P/L
Bottom row groups of four, single ingredients: Z, M, A
Hong Kong kumquats were chosen because they can withstand bare-root repotting in the Summer (and I have plenty of seedlings). All pots were soaked in a bath of Miracle Gro Quick Start transplant solution. I’ll follow up with another drenching of Miracle Gro Quick Start in a week. After that, I’ll be fertilizing weakly weekly.
Goals: See if any groups grow more vigorously than others. See how root ramification differs between groups.
Expectations: My daughter’s dog will knock everything on the ground and I’ll have that stroke I’ve been avoiding.
Note:
- All this test will tell me is how Hong Kong kumquats react to these soil blends. Any inferences I draw will be on me.
- I experimented on this species years ago where I compared soaking solutions of plain water, Miracle Gro Quick Start, and a bottle of snake oil which smells like Flintstone vitamins. All plants were bare-rooted and placed in small bonsai pots. I did this in August thinking the plain water group would show signs of stress. Everything grew great. All I found out was I couldn’t kill this tree.
- Miracle Gro Quick Start has been my “go to” soaking solution for years. I’ll fight anyone who says differently.
- The “haydite/pine bark” blend is part of the test because it has been a workhorse blend in our area for decades.
- Our Mexican Chiminea broke during a storm. Like most cheap Mexican pottery, it breaks easily. It took me two days with a 3-pound hammer to crush it into 5+ gallons of aggregate (Mexidama!) This is a lunatic’s idea. I don’t know the pH, cation exchange capacity, or anything else about what it will do to plants. All I can tell you is that it is very absorbent. While I have included Mexidama in my test, it is not a significant reason for me to run the test.
