One for Sifu

[Anthony]

@Adair M

Sifu, something you might have missed -

Akadama -------------------Pumice ------------------------- Volcanic stome
Crushed red brick ------------Aged Compost ----------------Silica based gravel

Properties -

Akadama ------- porous / permeable -------- will crush
Crushed red brick ------- porous / permeable ----------- indistructable

Pumice --------- porous

Volcanic stone ----------- non porous [ maybe has cavities ?]
Silica based gravel ---------- non porous [ has cavities ]

meal seed ------------ used under baskets etc. -------- will compost
aged compost ----------- holds water 20 times it's weight ------- therefore using less
will take the place of the red brick.
Also holds fertilier in solution [ might even bond for later use by roots ]

So do you really believe our soils are so different ?

We can use 90 % silica based sand [ 5 mm ] and 10% aged compost both by
volume.
Because of how much water the aged compost can hold.

The only change you have made is the tea bags. Which will be researchesd

So you see as far as we are concerned, it's 6 of one. 1/2 dozen of the other.

The real difference is our temperature [ our limit is max 93 deg.F for 30 to 10 minutes ]
for May and April, maybe September.
Humidity --------- 40 to 80 % and thus we can use very little organic matter.
No winter --------- growth slows for us by excess rain, excess dry, Christmas time cool.
Sun is more intense, no need for defoliation to make leaves smaller.

So making negatives about your soil would the same as spitting on our soil mix.
Hopes this clarifies.
Your pest of a student.
Anthony

 

[Adair M]

Pumice has surface texture, but it's basicly glass. With interior bubbles of air. It floats.

Silica based gravel is very heavy. Typically, has sharp edges. Rather than round. Round particles are less likely to pack tight. (Think marbles, and the air space in between them.)

The scoria and pumice we use is more rounded.

Your climate has equal length days and nights, all year. Up here, our daylight hours are longer in the summer, and shorter in the summer. So, the JBP evolved in a climate where they can go dormant during the winter. I'm sure they are mightily confused in Trinidad.

 

[Anthony]

Hello Sifu,

@Adair M,

Seems that J.B.pines go dormant by light and not cold. But they do go Lush.

All our lumber Caribbean pines are grown on the deposits of silica based gravel.

5 mm particles and though not perfectly round, works for them and the 30 year olds say high to
Unca Sifu.
Just teasing.

Our next test is 5 mm hand rolled round porous earthenware balls.

Let you know visually how it went.
Remember there is part of you in them, that is why you are to them Unca [ Uncle ] Sifu.
Pleasant talking to you.
Great Day
Anthony

 

[Adair M]

Trees will grow in whstever soil they find themselves in. Some soils are more conducive than others.

Remember, growing in a limited space, such as a pot, is different than growing in the ground.

Also, remember that "optimal conditions" may be different for young trees where we want trunk growth, vs mature trees where we want ramification, short needles and small leaves.

You see soil as something to hold water and store fertilizer. I see it as a medium to grow roots. I can provide water. I can provide fertilizer. If I want continuous fertilizer, the cakes (poo balls) dose a little fertilizer with each watering. If I want to remove fertilizer, taking the poo balls off does the trick. Within 3 waterings, the fertilizer is washed out.

I can't control this when there are organics in the soil.