Soil Blocks: How We Make Mini's
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- čas přidán 1. 02. 2020
- Hi Folks! Our methods for making mini-block soil blocks has changed over the years. So we wanted to give you all an update on how we now do things and why we do the steps in the process that we do. Much has been recorded on CZcams about making soil blocks and their are many successful ways to approach this hopefully there are a few nuggets here for all to gain!
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This video was very informative to a new soil block convert. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for the video. Very good info.
This whole video was very informative. I made notes of your suggestions and you have given me the courage to try mini-blocking. Thank you.
Hi @Texie Cole We definitely love the mini blocks and start the vast majority of our flowers in them.😀
thank you for taking time and explaining on how to keep the mini blocks moist
Your more than welcome @efoster11
Thanks. Very informative. I enjoy all your videos.
Thanks for watching @aly mccage
Thank you so much for this very informative and may i say, heart-warming video.. Little things about the video showed me that this is a very supportive people centered operation.
You are so welcome!😀 Thanks for the kind words.
We want to see you up block into the next size. Love soil blocks, makes me feel like spring is almost here. Great channel, keep the vids coming.
You guys are awesome!!! 🌸thanks for all the info!
Aww, thank you so much for watching and the great comment. Hope our info is helpful.
grazie molto utile il vostro servizio. Tanta salute e buon lavoro dall'Italia (Piemonte)
Very Helpful! Thank you!
Thank you for your comment and for watching. Hope the video helps.
Super content folks! I’m new to all of this and the information and direction you’re providing is invaluable! I just subscribed and look forward to more of your videos!
Awesome! Thank you!
Wao.. really amazing information. So good job. Impressive techs.
Glad you liked it!
Just want to say that you guys do a great job. I really get a lot out of your videos.
We appreciate your comment. We are always hoping that the videos are helpful. Thanks for watching
This is a great channel. I use my used cappucino coffee cup and then pop the bottom ....
Great info thank you
Thank you so much for watching and your kind words!
Good info, too meandering.
I love the biochar and rock dusts in my mix as well
Hi @Kyle Wilson, I think activated biochar and the rock dusts in the longer term benefit the seedling once in the ground or at the bump up stage.
This is the year!
Wishing you a great year of soil blocking. Health and good cheer to the new year!
@@BareMtnFarm many blessings!
A million thanks for sharing your methods and supplies! I’d love to see a tour of your greenhouse and set up. I also work in a very small space but I have an unheated hoop house with no electricity. I’m ready to scale up!
Hi @Melissa Schnieders Thanks for the kind words! Our greenhouse is quite small: 8' wide by 12' deep. We may indeed show what we have in a future video!
@@BareMtnFarm Please do! I'd love to see too!
Thanks, great to know about the promix. I use that brand in my plastic trays as i can get it from my local Amish nursery supply place. I have avoided the soil blocks not really having time to make my own mix.
Hi @Shannon's Rural Refuge be sure to add a little extra plug grade fine perlite to the promix B grade too.
Define perfect ..lol... there is a learning curve to making the compression right on the cube if u ask me...
Yes! @Sislertx When I first started I thought they had to be perfect in size, uniformly. Now I just slam them out, seems the seeds didn't respect perfection!😉
Many thanks. I've used soil blocks for several years, but I learned from you anyway. The best tip was the capillary mats for watering as now I won't spend half days at the task. The mats provide the perfect way to handle watering indoors.
Glad it was helpful!😀
Do you only have to water your seed blocks once before they germinate? (just reading the comments below). Also, how does using a heat mat work with so many trays stacked together?
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I am doing my soil blocks right after all. HOW do you wet/moisten the capillary mat? Do you water it or remove and saturate it and then wring it out? Thanks again!
Hi @jj The capillary mat is moistened with water in the tray until saturated. If there is any standing water not absorbed by the mat we will pour that out. We don't wring the mat out at all but leave it saturated. To water after seedling germinate we lift the 1020 tray with the mini blocks out of the solid tray and resaturate the capillary mat again. This keeps all watering of the mini blocks being done from underneath thus not disturbing the integrity of the blocks.
Hello, fantastic video, thank you. When you wet your capillary mat after this first planting and blocking do you pull the tray off with the soil blocks and wet the mat or do you just water around? I've watered around in the past but found some of my blocks fell apart. Also how would you recommend to layer your trays if you were using a heat mat?
Hi @Melissa Kurtz The capillary mat is moistened with water in the tray until saturated. If there is any standing water not absorbed by the mat we will pour that out. We don't wring the mat out at all but leave it saturated. To water after seedlings germinate we lift the 1020 tray with the mini blocks out of the solid tray and resaturate the capillary mat again. This keeps all watering of the mini blocks being done from underneath thus not disturbing the integrity of the blocks.
Thanks so much for sharing! I heard you mention something about lime but didn't catch it. Also, when a seed needs covered how do you do that with the soil blocks?
Hi @Heidi85 We use ground eggshells which are about 96% calcium carbonate or Lime. To cover mini blocks we use a very fine grind vermiculite to lightly cover the blocks.
Would like to see, how you actually put the seeds in the blocks.
We have plans to show our next phase of planting soon!
By the video's thumbnail picture I could have sworn it was Ayatolah Komeini cultivating some plants.
Enjoyed watching, thanks! On the worm casting tea, why do you strain it? Could you just mix the 3 Tbs, let it sit for awhile then pour into the mix?
Hi @Skip Kemp Interestingly what we have found is that sometimes there are worm eggs or small worms still in the castings so we use the mesh bag to strain them out as well as anything over size that might mess up the blocker.
Would it be possible to have the actual formula for the mini block typed out here so one would know exactly the correct mix? Than one would be able to use their container for the peat/perolite and what cups to use for the nutrients addition for the mini blocks.
I do thank you both for sharing this video....thanks!
What makes the block hold together rather than fall apart ?
Another excellant video !!!
you two are so cute ... where is your farm located ?
Do you make your worm castings or buy them ?
Can you make a video showing the bumping of the small blocks up to bigger blocks please ?
Do you let the small blocks dry a bit tolift them out ?
Deb
Hi @Deb D We are in Western Oregon USA zone 8b. We do make our own worm castings and use them basically for making soil blocks and for transplants. we have found making our own results in a higher quality. We do lwt the blocks dry a little before transplant. Moist seems to be about right. Thanks for the idea on a future video!
Would it be better to mix the castings into the mix? Do you see a difference in block integrity?
Came here to ask this! I have seen recommended up to 20% castings for the minis, then switching to traditional compost (plus fertilizer if desired) for potting up.
where do you get the small soil block maker from? I can only find the bigger 2" soil block maker. Thanks.
How do you cover the seeds after you put them in the blocks?
Sorry, off-topic question: What are those connectors on your lumber/framing? Does that come in a kit for a build? How do you like the lumber as opposed to traditional metal framing?
H @Jason Paul Our greenhouse was a kit from a company called Solexx in salem Oregon. This greenhouse kit was discontinued in favor of their new models using round PVC pipe. So unfortunately the wood frame version we have is no longer available.
source for capillary mat in a large roll? how do you keep the mat moist?
great video work! enjoyed seeing both of you in front of the camera
Hi @Amy Crawford The mat is purchased from Farmtek.com and comes in a 4' x 100' roll he capillary mat is moistened with water in the tray until saturated. If there is any standing water not absorbed by the mat we will pour that out. We don't wring the mat out at all but leave it saturated. To water after seedling germinate we lift the 1020 tray with the mini blocks out of the solid tray and resaturate the capillary mat again. This keeps all watering of the mini blocks being done from underneath thus not disturbing the integrity of the blocks.
@@BareMtnFarm I was wondering if plain ol' cotton flannel might work, as well. Could be washed and used again. Any thoughts?
Shoot, you guys are cutting edges here in the most unpretentious ways. I adore your methods. I am about to start my stock, dianthus and delphiniums. I left a question on the delphinium video yesterday regarding heat for germination. Do you guys put your cold hardy on heat mats, or do you just keep them in the house in ambient temperature with the humidity domes on. I am reluctant to put these particular seeds on the mats. Would love any feedback you could share! Thank you so much from Canada :)
Oops, so sorry I missed your question. Yes, we put our delphinum on a heat mat. We set the temperature very low, at about 68 - 70 degrees. We also keep an eye on them for drying out. Don't over water. Takes a few weeks. Thank you so much for watching and supporting our channel.
@@BareMtnFarm Ok thank you, that's great to know. I have them set at the right temp. So love learning from you two. Just super grateful. Take care for now
GREAT great videos, new to this soil block. I am doing some experimenting trying to figure out what to do for next year.
What are your thoughts for using the mini blocks for bell peppers and hot peppers. They can be a pain to germinate.
Thanks, new subscriber!
RG
Hi @R G we have used the mini blocks for tomato and peppers. we just bump them up at the first set of true leaves. The mini's do save space and soil mix. Thanks for Subscribing!
@@BareMtnFarm thanks Bare Mtn
Do you place the mini block under lights and place them on top of the heat mats?
Yes, we do both as needed for the seed to germinate. Thank you for your question.
The Pro-Mix you use is it B Grade or BX grade. I cannot locate the B grade only the BX grade for your base of the MINI formula? On line Pro-Mix seems to have the BX and HP, HPCC and Premium only, no B.
Also I am confused when you add the bio char mixture. What is the amounts of each ingredients and the container size you use for each? How would one activate a small amount of bio char?
I have used B grade which in my area is rarely available, so instead its been primarily BX. So I stay away from the mixes that are heavy in vermiculite. I add biochar to the level where its is about 5% of the mix. The char needs to be screened down by using a 1/8" screen so no large chunks are added to jam up the blocker. You can activate biochar by taking a 1-5 gallon nursery pot to hold the biochar. Then mix 2 cups per 5 gallons of char of cheap wheat flour or use about 5% by volume of fresh cut grass. Then drench the mixture in a compost tea extract till it runs through the bottom of the pot. Then, cover the char pot and set it aside for a couple of weeks. If temps are cool below 60F use 3-4 weeks.
Reusing what you have around the house is always best. But if you want tp spend maybe $3.00 you can buy a 10ft section of 2.5-3.0 diameter pvc and make a whole bunch of blocks. Maybe connect them together with screws and make multiples at one time.
brilliant -God bless you!
Excellent! Innovate and Improvise, also known as work the problem, well done!
Do you bump up any varieties of your flowers into larger blocks or cell trays?
Hi @icecreamfever123 we bump most all our small seeded varieties started in the mini blocks. Larger flower seeded plant like lupins, sunflowers etc are started in large cell trays typical size would be 72 per tray
@@BareMtnFarm Thank you, Great Channel!
Where do u get the "capulary mat". Is it just a natural material such as a.felt material
@Sislertx The capillary mat is sold in 4' wide by 100' rolls by a company called FarmTek.com A roll goes for about $110 and will do a lot of trays. The material is a spun bonded polyester of type that is rot resistant and is very efficient at wicking water.
One of those sham-wow or car wash cloths would also do the trick
newspaper works amazingly well. A university research station studied the alternatives and concluded that newspaper worked as well as anything else. For best air pruning (on larger blocks) a capillary mat is not needed. Would love to know more about the grow light setup, looks interesting (like everything else on this channel).
I truly enjoyed your video! I like that you are just plain people like us. It's not like you are reading a script, more like if I stopped by your place and you welcome me in, and explain what you are doing, and answering the questions I undoubtedly would have asked! :) Thanks for doing a warm show! ...I do have a question, ...Do you make the bigger blocks also, and put the little ones into the big ones? I have looked up the block makers, and not sure which ones would suit me better, since I am still starting out, and haven't even built my greenhouse yet.
Hi @sistermaide Thanks for the kind words. we have used the 2" blocks for bump ups on the 3/4" minis. We have also used just plain ol nursery plant six-packs for bumps too. Both work well.
Doesn’t using so many trays inside one another defeat the purpose of getting air to the blocks so the roots are air pruned?
Hi @Michelle Umrysz You raise a great question. For us with the mini blocks our number one challenge is keeping them consistently moist so the seeds germinate well and can not be stressed at a young age. We typically transplant up to either a 2" block or a cellular tray very early. We don't raise our seedlings that long in the mini block such that roots are growing out the bottom requiring air pruning like in a 2" block.
probably not an easy question to answer so don't worry about it but do you think it's worth going down the ''soil block road' for someone who grows a small amount every year just to have the pleasure of sometimes eating your own produce? Don't laugh. I grow maybe 100 or so onions per year, maybe a hundred lettuce and enough assorted vegetables to keep our small family eating home grown for maybe 2-3 months. I'm fascinated by the concept but not sure if it's worth doing on a small scale..
You always interrupt this lady’s speaking and this is annoys me