how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?

how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#324515

By Frost -  Wed Oct 31, 2018 3:33 am
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- Wed Oct 31, 2018 3:33 am #324515

i have a question about soil mix ratios.

if i have a mix thats supposed to be 1 part peat, 1 part perlite, 1 part sand how do i measure this out?

for example am i supposed to measure it by weight? so 1 pound of peat, 1 pound perlite, 1 pound sand

or am i supposed to measure it by "cupfuls" so like 1 cup of peat, 1 cup of perlite, 1 cup of sand

thanks for the help

Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#324517

By _-SphagnumFromHell-_ -  Wed Oct 31, 2018 3:55 am
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- Wed Oct 31, 2018 3:55 am #324517

Measure it out by volume, which in this case would be cupfuls. I imagine that due to the difference in weight between perlite and peat would lead to way too much perlite being added

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325494

By Jonnybegood -  Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:01 am
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- Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:01 am #325494

Thanks for the answer bud, what kind of sand is this? Ive owned VFT on and off for yeara due to incliment weather and once the f***ing chickens ate them, can you believe that, recently just got some more since they were eatten and about to pot them once theyve seeded.
Ive never used sand so am curious what sand and what is it for?

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325498

By Doublebass1985 -  Thu Nov 22, 2018 8:20 am
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- Thu Nov 22, 2018 8:20 am #325498

Jonnybegood wrote:Thanks for the answer bud, what kind of sand is this? Ive owned VFT on and off for yeara due to incliment weather and once the f***ing chickens ate them, can you believe that, recently just got some more since they were eatten and about to pot them once theyve seeded.
Ive never used sand so am curious what sand and what is it for?

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Haha dumbass chickens.
I've never used sand either ,but I guess you can use pool filter sand basically you want sand that is made from quartz. I've heard of people using children's play sand however you need to rinse it thoroughly with clean water a few times before adding to your soil. I would just find any quartz sand just so you don't have to worry about any minerals leeching into the roots. Any spa and pool business should carry that I'm not sure if Home Depot and Lowe's does they might.

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325506

By Hungry Plants -  Thu Nov 22, 2018 2:20 pm
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- Thu Nov 22, 2018 2:20 pm #325506

Play sand is bad. It's too fine and will compact and get hard when its wet. Pool filter sand works great and can be had at any poos supply store.

Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325508

By 1cashew -  Thu Nov 22, 2018 4:23 pm
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- Thu Nov 22, 2018 4:23 pm #325508

I like pool filter sand mixed 1:1 with sphagnum peat for my VFTs. I rinse my filter sand until all the cloudiness disappears. This removes the non useful fine sand particles.

Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325510

By riveraXVX -  Thu Nov 22, 2018 5:55 pm
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- Thu Nov 22, 2018 5:55 pm #325510

we don't use any type of scientific or exact measuring in our house, scoop, scoopy, scoopy, hand full hand full handful look at it.. mix it up add more of one or the other till seems decent enough

Re: how to measure for#325511

By _-SphagnumFromHell-_ -  Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:02 pm
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- Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:02 pm #325511

Jonnybegood wrote: Ive never used sand so am curious what sand and what is it for?

Sand acts as a drainage for the media. Peat moss itself is too dense and holds a lot of water, which can reduce the amount of oxygen that gets to the plant's roots. This can lead to rot or at the very least a less healthier plant. Sand adds a little moisture control by loosening up the media and creating small gaps in the soil that air can take up. This lets water flow through better stop it from smothering the roots.

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325512

By bananaman -  Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:12 pm
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- Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:12 pm #325512

If you can’t find nice coarse sand, perlite works well too and is often easy to find.

I just eyeball the measurements.

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325544

By Jonnybegood -  Fri Nov 23, 2018 7:15 pm
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- Fri Nov 23, 2018 7:15 pm #325544

_-SphagnumFromHell-_ wrote:
Jonnybegood wrote: Ive never used sand so am curious what sand and what is it for?
Sand acts as a drainage for the media. Peat moss itself is too dense and holds a lot of water, which can reduce the amount of oxygen that gets to the plant's roots. This can lead to rot or at the very least a less healthier plant. Sand adds a little moisture control by loosening up the media and creating small gaps in the soil that air can take up. This lets water flow through better stop it from smothering the roots.

Isnt this why you use perlite? I would think sand would compact over time under water and dirt

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325545

By Jonnybegood -  Fri Nov 23, 2018 7:17 pm
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- Fri Nov 23, 2018 7:17 pm #325545

bananaman wrote:If you can’t find nice coarse sand, perlite works well too and is often easy to find.

I just eyeball the measurements.

Ive always used perlite and peat and sometimes i layer sphagnum moss in the soil incase i miss a day or so of watering then there is still some moisture in there. Not heard of sand use until the other day tbh

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Re: how to measure for#325600

By _-SphagnumFromHell-_ -  Sat Nov 24, 2018 9:45 pm
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- Sat Nov 24, 2018 9:45 pm #325600

Jonnybegood wrote:Isnt this why you use perlite? I would think sand would compact over time under water and dirt

It can if the sand is fine enough. But like others have said, if the sand grains are course enough it won't compact.

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325608

By Jonnybegood -  Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:33 pm
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- Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:33 pm #325608

_-SphagnumFromHell-_ wrote:
Jonnybegood wrote:Isnt this why you use perlite? I would think sand would compact over time under water and dirt
It can if the sand is fine enough. But like others have said, if the sand grains are course enough it won't compact.

Mmm I dont doubt your experiences, am still concerned itll compact, I work in civil construction and we use TS4 sand which is very coarse sand and that compacts just sitting on the back of a truck over the weekend lol especially if it got wet

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Re: how to measure for "ratios" when mixing soil?#325628

By 1cashew -  Sun Nov 25, 2018 2:37 pm
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- Sun Nov 25, 2018 2:37 pm #325628

The reasons you are using the TS4 sand in construction are the same reasons we use silica sand or quartz sand for our soil media. Sand is very easy to compact to its maximum density. The more uniform the grain size of sand the easier it is to achieve maximum density. The application of vibration or water allows the smaller particles to slip into gaps between the larger particles. The point is no matter how much you vibrate that sand in the back of your truck to compact it or how much water you put on it to achieve maximum density, you can still easily shovel it it right out! The other important point about sand in construction and agriculture is that no matter how much it has been compacted water still moves through it.

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