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- Feb 2, 2014
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I have/had a problem with the yellowing on my brassicas. Some sort of chlorosis, so I got in touch with headfullofbees to see what he had to say about it. He suggested that I go pull up the worst of the affected plants and inspect the root system which I immediately did. Low and behold it had very robust and healthy root system, really big and thick for a plant that has been in the ground for less then 3 weeks. So, I get back back to Bees, tell him about them and attribute these great roots to mycorrhizae of which I always add a very small amount when I water. To my dismay he said that mycorrhizae is not compatible with brassicas. So, being the skeptic I am, I did some online research and found out he is absolutely correct. Then I asked myself why. Why are these roots so big? I did some more online looking and I am sure that I have found the answer and the answer is trichoderma.. It is another beneficial fungi whose favorite growing medium is whole ground cornmeal. The data that I read said that trichoderma attaches itself to the root systems of (young) brassica plants and that these same young plants exude a sugar that the trichoderma feeds on. This fungi protects the young roots from other harmful soil borne fungi AND bacteria. Plus it also helps in the uptake of nutrients almost like mycorrhizae does. And this is, I think, why my brassica had such robust roots. But back to the original problem of yellowing leaves. We are pretty sure it started with the unseasonably cold temps and howling winds we had here last week. But just in case I am going to double up on NPK for a short while.
I thought I would also describe my potting process as it will also help explain why the roots were so big. I always start out with a 5 gallon bucket of mix because I usually pot up a bunch of plants whether they be tomatoes or peppers or whatever that will be transplanted later. I fill a 5 gallon bucket not quite full of a 50/50 mix of potting soil and compost. My potting soil is basically super composted compost, just about the dirt stage and the compost is just my basic 1 year old compost. I dump this into a wheelbarrow and start mixing it up with a shovel. I add in 6 tsp of mycorrhizae and 1 gallon of whole ground corn meal. If I have any left over fertilizer (I usually don't) I will dump in a little of that too. You don't want to put seedlings in a high nutrient environment but I always thought a little wouldn't hurt. I also add about a quart of greensand and really mix it up. I then pot the seedlings up in whatever containers I have. When I a full flat of them potted up I mix 2 oz of liquid seaween per gallon of water and put 2 or 3 gallons in the wheelbarrow. In my small wheelbarrow 3 gallons of water comes up to not quite the top of the flat the seedlings are in and I really soak them. When there is water standing in the seedling containers I take them out and let them drain back into the wheelbarrow. If there is any liquid left after the potting process I dump it into the compost pile. I never water the seedlings from the top down, always from the bottom up unless it rains. I also only water with straight basic compost tea with 2 OZ of molasses added and I can't remember the last time I lost a seedling
I thought I would also describe my potting process as it will also help explain why the roots were so big. I always start out with a 5 gallon bucket of mix because I usually pot up a bunch of plants whether they be tomatoes or peppers or whatever that will be transplanted later. I fill a 5 gallon bucket not quite full of a 50/50 mix of potting soil and compost. My potting soil is basically super composted compost, just about the dirt stage and the compost is just my basic 1 year old compost. I dump this into a wheelbarrow and start mixing it up with a shovel. I add in 6 tsp of mycorrhizae and 1 gallon of whole ground corn meal. If I have any left over fertilizer (I usually don't) I will dump in a little of that too. You don't want to put seedlings in a high nutrient environment but I always thought a little wouldn't hurt. I also add about a quart of greensand and really mix it up. I then pot the seedlings up in whatever containers I have. When I a full flat of them potted up I mix 2 oz of liquid seaween per gallon of water and put 2 or 3 gallons in the wheelbarrow. In my small wheelbarrow 3 gallons of water comes up to not quite the top of the flat the seedlings are in and I really soak them. When there is water standing in the seedling containers I take them out and let them drain back into the wheelbarrow. If there is any liquid left after the potting process I dump it into the compost pile. I never water the seedlings from the top down, always from the bottom up unless it rains. I also only water with straight basic compost tea with 2 OZ of molasses added and I can't remember the last time I lost a seedling