From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Phoenix, AZ

I am at a loss to what is going on with my stunted growth since I put in all my OM from last year. The OM was from a reputable source but hey anything could have hitched a ride with it.

Is this a good idea to fumigate soil without knowing for sur what the problem is?

I have been able to narrow it down to the new OM put in last year, there is no doubt about it. However, I don't know what the problem is.

Any thoughts?

Ben

7/16/2005 2:34:54 PM

Oz

add hardwood mulch70%, and pile it up in hills and fire them up. wet straw on the piles slows the burn.
HARDWARE CLOTH CHIMNEY/S WILL GET ER UP TO TEMP.

7/16/2005 2:59:47 PM

Cornwall UK.(50N 5W)300ft.

Ben,
What sort of OM was it?
Looking at your diary the only thing I spotted was a soil test result with Sodium higher than Potassium.
I have been told that plants cannot tell the difference between these two and where Sodium is higher will take this up instead of Potassium causing brown leaf edges which you seem to have.

Mark

7/16/2005 3:04:09 PM

Phoenix, AZ

McPumpkin, Unfortunately, burning is not an option here in my rural setting. Thanks for the idea of heating by solarization. Do you think this can kill all pathogens up to 18" down?

Mark, I was told it was a combo of horse manure, sawdust and solids from our local wastewater processing facility. As for the Na vs. K, my plant from just 6 weeks ago when I pulled it had been foliar tested. The test came back with 0.15% Na and 3.8% K so I was just fine. Na is probably not a problem on this planting just 2 months after that foliar test. However, thanks for that idea because I need this things thrown at me in case I have not checked for something.

Can a pathogen stunt growth without showing any additional signs? Well, my Ca was low in the foliar test and I have good CEC ratios with a Ca level of 6000 PPM+.

7/16/2005 4:09:40 PM

Picton,ON (j.vincent@xplornet.ca)

There are nemetodes that can effect most crops. It is possible that there is something in your soil that could be causing the problem, however you should rule out all other possibilitie first.
Fumigation is an effective way of getting rid of soil pathogens with the side benifit of killing the weed seeds.
The down side is you kill all the benificials, worms etc. In essence your soil is dead! You then have to rebuild the benificials.

7/17/2005 8:53:03 AM

Oz

Try turning the piles into hot horse poo piles.
no fire ,,but lots of heat.

You might get the temp up with pipe and water boiler,,
Perhaps with ALOT of solar collector,,,
you might get the soil up to "death temp".

Try a v-8 and alot of pipe! exaust gases are DEADLY!
The gases are heavy and will lay in low spots when the air is "right".

The EARTH is a huge heat sink.
"soil" that does not touch the "ground",ie hills,,
will heat quicker.

7/17/2005 9:31:49 AM

Phoenix, AZ

I have decided to solarize and will start here today. However, if anyone can suggest something for me to use such as Basamid or similar to do the job, please give me a suggestion.

Thank you,
Ben

7/17/2005 12:04:57 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

Ben,

I was away a few days but got your email. Let's slow down & take a better look at this idea.

First, we have no way at all of knowing that you even HAVE a soil borne disease of any kind. To find out, you need to have a fresh sample of an infected plant part analyzed by a plant pathologist at a local cooperative extension office.

Next, after we know what we're dealing with we can make the correct decisions to remediate the problem (if one exists).

Steve

7/17/2005 8:41:17 PM

Phoenix, AZ

Steve,

I will at least call my local lab and see what tests they can run. In the meantime, I am preparing to test heated soil (oven heated) and non heated soil with radishes to see if there truly is a difference.

Ben

7/17/2005 11:06:23 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

Ben,

Keep a window & fans going. The smell of cooking soil is DISGUSTING & lingers.

7/18/2005 5:23:51 AM

Oz

Once you have killed the soil you got to give life to it again.

A toaster oven outside is handy,,,
you can build your own steel box attachment.
warning warning warning warning
(heated coatings on steel can kill ya if they gas into yer nose)

No instant karma in the soil world.
Heating soil might even create bad compounds in the dead soil.
Add worm poop,,worms,peat,,lime,,WATER..
wait.
look for little wooggies running ontop of soil.
Dont eat the mushrooms.

My soil has a huge live fungus living in it.
I saw it at first mornings light.
beautiful...

I dont know what it is but I feed it corn meal...;)

7/18/2005 10:37:40 AM

Phoenix, AZ

Steve,

I am in the process of solarization right now in my patch. You have that right about the smell. IT STINKS! Already I am getting to 93 F down to 12". I guess there is one good thing about living in one of the hottest climates on earth. In addition, I am finding that they say solarization benefits the soil even if there are no pathogens. Interestingly, they do not know why this is the case. Also, they indicate that the good bacteria/fungi do not seem to be killed off as easily as the baddies. Good news. I really did not want to use chemicals in my patch anyway.

What is suggested to innoculate with afterwards? I also plan on putting down a cover crop probably in Sept.

7/18/2005 1:25:21 PM

Western NY

good quality compost tea. see if there's a soilsoup dealer in your area that runs batches of the stuff.

might want to let it cool a tad before inocculating it, though.

7/18/2005 1:48:17 PM

Oz

lol yea ,,run some chilly water in der!

7/18/2005 4:44:58 PM

Oz

hey,,whats ya using for a collector?

7/18/2005 4:45:34 PM

Phoenix, AZ

I am using 2 mil thick clear plastic. Wish I had gone thinner but obviously it will still work.

7/19/2005 9:26:39 AM

Western NY

there's thinner than 2 mil?

7/19/2005 9:41:24 AM

Www.extremepumpkinstore.com

saran wrap....lol

7/19/2005 11:46:30 AM