Normally I create my thermophillic compost in November after the dahlia season is done but this year I’m making it in September when the ambient temperatures are warmer. This compost will be used to create my teas and extracts for the 2025 season. High quality compost can help to increase the soil’s microbial diversity and overall microbial population numbers which is critical for soil and plant health. Once the compost has been turned several times and had several months to mature @rootshoot_soils will analyze the compost to determine what microbes are present/absent in the mix. #hotcompost #compost #composting #soilhealthmatters #soilbiology #composttea #compostextract #dahlia #cutflowers #microflowerfarm #portmoodybc
Bokashi in the static compost, Bokashi in the worm bin and now Bokashi in the ground. Bokashi is not a finished product that can be used immediately to grow plants in, but there’s a wide range of fun options for you to finish the decomposition process. Burying Bokashi in the ground has been very successful, decomposition took about 3 weeks. This fall I plan to try another method and use it as an activator in my thermophillic compost. #bokashi #bokashicompost #composting #soilhealth #soilmicrobes #soilbiology #wormcomposting
Dahlias just make me smile 😊 Every year I eagerly await their arrival. You’d think after years of growing them that I would get used to their beauty and diversity but I’m still as captivated by them now, as when I grew them with my Dad. I love being able to share them with the local florists. This order was delivered to @portmoodyflowers #dahlias #dahlia #cutflowers #localflowers #portmoodybc #microflowerfarm #canadianflowersweek #cutflowergardening
I recently came across a strikingly blue sowbug in my worm bin which got me thinking about what caused such a bright blue colour? Are they a different species, maybe a rare genetic mutation or is there something wrong with the sowbug? They’re normally gray to brown in color.
First a little deep dive into their life history. Sow bugs are found throughout gardens, in composting piles, under almost any outdoor object and sometimes in our homes. They love dark, moist, and humid environments and are important decomposers of decaying organic matter. While they appear to be an insect they are actually more closely related to crustaceans e.g. lobsters and are the only crustacean to live on land. Sowbugs breathe through gills which is why they are only found in very moist environments! Females even carry their young on the underside of their abdomen in pouches. They are often mistaken for pillbugs or Roly-Poly’s, which are a different species, and known for their ability to roll into a tiny ball.
The blue colour is caused by the Iridovirus causing light to be reflected off the sowbug’s tissues. Sowbugs with the viral infection are less responsive to light and water stimuli and consume less food. Infected sowbugs typically die within a month. Hypotheses for how sowbugs become infected include wounds, cannibalism of infected sowbugs and consumption of sowbug dung. Source material: Bouchon et al. The Terrestrial Isopod Microbiome (2016). Frontiers in Microbiology, Vol 7.
#compost #wormcastings #composting #soilhealth #soilbiology #soilfoodweb #sowbug #isopod #isopods #flowerfarmer #cutflowers #dahlias #gardeningisfun #portmoody
My first Bokashi compost has finished fermenting in an air tight bucket for almost 4 weeks. Bokashi composting is anaerobic and results in a compost that hasn’t quite yet finished the composting process i.e. you shouldn’t spread it on top of the soil around your plants. To finish the composting process and make it into usable compost you have three options: 1) add the bokashi directly into the soil 2) add the bokashi to a soil factory 3) add the bokashi directly into your compost bin. I’m choosing option three and mixing it into my static compost. By adding it directly into my static compost it will be exposed to lots of aerobic microbes and composting worms which will thoroughly finish the bokashi. As an added bonus this rich high nitrogen bokashi material will act as a compost activator and raise the temperature of my static compost which will increase decomposition process. In my bokashi bucket I also had a lot of leachate, this can be added directly into the static compost. If I had time I could have diluted the liquid with distilled water and added as a fertilizer for my plants. Are you into bokashi composting? #bokashi #composting #compost #soilbiology #soilfoodweb #soilhealthmatters #soilmicrobes #flowerfarmer #farmerflorist #gardening #dahlias #cutflowers #portmoodybc
Cool season annuals are now in the ground! I start my seedlings in soil blocks. After they germinate they are transferred to the garage for a cooler growing environment as my living room is too toasty! It takes about 1 month or so before they are transplanted. This year I’ve transplanted even earlier, so I’ve added a small tunnel with frost cloth and poly to protect the seedlings while they establish.
Everywhere I turn people cringe when they hear my seedlings have been transplanted in such cold temperatures. I often hear “isn’t it too early for planting? Wait until after last frost”. They aren’t wrong, but that type of information applies to warm season annuals. Cool season annuals like snapdragons, statice, yarrow, scabiosa, larkspur all need colder weather so they can develop robust root systems to allow them to thrive during warmer weather. Hope you enjoy the reel 😊 Happy planting everyone! #soilblocks #coolseasonannuals #cutflowergarden #cutflowers #farmerflorist #snapdragons #yarrow #cress #scabiosa #hoophouse #soilhealthmatters #soilhealth #gardening #flowers #flowerfarmer #portmoodyflowers #portmoodybc #microfarm #microfarming
