Diatomaceous Earth Warzone ; Protect your veg
Posted: Sun Apr 25, 2021 10:39 am
Oh hey there -
I sneezed this morning and a cloud of Diatomaceous Earth came out of my face and I thought... I should make a thread about this shit! I use it like a religion. Most of you are probably familiar with DE. But I make this like you don't know and also I will share how I use it in particular.
1) A graveyard of Diatomaceous Earth goes into my soil. Not much - by a graveyard I mean just a top coating into initial mixing. Thin enough to see some soil through. I mix it in really well as it acts as soil conditioner and also I notice roots like it a lot. I only mix a small amount into the initial blend because throughout the life of the container I will add it to the top soil every so often. When DE settles in it will create a mucky crust that may seem non-beneficial but it actually makes watering much more even and the drainage will be just as good; only slower.
2) I drop a Diatomaceous Earth bomb once a month on my plants. Cover them bitches like they have a bad habit. If I see bugs it will increase in frequency. Shaking off the residual and sweeping it into cracks and crevices around my veg. If it's low humidity and hot let's make it really low humidity so the bugs die. Higher humidity DE won't be as effective and may clump. I let this stand for a few days and then I will brush the leaves like the ladies are getting their nails done. A lot of work? Sure. But have you won a war against the borg?
What is Diatomaceous Earth? Here's from Wiki:
Diatomaceous earth, diatomite or kieselgur/kieselguhr is a naturally occurring, soft, siliceous sedimentary rock that has been crumbled into a fine white to off-white powder. It has a particle size ranging from less than 3 μm to more than 1 mm, but typically 10 to 200 μm. Depending on the granularity, this powder can have an abrasive feel, similar to pumice powder, and has a low density as a result of its high porosity. The typical chemical composition of oven-dried diatomaceous earth is 80–90% silica, with 2–4% alumina (attributed mostly to clay minerals) and 0.5–2% iron oxide.
Yes would you look at that - Nutritiously viscous! Most of the bigger soil companies that have 'wetting agents' are actually utilizing the magic of DE. Wait? So you mean Promix HP (high posterity) has DE? I have no clue lol.
It's great stuff for the plants nutritious wise, water wise and It's like pests have to mosh through a pit of skulls and bones!
Lot's of people think it looks funny and that my plants are infected but it's quite the opposite - especially after you give the ladies a nice spray down; the DE will leave what looks like PM or really hard water spots. But that's why they make fine horse hair paint brushes! After it dries to a dust you can brush it right off; leaving a thin layer of dust that 'possibly' shields the plant.
Mind you - DE isn't an instant kill. Nor a guaranteed one... It does take some skill but regardless if you use it technically or just chuck it all over it lets the pests know you're always ready to wipe their bloodline 
Maybe wear a mask - so you don't have to sneeze it like me
I sneezed this morning and a cloud of Diatomaceous Earth came out of my face and I thought... I should make a thread about this shit! I use it like a religion. Most of you are probably familiar with DE. But I make this like you don't know and also I will share how I use it in particular.
1) A graveyard of Diatomaceous Earth goes into my soil. Not much - by a graveyard I mean just a top coating into initial mixing. Thin enough to see some soil through. I mix it in really well as it acts as soil conditioner and also I notice roots like it a lot. I only mix a small amount into the initial blend because throughout the life of the container I will add it to the top soil every so often. When DE settles in it will create a mucky crust that may seem non-beneficial but it actually makes watering much more even and the drainage will be just as good; only slower.
2) I drop a Diatomaceous Earth bomb once a month on my plants. Cover them bitches like they have a bad habit. If I see bugs it will increase in frequency. Shaking off the residual and sweeping it into cracks and crevices around my veg. If it's low humidity and hot let's make it really low humidity so the bugs die. Higher humidity DE won't be as effective and may clump. I let this stand for a few days and then I will brush the leaves like the ladies are getting their nails done. A lot of work? Sure. But have you won a war against the borg?
Diatomaceous earth, diatomite or kieselgur/kieselguhr is a naturally occurring, soft, siliceous sedimentary rock that has been crumbled into a fine white to off-white powder. It has a particle size ranging from less than 3 μm to more than 1 mm, but typically 10 to 200 μm. Depending on the granularity, this powder can have an abrasive feel, similar to pumice powder, and has a low density as a result of its high porosity. The typical chemical composition of oven-dried diatomaceous earth is 80–90% silica, with 2–4% alumina (attributed mostly to clay minerals) and 0.5–2% iron oxide.
Yes would you look at that - Nutritiously viscous! Most of the bigger soil companies that have 'wetting agents' are actually utilizing the magic of DE. Wait? So you mean Promix HP (high posterity) has DE? I have no clue lol.
It's great stuff for the plants nutritious wise, water wise and It's like pests have to mosh through a pit of skulls and bones!
Lot's of people think it looks funny and that my plants are infected but it's quite the opposite - especially after you give the ladies a nice spray down; the DE will leave what looks like PM or really hard water spots. But that's why they make fine horse hair paint brushes! After it dries to a dust you can brush it right off; leaving a thin layer of dust that 'possibly' shields the plant.
Maybe wear a mask - so you don't have to sneeze it like me