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Brown Sugar vs White Sugar, Millet for IMO3, Herbal Pest Spray

February 11, 2024 · by Drake Weinert

Drake breaks down why brown sugar beats white sugar for KNF solutions: raw sugar (muscovado) keeps its molasses and minerals, white sugar strips them out, and if you can't find brown sugar you can blend white sugar with molasses yourself.

On IMO3, cracked millet works fine as a carbohydrate source even without chickens, and Cecily's plan to run 40 kilos of mill run a week toward a one-acre target is solid since the goal is roughly 1,200 to 1,300 pounds of IMO per acre. Used coffee grounds shouldn't go straight into an IMO pile, but about 10 percent blended into fermented mixed compost works well.

For sandy, ant-ridden soil, Drake walks through the soil foundation recipe (food, cleanser, medicine, structure, protectors, minerals), applied at 1,200 to 1,300 pounds per acre and drenched every seven days for two to four weeks, plus mulch and cover crops to build organic matter.

He also previews his low-cost herbal pest solution: boil a bitter plant that bugs won't eat down to half the water, bottle it hot in small sealed containers so it sterilizes itself, and dilute between 1:100 and 1:1000 with soap before spraying. Earlier he covers market garden basics, recommending IMO between bed turnovers and pointing to Stephen Cornett's Nature's Always Right channel for row-crop examples.

Questions answered

  • 19:49 Any tips for using KNF in a market garden? — Spread IMO between bed turnovers and drench it in when you harrow beds to recondition them for the next planting.
  • 31:35 Do you apply KNF solutions at every growth stage in market gardening? — Spray weekly and alternate through the nutrient cycle, following the book's nine vital solutions and seven prescriptions.
  • 38:39 Does the sugar for making KNF solutions have to be brown sugar? — Brown sugar is best because it keeps the molasses minerals; white sugar works but leaves microbes short on nutrients, so blend white sugar with molasses if brown isn't available.
  • 47:36 I have 50 pounds of raw millet and no chickens. Will it work as a carb for IMO3? — Yes, as long as it's cracked grain, millet works fine and the microbes will digest it uncooked.
  • 51:38 Starting IMO3 with only 40 kilos of mill run a week for one acre, is that enough? — Yes, make batches of 40 kilos at a time and build up, since the target is roughly 1,300 pounds of IMO per acre.
  • 53:14 Would used coffee grounds work well in an IMO pile? — Not alone in the IMO foundation pile, but blend about 10 percent coffee grounds into fermented mixed compost with the right carbon-nitrogen ratio.
  • 54:09 Any tips for building soil foundation on really sandy, poor soil full of ants? — Apply the soil foundation recipe at 1,200 to 1,300 pounds per acre, drench every seven days for two to four weeks, and add mulch and cover crops.
  • 56:55 What is Drake's simple herbal pest solution recipe? — Boil a bitter plant that no bugs eat down to half the water, bottle it hot in small sealed bottles, and it keeps about a week.
  • 1:00:24 How much should the herbal pest spray be diluted? — Dilute between roughly 1:100 and 1:1000 depending on the pest, mix with soap, and spray directly on plants or pests.

Topics: imo3, brown sugar, molasses, millet, coffee grounds, fermented mixed compost, sandy soil, soil foundation, herbal pest solution, market garden

KNF Office Hours is a free live Q&A every Sunday at 9 AM HST. Bring your question to pureknf.org/learn/questions or join live.

In this episode

  1. 0:00 Intro and I Ching: Difficulty at the Beginning
  2. 1:45 Hexagram lesson: patience and the green revolution
  3. 5:08 Member shoutouts and foundation updates
  4. 7:27 Hilo earthquake story
  5. 9:02 Homestead stories: hunting and pig dogs
  6. 10:37 Building an autonomous mower simulator
  7. 16:44 Vision for KNF robots: drones, mowers, sprayers
  8. 17:29 Pure KNF membership and precision GPS network
  9. 19:49 Market gardening with KNF: IMO between bed turnovers
  10. 20:38 Korean demo farm videos: strawberries, perilla, cucumbers
  11. 26:50 Stephen Cornett and Nature's Always Right
  12. 31:35 Nutrient cycle and spray schedule from the book
  13. 38:39 Brown sugar vs white sugar for KNF solutions
  14. 47:36 Millet as an IMO3 carbohydrate source
  15. 51:38 IMO3 batch sizes and application rates
  16. 53:14 Coffee grounds in fermented mixed compost
  17. 54:09 Soil foundation for sandy soil
  18. 56:55 Herbal pest solution recipe preview
  19. 1:03:25 Sign-off and closing

Transcript

Auto-transcribed with Whisper. Click any timestamp to play from there.

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