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Cucumber Beetle Armor, No-Smell Chicken Coop, Biochar for Dry Soil

May 15, 2022 · by Drake Weinert

Drake opens with the I Ching hexagram for Enthusiasm, then works through a backlog of emailed questions. A JADAM solution that shows no drench effect on a first spray is fine — dilute it further, even 10:1, to stretch coverage. Indoor IMO collection at 50°F is too cold; bury leaf mold at least 20cm and insulate. For cucumber beetles boring into fruit, spray structure (calcium phosphate) and reproduction (charred eggshell calcium) to harden the skin.

For IMO3/4, dog food and wood chips work as a mill-run substitute, a thin pile keeps temperatures under control, and wood chips inoculated with IMO3 or IMO4 plus lactobacillus and maintenance make a no-smell chicken coop — Drake used this setup for Cornish cross meat birds. Fermented plant juice lasts about a year from growth tips, up to three years from fruit.

On weeds: spraying microbes won't kill them directly, but building up fungus relative to bacteria slows the soil's nitrogen cycle, which favors trees and perennials over fast-cycling weeds — a shift that takes a season or two. Citrus greening in Florida traces partly to manganese deficiency, but restoring root-fungus symbiosis matters more than adding minerals alone.

For dry, windy conditions, inoculated biochar (real charred wood, not briquettes) holds moisture in the soil. Drake also covers OHN substitutes (garlic and ginger for angelica and licorice), warns against feeding JMS to pigs, and shares a University of Hawaiʻi paper identifying IMO bacteria species like Bacillus subtilis.

Questions answered

  • 8:13 1000L ultra-low-cost JADAM solution sprayed with no drench effect—problem? — Not a problem on a first drench; dilute the batch further, even 10:1, to cover more ground and help it soak in.
  • 11:19 Day 14 IMO collection outdoors at 50°F/10°C, no white growth, some mold, bugs got in—abort? — Follow the indoor IMO method instead, bury the leaf mold at least 20cm, and insulate; 50°F outside is too chilly.
  • 12:43 What dilution of maintenance solution replaces morning coffee? — A spoonful of maintenance plus a spoonful of reproduction (calcium), diluted to taste in water.
  • 17:02 Second IMO3 batch using dog food and wood chips, thin pile—on the right track? — Yes, dog food's fats, oils, and mill run give the microbes enough energy to thrive; keeping the pile thin controls temperature.
  • 20:56 What IPM do you use for cucumber beetles boring into cucumbers? — Spray structure (calcium phosphate) and reproduction (calcium) to harden the fruit skin so beetles can't bite through.
  • 31:49 What's the ideal carbohydrate for making IMO3/4? — Mill run, the bran left from milling white rice, gives the right balance of fats, oils, and carbs; dog food works as a substitute.
  • 34:05 Do you char eggshells for reproduction indoors? — Bake them in the oven at about 350°F instead of charring them outdoors.
  • 34:50 Can wood chips make a no-smell chicken coop? — Lay 3-4 inches of wood chips, inoculate with IMO3 or IMO4, then spray lactobacillus and maintenance on top.
  • 36:26 Will spraying cheap microbes kill unwanted weeds? — Not directly, but building fungus-heavy biology slows the nitrogen cycle so weeds lose their edge over trees and perennials.
  • 44:40 Is manganese deficiency causing citrus greening? — Partly, but restoring soil microbes matters more since chemical fertilizer kills the root-fungus symbiosis that finds manganese for the tree.
  • 46:54 How long does a can of food (fermented plant juice) last in storage? — About a year if made from growth tips, up to three years if made from fruit.
  • 49:45 Worried about nitrogen and mineral balance—what should I add? — Use KNF minerals, diluted seawater, for every element, then let good biology balance the rest.
  • 52:56 How do you plant in dry, windy conditions with low rainfall? — Add big chunks of real charred wood biochar inoculated with IMOs to hold moisture, plus wood chip mulch.
  • 53:45 Angelica and licorice won't grow here for OHN—substitutes? — Use garlic and ginger, the way it's done in the Philippines; don't let a missing ingredient stop you from starting.
  • 1:04:23 Can I feed JMS to pigs? — No; feed pig food fermented with IMO4 and KNF protectors instead.

Topics: imo, jadam, fpj, ohn, structure, reproduction, cucumber beetle, biochar, chicken coop, citrus greening, biological succession, manganese

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 welcome
  2. 1:19 I Ching reading: hexagram 16, Enthusiasm
  3. 8:13 JADAM solution dilution and no drench effect
  4. 11:19 Collecting IMO outdoors at 50°F vs indoor seedIMO
  5. 12:43 Goat and human maintenance drink; calcium for teeth
  6. 17:02 Dog food and wood chips as IMO3 substrate
  7. 20:56 Cucumber beetles: structure and reproduction sprays
  8. 23:19 Mint: FPJ, JHS, or OHN
  9. 30:59 Epigenetics and DNA
  10. 31:49 Ideal carbohydrate ratio for IMO3/4
  11. 34:05 Charring eggshells indoors for reproduction
  12. 34:50 No-smell chicken coop with wood chips
  13. 36:26 Do cheap microbes kill weeds? Biological succession
  14. 44:40 Manganese deficiency and citrus greening
  15. 46:54 How long fermented plant juice lasts in storage
  16. 48:29 Liebig, chemistry vs biology, mineral balancing
  17. 52:56 Planting in dry, windy conditions with biochar
  18. 59:33 Research paper on IMO bacteria species
  19. 1:05:04 Closing: donations, books, next episode

Transcript

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