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Drip Irrigation Rates, Wetting Agents, and pH in KNF

May 19, 2024 · by Drake Weinert

Drake opens with the I Ching hexagram for the week, Preponderance of the Great, then gives a shoutout to member Stephen Cornett's recent Ask Me Anything session and previews June's guest, Yarrow Gorrit.

Most of the hour covers application method and rate. Spraying KNF solutions on leaves works on a 7 to 11 day cycle; drip irrigation or root drenching needs about four times the concentration because roots have to pull nutrients up through the plant instead of leaves absorbing them directly. Master Cho's rule of thumb is 25 gallons per acre for spraying versus 100 gallons per acre for drenching through the roots. Drake also describes planting cassava around piles of fish and wood chips with IMO, letting the tubers grow around the pile instead of feeding the crop directly with sprays.

On hydrophobic leaves like brassicas and taro, Drake explains that a wetting agent such as Dr. Bronner's soap breaks surface tension so sprays stick, but says he finds diminishing returns from adding soap to natural farming solutions since spraying the leaf undersides works well enough on its own. On pH, he says the biology around plant roots manages pH locally, so building soil biology and organic matter matters more than chasing a pH number. He also draws out the relationship between JADAM and Master Cho's methods, calling JADAM a cheaper, easier entry point and KNF the umbrella that contains it.

Gear questions round out the show: Drake recommends a Maruyama MS75E hose-and-gun setup over carrying a backpack sprayer, or a trombone sprayer for reaching tall tree canopies. He also covers making soft water for spraying, building solid LAB by mixing about a gallon of LAB into a fifty gallon barrel of rice bran for chicken feed, and closes by reading Master Cho's recipe for killing slugs and snails: three liters of soap and 1.5 kilos of caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) per 500 liters of water, handled with heavy protective gear.

Questions answered

  • 17:29 Does drip irrigation give the same results as spraying KNF solutions on cassava? — Drip works but needs about four times the concentration since roots must transport nutrients up instead of leaves absorbing them directly; the normal spray cycle is every 7 to 11 days.
  • 20:43 What are the standard KNF application rates per acre? — Master Cho recommends 25 gallons per acre when spraying and 100 gallons per acre when drenching through the roots.
  • 23:02 How does Drake grow cassava with KNF? — He piles fish, wood chips, and IMO on the ground and plants cassava around each pile instead of spraying it directly; the tubers grow huge and the soil comes alive.
  • 24:17 Brassica leaves shed sprays like water off a duck; what fixes that? — Add a wetting agent like Dr. Bronner's soap to break surface tension, or spray the leaf undersides where absorption is better; roots need a higher dose too.
  • 29:50 How do I convince my landlord my yard isn't a mess? — Either change the landlord's mind or match their expectations; KNF works fine in tidy rows, permaculture chaos isn't required.
  • 33:39 Does pH matter when using KNF methods? — The biology around plant roots manages pH locally, so build soil biology and organic matter instead of chasing a target pH number.
  • 39:34 How does JADAM compare to Master Cho's solutions, and can you mix them? — JADAM is a cheap, easy entry point; KNF is the umbrella that includes JADAM, and Master Cho's solutions are a level above but harder to make and apply correctly.
  • 42:18 Are electrostatic sprayers worth using? — No, skip them and use a hose-and-gun sprayer like the Maruyama MS75E instead of carrying water on your back.
  • 44:29 Does reverse osmosis water hurt spray solutions? — RO water is fine; what matters is using soft water instead of hard water, with a water softener if needed.
  • 48:48 How do you make solid LAB from rice bran for chicken feed? — Fill a barrel with rice bran, add about a gallon of LAB per 50 gallon barrel, and seal it; the LAB grows through the bran like a Bokashi.
  • 51:09 Could KNF scale to 3,500 acres in South Carolina? — Yes, KNF scales; Drake suggests getting hands-on training first at that size.
  • 58:53 Does spray PSI or pressure harm soil biology? — Impact matters more than pressure; a fine mist that lands softly is fine, citing Elaine Ingham's research.
  • 1:05:41 How do you kill slugs and snails with Master Cho's recipe? — Mix 3 liters of soap and 1.5 kilos of caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) into 500 liters of water, handled with heavy protective gear; balancing soil microbes first avoids the problem.

Topics: lab, drip irrigation, wetting agent, ph, jadam, sprayer, soft water, rice bran, slugs and snails, cassava, sodium hydroxide, brassicas

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
  2. 4:07 I Ching: Preponderance of the Great
  3. 7:31 Member update: Stephen Cornett AMA replay
  4. 17:29 Drip irrigation vs spraying KNF solutions
  5. 20:43 Application rates: 25 vs 100 gallons per acre
  6. 23:02 Growing cassava with fish and wood chip piles
  7. 24:17 Wetting agents for hydrophobic brassica leaves
  8. 29:50 Convincing a landlord your yard isn't a mess
  9. 33:39 Does pH matter in KNF
  10. 39:34 JADAM vs Master Cho's solutions
  11. 42:18 Sprayer gear: skip electrostatic, use Maruyama MS75E
  12. 44:29 Soft water vs RO vs hard water
  13. 48:48 Solid LAB from rice bran for chicken feed
  14. 51:09 Scaling KNF to 3,500 acres
  15. 58:53 Spray pressure (PSI) and soil biology
  16. 1:00:17 Trombone sprayer for tall tree canopies
  17. 1:05:41 Master Cho's recipe: killing slugs and snails
  18. 1:11:20 Closing and sign-off

Transcript

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

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