Nitrogen immobilization-is there any fix besides time?

[mjc]

I'd be less inclined to use Roundup Ready alfalfa simply because it costs more...not to mention the Roundup residue it's likely to saturated with, than any concerns about it's GMO status.

Tree leaves generally are 'safe', too...as long as you don't get them through a community compost operation.

As to beans making their own nitrogen...not exactly. It's a symbiosis with a bacteria. Without the bacteria there is no gleaning of atmospheric nitrogen. Since these were constructed soil beds, it's doubtful that the proper bacteria were present to begin with, so those beans were relying on what was available in the soil.

[squishysquashy]

Hi everyone!
busy season and ADD have gotten the best of me as of late, but I need to update you! My beds are doing MUCH better now. The problem was two-fold, I think. First, bad, overcooked but still unfinished compost causing nitrogen immobilization, and second (and probably the worse problem), was very high pH. I had my soil tested and I didn't even think to do a home pH test because I expected soil created from mostly compost to be closer to neutral. Our native soils are slightly alkaline, but I wasn't using the native soil. My raised beds came back between 7.8 and 8.3. I was shocked. I immediately added sulfur, organic fertilizer with greensand/lava sand for minerals and N, and inoculated the beans next time I planted. Worked wonders! Apparently the bad compost was cooked so hot that there were no beneficial bacteria left for the beans. We're getting good yields now, but my in-ground beds are still better. No more soilless beds unless I have no choice! It's easier to enhance our native soil than to create it from scratch!

Thank you all for your suggestions!

[mjc]

Jun 24, 2017 23:34:04 GMT -5 squishysquashy said:

No more soilless beds unless I have no choice! It's easier to enhance our native soil than to create it from scratch!

Generally, that's true just about everywhere.

[steev]

Soil is soil; if you deal with what you've got, it's mostly easier; the hardest part is knowing what you've got.