After watching your video & weighing all my options, I opted to bake my screened, unfertilized topsoil in covererd aluminium foil baking pans in a conventional oven at around, but no more than, 180°F for 30 minutes, monitoring carefully with a digital baking thermometer. I'm a week into the growing process, but so far, so good, & I feel confident.
@@alvinbratz2423, sure do...hundreds. 11 different strains, 7 of which were started from seed. It's a slow process, but so far, things are going great.
Hey you make great videos, keep going ! :) I watched your other videos which showed how you can grow San Pedro from seeds without sterilizing the soil first, i tried it with my Bridgesii seeds and two days ago they started to come out ! :)
@@sanpedromastery6262 Hello, today i looked inside the box where they grow and i found a small spot with what seems to be mold, what can i do ? Should i transplant them into a new box ?
@@dkd0m23 First off, let’s say the roots of freshly born seedlings may look like mold spots for the newbies (I’m not saying that for you, but it might be useful for other people). There are different kinds of mold. One in particular is a mass murderer. That dangerous kind of mold looks a little bit like a spider web. If that’s what you have, I recommend you seek advice on specialist cactus forums. What I personally do it cut it out in its early stage, scooping out the whole soil around it with a large spoon, and disposing of it. Most of the times I’ve had this kind of mold, it ended up killing the rest of the plants on that tray. You can send me a photo by email if you want, I will take a look at it and let you know if that is the “evil” kind of mold. Also, you should not transplant them so young, they would die. It's better to try to to remove the mold. Good luck.
What do you mean when you say that Perlite doesn't tolerate temperature? It's volcanic rock used in making refractory cement. Real perlite handles extreme temperatures for long duration.
No sweat. You're welcome.. It should probably be added that "Perlite" is the puffed stone, BUT some places sell a foam product and call it perlite... That wouldn't handle heat well so that's probably what you experienced in the past. 🤙
Did you change your mind on using worm castings? In this video you mention using soil without fertilizer and no worm castings.. but in one of your other videos you mention using 1 part castings in your seedling mix. What do you find to be better?
What about using a autoclave-able plastic bags for pressure cooking the soil? You would be able to cook more soil at a time and reuse the bags, or maybe use a pillow case, and then squeeze the remaining water afterwards. Thoughts?
My microwave is 1000w and i have ziploc bags however idk how i would take the temp of the soil after 1min30seconds without sticking my whole arm in the bag to take the temp, wouldn't that make it less safe since i would need to open the bag enough for my arm to go in the bag to temp it? I definitely don't want mold or bugs. I live in a very old dusty house. Also would you say worm castings are good for a seedling soil blend with perlite and regular cactus/succulent soil?
No, this is fine. "You should not worry about it", lol. Sterilizing soil for seedlings doesn't call for the same hygiene discipline as sterilizing medium for mushrooms.
Could you use screened peat and perlite? Or would that be too acidic? Potting soil here in the states I have found to be terrible, It has all kinds of additives and fake fertilizer’s. Thanks Jerry
Do you subscribe to the methods of Trout’s Notes? I’m reading his book about cultivation and your methods seem rather similar, though it seems that he is more particular with the soil mixes.
I must admit I have never read any cactus cultivation book, and that includes the one from Trout. So I have no opinion on his methods. I had heard of his name on the internet, but that’s it, I must admit! I originally got most of my information from my mentor Francis, who has been collecting these plants on the French riviera since the 1940s (and he’s still passionately caring for them to this day!), followed by a lot of trial and error.
…mam fr research work thiz is imp to steralize soil … particularly u get that results… if im growing edible fungi only… i have to steralize so that other weeds r toxic fungus r bacteria would’nt grow…. natural selection is far away from the research
Help please!!! I am a newbie I live in the foothills of North Carolina USA 4 equal seasons. I presently own 23 different cacti the variety of cactus some I have are "Echinocereus Enneacanthus /Lobivia Schieleana Quiabayensis / Parodia Tredecimcostata / Notocactus / /Parodia aculta / Rebutia Flavistyla / Echinopsis Subdenudaa / Mammillaria Perbella. (I only buy the ones that flower). I have had a perfect spring and summer (outdoors) much fruit many flowers I am enjoying myself immensely BUT, BUT! To say I am confused on the right way the best way to care for cacti is a understatement because there are so many different opinions on UA-cam. As an example of what I mean some say during the winter to water once a month another once every six weeks another once every two months or still another not to water at all for four months total....... Can someone recommend the number 1 book for beginners growing cacti the bible of the kind of species cacti I own I am growing? Please and thank you, Thank you very much.
I have heard of someone using vermiculite for starting peyote from seeds, though I don't know the exact details. Generally speaking, vermiculite retains too much water for adult cacti, but maybe it is OK for the germinating stage? Not sure... If you decide to try, let us know how it worked out for you.
No. Vermiculite holds way too much water. If you cannot get perlite, you can use shredded styrofoam (that's what I use). Plus, it can be microwaved. Just moisten the soil first.
@@sanpedromastery6262 Yeah, I wish I could remember where I heard about it, but it's been a long time. When I make some up I use a cheese grater and hold it down inside a large cardboard box, because as I am sure you can imagine it will make quite the mess lol. I just moisten the soil mix to the point of what is needed for starting the seeds and then microwave, stir, microwave again. Time depends on quantity, but as I do small batches it's usually 1:30 minutes per microwaving time. Perlite is easy to get here in the states, but it seems in some parts of the world it can be hard to find. Plus, it is like recycling :) LOVE your channel!
@@backwoodsbrewer Great for the environment yeah shredded plastic woo-hoo murica! What are you going to do with that soil when it's exhausted? Recycling? You couldn't exactly separate it later. Terrible idea.
I'm not sure why they felt the need to change classification. For the san pedro fans, it will remain Trichocereus Pachanoi. Most cactus collectors do not like Trichs to be dumped into the vast Echinopsis bag.
Sí que entiendo! Hablo español. :) Bueno, veo que sois muchos a querer subtitulos en español, así que lo voy a mirar la semana que viene. Si no me toma demasiado tiempo, lo haré. Gracias por la sugerencia!
@@sanpedromastery6262 si tio soy fanatico de los san pedro , peyote , maria , salvia , burundanga , si men que esta interesante pero no entiendo ingles , y te vendra bien la comunidad hispana es mas grande saludos desde europa
I sterillized my soil using the pressure-cooker method but only cooked it for 30 minutes. On a forum I read that you also clear the soil from fertilizers when you sterillize it. Do you think this is true? Great video!
This is true for macronutrients (NPK) more than micronutrients, there would be almost no plant available nitrogen after such heat. A good thing for us to remember when sterilizing soil!
Regarding the fertilizers, hard to know for sure. It could be the case. It could also depend on the type of fertilizer. Best to be on the safe side and get unfertilized soil. As for the 30 mins, please let me know later on how it worked out for you! It may have been enough for all you know! :)
Thanks for the replies. I searched for unfertilized soil in garden stores and on the internet, couldn’t find it anywhere. I used normal soil with the 50/50 perlite mix. I’ll just have to hope for the best. I wil post a comment if something happens. If someone got a suggestion were i can get unfertilized soil. Would be glad to hear it :)
San Pedro Mastery. Have another question :) Wil the germination/humidity conditions be better when I set my heat around 25-27 degrees C. Or is it just fine at 23.
@@ketonic1084 Fertilized soil will work OK. I have grown cacti from seeds with fertilized soil. It's just that it's better unfertilized. By the way, in the past I have bought unfertilized soil that was made for replanting young trees.
I recognized those jar lids with the 4 holes stigma right away :) Nice!
Shroooooms
Good old mycology
After watching your video & weighing all my options, I opted to bake my screened, unfertilized topsoil in covererd aluminium foil baking pans in a conventional oven at around, but no more than, 180°F for 30 minutes, monitoring carefully with a digital baking thermometer.
I'm a week into the growing process, but so far, so good, & I feel confident.
Good stuff... Thanks for sharing your method with us!
me too
What happened Mark!!! Do you have a cactus by now?
@@alvinbratz2423, sure do...hundreds.
11 different strains, 7 of which were started from seed.
It's a slow process, but so far, things are going great.
@@markmedlinjr Very happy to hear that. Hope I end up like that as well!
Hey you make great videos, keep going ! :)
I watched your other videos which showed how you can grow San Pedro from seeds without sterilizing the soil first, i tried it with my Bridgesii seeds and two days ago they started to come out ! :)
Great! Hopefully they'll grow to be majestic plants!
@@sanpedromastery6262 Hello, today i looked inside the box where they grow and i found a small spot with what seems to be mold, what can i do ? Should i transplant them into a new box ?
@@dkd0m23 First off, let’s say the roots of freshly born seedlings may look like mold spots for the newbies (I’m not saying that for you, but it might be useful for other people). There are different kinds of mold. One in particular is a mass murderer. That dangerous kind of mold looks a little bit like a spider web. If that’s what you have, I recommend you seek advice on specialist cactus forums. What I personally do it cut it out in its early stage, scooping out the whole soil around it with a large spoon, and disposing of it. Most of the times I’ve had this kind of mold, it ended up killing the rest of the plants on that tray. You can send me a photo by email if you want, I will take a look at it and let you know if that is the “evil” kind of mold. Also, you should not transplant them so young, they would die. It's better to try to to remove the mold. Good luck.
@@sanpedromastery6262 Okay i removed the spot, it didn't look like the bright small roots from a seedling, more like a spiderweb.
Thanks for your help
@@dkd0m23 You're welcome. I will do a video on this subject at some point.
What do you mean when you say that Perlite doesn't tolerate temperature?
It's volcanic rock used in making refractory cement. Real perlite handles extreme temperatures for long duration.
Thanks for pointing it out! I am going to edit the video to remove that incorrect piece of info.
No sweat. You're welcome.. It should probably be added that "Perlite" is the puffed stone, BUT some places sell a foam product and call it perlite... That wouldn't handle heat well so that's probably what you experienced in the past. 🤙
Gracias amigo!😊
Did you change your mind on using worm castings? In this video you mention using soil without fertilizer and no worm castings.. but in one of your other videos you mention using 1 part castings in your seedling mix. What do you find to be better?
Sounds like an experiment you should conduct !
If I buy the soil and the perlite already mixed together, can I sterilize them together?
Will an Instapot pressure cooker work to sterilize soil?
Mushrooms need 15psi, soil needs about 10psi, check if your cooker goes up to 10psi.
What about using a autoclave-able plastic bags for pressure cooking the soil? You would be able to cook more soil at a time and reuse the bags, or maybe use a pillow case, and then squeeze the remaining water afterwards. Thoughts?
Why?
Could leftover CVG be substitute for the potting soil?
What psi do I need to pressure cook at I don’t understand?
Is a coco/perlite mix ok for cacti? And is it TO inert? Thank you for your content
Perfect. Dont overthink it.
Thank you
My microwave is 1000w and i have ziploc bags however idk how i would take the temp of the soil after 1min30seconds without sticking my whole arm in the bag to take the temp, wouldn't that make it less safe since i would need to open the bag enough for my arm to go in the bag to temp it? I definitely don't want mold or bugs. I live in a very old dusty house.
Also would you say worm castings are good for a seedling soil blend with perlite and regular cactus/succulent soil?
No, this is fine. "You should not worry about it", lol. Sterilizing soil for seedlings doesn't call for the same hygiene discipline as sterilizing medium for mushrooms.
@@sanpedromastery6262 yeah i grew those and i grew them successfully the first time the 2nd time when i tried to bulk grow i had an infection :/
what pressure is being used here? 15psi?
Could you use screened peat and perlite? Or would that be too acidic? Potting soil here in the states I have found to be terrible, It has all kinds of additives and fake fertilizer’s. Thanks Jerry
This could be used for any seeds right??
Do you subscribe to the methods of Trout’s Notes? I’m reading his book about cultivation and your methods seem rather similar, though it seems that he is more particular with the soil mixes.
I must admit I have never read any cactus cultivation book, and that includes the one from Trout. So I have no opinion on his methods. I had heard of his name on the internet, but that’s it, I must admit! I originally got most of my information from my mentor Francis, who has been collecting these plants on the French riviera since the 1940s (and he’s still passionately caring for them to this day!), followed by a lot of trial and error.
In my opinion i don’t like to sterilize my soil simply because of natural selection, i always get the strongest plants from my seeds because of this.
…mam fr research work thiz is imp to steralize soil … particularly u get that results… if im growing edible fungi only… i have to steralize so that other weeds r toxic fungus r bacteria would’nt grow…. natural selection is far away from the research
You know you can spray with 70% iso and let sit till it evaporates and you don’t have to wait 10 min?
Help please!!! I am a newbie I live in the foothills of North Carolina
USA 4 equal seasons. I presently own 23 different cacti the variety of
cactus some I have are "Echinocereus Enneacanthus /Lobivia Schieleana
Quiabayensis / Parodia Tredecimcostata / Notocactus / /Parodia aculta /
Rebutia Flavistyla / Echinopsis Subdenudaa / Mammillaria Perbella. (I
only buy the ones that flower). I have had a perfect spring and summer
(outdoors) much fruit many flowers I am enjoying myself immensely BUT, BUT!
To say I am confused on the right way the best way to care for cacti is
a understatement because there are so many different opinions on
UA-cam. As an example of what I mean some say during the winter to
water once a month another once every six weeks another once every two
months or still another not to water at all for four months total.......
Can someone recommend the number 1 book for beginners growing cacti the
bible of the kind of species cacti I own I am growing? Please and thank
you, Thank you very much.
ahhhhhhh so sterilize is same exact method for sterilizing mushroom sub mix!!!
30min 15 psi.
People usually do mushroom substrate for about an hour at 15psi, don't they?
Soil is usually sterilized at 10psi for up to 30m, I'd say.
So is it 10psi 45min? 10psi 30 min?
@@jeffjones3389 It's not an exact science, but 10psi for 30min is what most cactus growers go for, Jeff.
Would vermiculite instead of perlite work?
I have heard of someone using vermiculite for starting peyote from seeds, though I don't know the exact details. Generally speaking, vermiculite retains too much water for adult cacti, but maybe it is OK for the germinating stage? Not sure... If you decide to try, let us know how it worked out for you.
No. Vermiculite holds way too much water. If you cannot get perlite, you can use shredded styrofoam (that's what I use). Plus, it can be microwaved. Just moisten the soil first.
@@backwoodsbrewer Thanks for the info on shredded styrofoam - Crazy! I just had no idea you could use that.
@@sanpedromastery6262 Yeah, I wish I could remember where I heard about it, but it's been a long time. When I make some up I use a cheese grater and hold it down inside a large cardboard box, because as I am sure you can imagine it will make quite the mess lol. I just moisten the soil mix to the point of what is needed for starting the seeds and then microwave, stir, microwave again. Time depends on quantity, but as I do small batches it's usually 1:30 minutes per microwaving time. Perlite is easy to get here in the states, but it seems in some parts of the world it can be hard to find. Plus, it is like recycling :) LOVE your channel!
@@backwoodsbrewer Great for the environment yeah shredded plastic woo-hoo murica! What are you going to do with that soil when it's exhausted? Recycling? You couldn't exactly separate it later. Terrible idea.
I've also heard that soil can be more naturally sterilized by just spreading into a thin layer in direct sun for a number of hours.
Interesting i never thought of this but it makes sense
I use a old fan cover as a screen too 🤨
Why is the san pedro not a part of the Trichocereus family anymore? Why is it changed to echinopsis pachanoi?
I'm not sure why they felt the need to change classification. For the san pedro fans, it will remain Trichocereus Pachanoi. Most cactus collectors do not like Trichs to be dumped into the vast Echinopsis bag.
Thanks for the answer
Muy bueno pero si pones subtitulos en español mejor 🙋
No te entiende
@@JorgeGarcia-sr5gs 🙉
Sí que entiendo! Hablo español. :) Bueno, veo que sois muchos a querer subtitulos en español, así que lo voy a mirar la semana que viene. Si no me toma demasiado tiempo, lo haré. Gracias por la sugerencia!
@@sanpedromastery6262 si tio soy fanatico de los san pedro , peyote , maria , salvia , burundanga , si men que esta interesante pero no entiendo ingles , y te vendra bien la comunidad hispana es mas grande saludos desde europa
I sterillized my soil using the pressure-cooker method but only cooked it for 30 minutes.
On a forum I read that you also clear the soil from fertilizers when you sterillize it. Do you think this is true?
Great video!
This is true for macronutrients (NPK) more than micronutrients, there would be almost no plant available nitrogen after such heat. A good thing for us to remember when sterilizing soil!
Regarding the fertilizers, hard to know for sure. It could be the case. It could also depend on the type of fertilizer. Best to be on the safe side and get unfertilized soil.
As for the 30 mins, please let me know later on how it worked out for you! It may have been enough for all you know! :)
Thanks for the replies. I searched for unfertilized soil in garden stores and on the internet, couldn’t find it anywhere. I used normal soil with the 50/50 perlite mix. I’ll just have to hope for the best.
I wil post a comment if something happens.
If someone got a suggestion were i can get unfertilized soil. Would be glad to hear it :)
San Pedro Mastery. Have another question :) Wil the germination/humidity conditions be better when I set my heat around 25-27 degrees C.
Or is it just fine at 23.
@@ketonic1084 Fertilized soil will work OK. I have grown cacti from seeds with fertilized soil. It's just that it's better unfertilized. By the way, in the past I have bought unfertilized soil that was made for replanting young trees.
Do not sterilize your soil. Non of the OG seed growers sterilize their soil including Reed Nixon featured in SM videos of the Cacti on steroids.