Dolomite

Probably the most confusing material is Dolomite. Often it's not labeled as Dolomite, but don't give up, you can find it if you look a little. Dolomite is commonly sold in garden or farm stores.

Dolomite is added to the potting mix to:
1) adjust the pH : it lowers the acidity ("sweeten")
2) add magnesium (important!)
3) add calcium (important!)

Key Points When Shopping for Dolomite:
-Often the bag will NOT say "dolomite"

-It might be labeled as "Agricultural Lime", "Agricultural Limestone" or "Garden Lime". Check the ingredients label. It must have CALCIUM & MAGNESIUM.

-"Agricultural Lime" and "Garden Lime" are broad terms. Just remember, if it doesn't say calcium, magnesium or calcium/magnesium carbonate or some variation of this, then it's not dolomite.

-"Hydrated Lime" is not dolomite. Hydrated Lime is highly concentrated, highly caustic and dangerous to handle or breath. Also, it contains no magnesium.

-Any bag of "lime" labeled "DOLOMITE" containing calcium and magnesium is suitable.

-Dolomite can be sold in finely powdered, pulverized or pelleted form. Buy the powdered or pulverized and avoid the pelleted form. The finer the dolomite is ground, the faster it becomes available to the plants. Talcum powder fine is best.

-Price: For a 50lb bag the cost should be US $4.00 to US $6.00

-Acid loving plants, like strawberries or blueberries, only need 1/2 cup or less.

"Soil" Recipes

You can NOT use ordinary dirt in your global buckets.

Why? Wicking! Key to the success of Global Buckets is the water wicking up from the reservoir up into the upper bucket where the plant's root soak up the water. Ordinary dirt or soil will not wick. You need a growing medium that wicks. Sphagnum peat and coir are excellent wicking materials.

Here in the USA you can buy bags of pre-mixed material which work well. It's often sold as "potting mix". The main ingredients should be listed as sphagnum peat and/or coir with the remainder as some combination of vermiculite and/or perlite. The following materials do NOT wick: screened topsoil, forest biproducts, bark, forest humus, sawdust or partially composted something. If the bag lists any of the preceding materials as the dominate material then do not buy it.

We prefer to make our own growing medium. Here are our recipes:

Recipe #1: Sphagnum Peat
70% Sphagnum Peat
20% Vermiculite
10% Perlite

Recipe #2: Sphagnum Peat and Coir
35% Sphagnum Peat
35% Coir
20% Vermiculite
10% Perlite

Recipe #3: Coir
70% Coir
30% Perlite
Note: We're still testing the 70% Coir recipe.....


Pictured below is Recipe #2.
Perlite: very white material
Vermiculite: light grey
Sphagnum Peat & Coir: dark













Coir
We're very interested in Recipe # 3 which uses Coir and eliminates Sphagnum Peat. Why?

Coir, or coir pith, is a byproduct of the coconut industry. Until recently, coir was viewed as waste. It was burned or shoveled into massive piles which sat for decades. Recently, it was discovered that coir pith is an excellent substitute for Sphagnum Peat.

Why do we care? It takes 10,000 years for Sphagnum Peat to be created in wetlands and it's rapidly being depleted. Also, coir pith is widely available in many developing countries and regions, like India and central America...an area where Global Buckets could be utilized.

Where to find Buckets?

1) Bakeries. Frosting is shipped in buckets. These buckets are often smaller than 5 gallons, resulting in smaller water reservoirs. If you use the automatic watering system, you should be AOK. Wayne Burks from Anderson, Mo. writes, "I've been finding them at some Walmart stores that have bakeries. I get at least 5 at a time. Tonight I was able to get 9!"

2) Pickles. Deli pickles are often shipped in 5 gallon buckets.

3) Drywall Mud. According to Friedrich from Munich Germany, buckets that are used to ship drywall ("SheetRock") mud are safe. We express no opinion on the safety of using drywall mud buckets for a garden. Do not use them unless you have verified that they're safe.

4) Soap Makers. Make friends with a person who makes handcrafted soap. Vegetable oil, which is shipped in 6.5 gallon buckets, is used in the soap making process.

5) Mexican restaurants. I live near a Mexican restaurant which puts out their used buckets and lids weekly so this is a really good source. If you don't mind the fact that they are imprinted with the words Lard and Pork Bellies and of course you have to clean out the residual! I use the lard scrapings to make little eateries for the wild bird population in the winter. Sylvia from Norristown, Pennsylvania.

6) Fast Food restaurants. I find buckets at the Burger King on an Army base nearby. The pickles are shipped and as they empty the buckets they normally throw them out. Simply ask the manager to set them of to the side and you can pick them up at your leisure. David Lonowski US Army Irlbach, Germany

7) Electric motor rewinding shops get their wire in 5 gal. buckets. These are spotlessly clean and ready for use. They just junk them. Mike Connolly from Central Illinois.

8) Wine Store. "I found free buckets at a wine making retail store." Marcelle from Timmins Ontario Canada

9) Kitty Litter. I use empty cat litter buckets from myself and my friends. They have the right plastic rating and they work GREAT! Teresa

10) Cafeteria Lady & Craigslist. I found two great sources for buckets. 1) I asked the "cafeteria lady" at my child's school to save them for me (took a little patience but I got 6) 2) I found someone selling buckets for 50 cents each on craigslist.org (instant gratification they had hundreds - I bought 30) Shannon Fresno CA

11) Car Washes. I've recently discovered car washes, particularly the self serve car washes, have a large supply of buckets. The one near me has a never ending supply of 5, 30 and 55 gallon plastic buckets. Sam Aiello of New Jersey.