Plant collecting

[Dak.the.bug]

Hello everyone!

Edited the original post because I was without caffeine and posted it in the wrong section. I was wondering if everyone collects as much dead oak and stuff as they can before it goes out of season. I collected like a mad man and am now overwhelmed with sticks, leaves, and flake soil. 

 

[PowerHobo]

You can be overstocked on flake soil?  I fermented 120lbs this past summer, and I'm down to my last 5-10lbs, worrying about larvae making it until my next batch is ready. lol

Unfortunately, finding an oak tree in Vegas isn't a common occurrence, so I'm pretty much a slave to purchasing leaves. I think collecting like a madman is a good idea, personally.

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

You can be overstocked on flake soil?  I fermented 120lbs this past summer, and I'm down to my last 5-10lbs, worrying about larvae making it until my next batch is ready. lol

I am not sure where I would store that much substrate! 

Unfortunately, finding an oak tree in Vegas isn't a common occurrence, so I'm pretty much a slave to purchasing leaves. I think collecting like a madman is a good idea, personally.

My yard is covered in oak leaves. I just gathered a big bag of them today before they get wet and moldy. 

 

[Bugboy3092]

Haha yes, I personally try to stock up right before fall, right when the leaves are oldest and moldiest (the fungus is what’s decaying the leaves) and for the most part that’s my winter supply. If you dig a lit,e you can still find the moldy layer under the fresh leaves, but some of it will have died off and there may be fresh ones mixed in

 

[PowerHobo]

I am not sure where I would store that much substrate! 

It's honestly not as much as it sounds like! It's just four 18-gallon totes. I keep them in the garage since it's nice and cold in the winter to discourage further decomposition.

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

Still, I don't have much room to stuff 18-gallon totes. 

 

[JKim]

I don't bring in the dead oak tree from forest to make it a substrate. I use wood pellets commercially available for barbecue grilling. It is natural without any chemical substance mixed up in it. It is completely safe and and a lot easier to handle. In case of leaves, I have oak trees in my backyard. I just cut down a huge one because it was too close to a building.