SoilFixer SF60 Potatoes in Buckets Results

The SoilFixer SF60 Potatoes in Buckets Experiment was planned way back at the end of 2016 when Tony Callaghan the Managing Director of SoilFixer asked me if I would be interested and like to trial some. 

Now if someone wants to provide me with free products to trial, it would be rude to refuse wouldn't it? As long as they understand that you will be impartial and give an honest review and opinion of the product when you blog about it then I'm happy to give anything gardening and allotment related a try. I especially like this kind of trial because the facts and results will speak for themselves. 

The SoilFixer SF60 Super Soil Improver arrived in a plastic bucket with a lid.

22/05/2016

I really wanted to start this test off early in the year but due to events outside my control I didn't manage to get the spuds in the Potato Pots until May

From left to right

1) My Own Compost & Coir 50:50
2) My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume
3) My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 10% by volume
4) My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 20% by volume
5) My Own Compost & Coir with Potato Fertiliser
6) My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume with Potato Fertilizer

04/06/2017

11/06/2017

25/06/2017

09/07/2017

23/07/2017

06/08/2017

In order to weigh the produce produced from two seed potatoes from each variation of the mix, I purchased a 40KG Digital Travel Portable Handheld Weighing Luggage Scales Suitcase Bag LCD for the princely sum of £3.58 inclusive of Postage off ebay so that I can weigh the spuds from the different buckets.   

40KG/10G Model - Max weight:40Kg/88Lb/1410oz

Automatically lock in readings when the data is stable.

Main body use ABS engineering plastic as main materials.

Stainless steel hanging hook. High strength compact firm hand strap KG / LB / OZ / Unit

I managed to pick up six of the Tesco “single use” 5p carrier bags as they are light and will all be the same weight, lucky the small local store still had some as Tesco stop selling them at the end of the month.

My Own Compost & Coir 50:50 CONTROL Mix

My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume

My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 10% by volume

My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 20% by volume

My Own Compost & Coir with Potato Fertiliser

My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume with Potato Fertilizer

Schedule of results by weight 

0.410kg - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 10% by volume
0.465kg - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume with Potato Fertilizer
0.480kg - My Own Compost & Coir 50:50 CONTROL Mix
0.490kg - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume (2.08% increase over Control)
0.520kg - My Own Compost & Coir with Potato Fertiliser (8.33% Increase over Control)
0.665kg - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 20% by volume (38.5% Increase Over Control)

I had expected that the running order at the top of the page would have been the order of results based on weight, I was so wrong. I'm surprised that the 10% by volume and the 5% by volume with fertilizer results are less than the control mix. It looks as if 5% by volume with Fertiliser is better than 10% by volume, however It does not make sense when the Control Mix with Fertiliser produced the second heaviest yield.

What can be said this that there is a 38.5% increase in Yield between the Control Mix and adding SoilFixer SF60@20% by volume   

Schedule of results by Number of edible potatoes 

15 - My Own Compost & Coir 50:50 

18 - My Own Compost & Coir with Potato Fertiliser (including the green one! )
23 - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 10% by volume
24 - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume

27 - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 5% by volume with Potato Fertilizer

30 - My Own Compost & Coir with SF60 @ 20% by volume

In terms of quantity of spuds there has been a 100% Increase between the Control Mix and adding Soilfixer SF60@20% by volume

Last year when SoilFixer did their own potato trials they found the extra leaf weight above ground was equal to extra potato weight below,. Where they had 20% more leaf also had 20% more potato crop weight. I didn't weigh the above ground leaf, but I did notice that bucket 4 with SF60 added at 20% by Volume did not dry out as fast as the first three buckets, and that if you inspect the photos above the foliage was higher and more lush and actually lasted longer than the first three buckets.

I could have let Buckets 4 - 6 go a little longer, but I wanted to give all the buckets the same amount of growing time so that the comparison as fair. 

These results are using my own compost without the assistance of the SoilFixer compost humification activator, next year I'm hoping to undertake the same experiment with compost made using the SoilFixer CHA and see what difference that makes when used in conjunction with SF60

I would like to thank Marshalls for providing the Potato Pots and spuds for the experiment / trial.

In the mean time I have some overwintering spring onion in flower buckets trials underway again this time comparing bought compost Vs the same compost with SF60@ 20% with three different varieties on onions.