cricketkush
Member
Has anyone ever tried to use anything other than molasses? such as regular cane sugar or blue agave nectar?
things other than molasses
- Thread starter cricketkush
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Dr.Nick Riviera
Well-Known Member
for what? molasses is overrated
cricketkush
Member
Molasses is a powerful, yet often overlooked tool when it comes to growing cannabis. Properly used, it can strengthen and boost the very foundation of your grow.
Growing cannabis is an art form – fairly easy to pick up, but difficult to master. As you become more experienced, and get a good hold on the basics , you often look to start mastering more advanced techniques. One such area of expertise is soil composition, and tailoring your feed to your specific strain and environment. Although there is a lot that can be done with composition, there is one tool in the cannabis growers arsenal that often gets overlook, and that is molasses.
molasses, feeding the soil
Your soil is the very foundation of your cannabis grow, it is full of nutrients and microorganisms that all work together to keep your cannabis plant strong and healthy as it grows. Whilst it is important to ensure the nutritional balance of the soil is correct, it is also ensuring that it is a suitable environment microorganisms can thrive in that really separates the good from the expert cultivator.
This is where molasses comes in. While molasses is quite rich in nutrients, it is primarily used as a carbohydrate source for the organisms in your soil, effectively feeding the soil and improving it as a foundation for your cannabis. The microorganisms found within the soil play a vital role in the growth of your cannabis, and they also require the right nutrients to thrive. By giving them molasses you ensure they have what they need, and subsequently boost the structure, moisture retention, microorganism content and efficiency of the soil – which in turn benefits your cannabis.
other benefits of molasses
In addition to improving the base quality of the soil, using molasses to irrigate your crops can also help prevent the build-up of pathogens that will potentially harm your plants, as well are reduce salt build up that can cause nutritional problems. Molasses contains a good amount of macro- and micro-nutrients, all of which are essential to cannabis health to one degree or another. As both macro- and micro-nutrients are not required in huge amounts, it can sometimes be quite hard to diagnose a deficiency. By regularly adding molasses to your grow you can ensure your cannabis has everything it needs.
Growing cannabis is an art form – fairly easy to pick up, but difficult to master. As you become more experienced, and get a good hold on the basics , you often look to start mastering more advanced techniques. One such area of expertise is soil composition, and tailoring your feed to your specific strain and environment. Although there is a lot that can be done with composition, there is one tool in the cannabis growers arsenal that often gets overlook, and that is molasses.
molasses, feeding the soil
Your soil is the very foundation of your cannabis grow, it is full of nutrients and microorganisms that all work together to keep your cannabis plant strong and healthy as it grows. Whilst it is important to ensure the nutritional balance of the soil is correct, it is also ensuring that it is a suitable environment microorganisms can thrive in that really separates the good from the expert cultivator.
This is where molasses comes in. While molasses is quite rich in nutrients, it is primarily used as a carbohydrate source for the organisms in your soil, effectively feeding the soil and improving it as a foundation for your cannabis. The microorganisms found within the soil play a vital role in the growth of your cannabis, and they also require the right nutrients to thrive. By giving them molasses you ensure they have what they need, and subsequently boost the structure, moisture retention, microorganism content and efficiency of the soil – which in turn benefits your cannabis.
other benefits of molasses
In addition to improving the base quality of the soil, using molasses to irrigate your crops can also help prevent the build-up of pathogens that will potentially harm your plants, as well are reduce salt build up that can cause nutritional problems. Molasses contains a good amount of macro- and micro-nutrients, all of which are essential to cannabis health to one degree or another. As both macro- and micro-nutrients are not required in huge amounts, it can sometimes be quite hard to diagnose a deficiency. By regularly adding molasses to your grow you can ensure your cannabis has everything it needs.
CaliSmokes
Well-Known Member
Grab yourself a bottle of Bembe
Dr.Nick Riviera
Well-Known Member
Yeah, I COULD post a ton of info on WHY molasses does NOT do all that, but I already have so many times before.
cricketkush
Member
i make my own nutrients and was going to try using a diffrent plant nectar to boost production i made my own blue agave nectar so i was going to try using it
cricketkush
Member
idk im goin off of what ive learned myself if it doesnt help my plants molasses def has not harmed them at all so i was going to try diffrent plant nectar
Dr.Nick Riviera
Well-Known Member
Molasses for Plants
By Robert Pavlis on March 31, 2014
This is a hot gardening topic these days and many of the organic gardeners are promoting the idea that you should add molasses to your compost pile and to your garden. It makes the microbes grow better–they need to eat, don’t you know?
Molasses; should you eat it, or dump it onto your soil? You have come to the right place to get the facts.
Molasses for Plants
Molasses, What is it?
Molasses is a byproduct produced during the manufacture of sugar. Sugar cane or sugar beets are processed so that the sugar can be extracted. The material that is left after most of the sugar is removed is a black sticky material called molasses. Molasses contains sugar, some other carbohydrates, vitamins and a number of minerals like calcium and iron.
Molasses for Plants
You probably know that it is important to have microbes in your soil. If not, have a look atOrganic Fertilizer – What is its Real Value. If having microbes is important, than it makes sense that you should feed those microbes. Feeding them will make them healthy, and make them reproduce so that you have even more microbes. Guess what? Microbes, especially the bacteria, love sugar. It’s no surprise that they also love molasses since it is mostly sugar.
So far it all seems to make sense. Microbes are good for soil, and molasses is good for microbes, so why not add it to soil? The short answer is that there is nothing wrong with adding molasses to your garden, or to your compost pile. It will feed the microbes.
Does it Make Sense to Add Molasses?
I’ll save you the trouble of skipping to the end of this post–the answer is NO!
Understanding why the answer is no will help you understand your garden. Let’s have a look. In a normal garden, or compost pile, you have a large variety of microbes, all going about their daily lives. They find something to eat, they poop, and they die. This is a continual process that goes on a billion times a second.
Microbes are opportunistic in that their populations will increase and decrease as the conditions change. Let’s assume you have not been doing too much in the garden so conditions are not changing. In that case the microbe populations remain steady. Things are chugging along at a normal pace and everybody is happy.
Now you dump a lot of molasses on the garden. Instantly, microbes sense the extra food and they start to multiply. Bacteria can divide (ie double the population) every 20 minutes. The population explodes very quickly. All those bacteria need to eat, and they quickly consume the molasses you added. As the food source runs out there is a massive famine and most of the bacteria die.
What has the molasses accomplished?
Not much. It is true that all of the dead bacteria go on to feed other microbes, and they help build soil structure. The minerals in the molasses stay in the soil and plants can use them, but your soil probably had enough calcium and iron before you added the molasses. The vitamins in molasses are of no value to plants.
Is the massive population explosion good for your plants? I don’t think anyone knows, but most things in nature are better off without massive changes, and plant roots depend very much on the population of microbes around their roots. I just can’t believe a bacteria population explosion is good for the plants.
Molasses might make your compost pile work quicker, but the first rain, or your hose, will wash the sugars out of the pile removing any benefits.
Do You Need to Feed the Microbes?
The reason for adding molasses is to feed the microbes, so it is important to ask, “Should the gardener feed the microbes?” The answer is a resounding YES! However, there are many ways to do this. Adding compost, wood chips or other organic matter as a mulch is the best way. This provides a slow, steady release of food for the microbes.
Molasses is a product that we can use to feed people and animals. I’d rather eat gingerbread cookies than compost and wood chips. From an environmental point of view it makes more sense to put non-edible organic matter in the garden and keep the food in the fridge.
There is no “magic” in molasses. It’s just another source of organic matter that will be decomposed in the garden. All organic matter contains carbohydrates, sugars, minerals and vitamins, just like molasses. Don’t believe me …… consider the fact that molasses is made from plants; sugar cane or sugar beets.
References:
1) Photo Source: Йоана Петрова
http://www.gardenmyths.com/molasses-for-plants/
By Robert Pavlis on March 31, 2014
This is a hot gardening topic these days and many of the organic gardeners are promoting the idea that you should add molasses to your compost pile and to your garden. It makes the microbes grow better–they need to eat, don’t you know?
Molasses; should you eat it, or dump it onto your soil? You have come to the right place to get the facts.
Molasses for Plants
Molasses, What is it?
Molasses is a byproduct produced during the manufacture of sugar. Sugar cane or sugar beets are processed so that the sugar can be extracted. The material that is left after most of the sugar is removed is a black sticky material called molasses. Molasses contains sugar, some other carbohydrates, vitamins and a number of minerals like calcium and iron.
Molasses for Plants
You probably know that it is important to have microbes in your soil. If not, have a look atOrganic Fertilizer – What is its Real Value. If having microbes is important, than it makes sense that you should feed those microbes. Feeding them will make them healthy, and make them reproduce so that you have even more microbes. Guess what? Microbes, especially the bacteria, love sugar. It’s no surprise that they also love molasses since it is mostly sugar.
So far it all seems to make sense. Microbes are good for soil, and molasses is good for microbes, so why not add it to soil? The short answer is that there is nothing wrong with adding molasses to your garden, or to your compost pile. It will feed the microbes.
Does it Make Sense to Add Molasses?
I’ll save you the trouble of skipping to the end of this post–the answer is NO!
Understanding why the answer is no will help you understand your garden. Let’s have a look. In a normal garden, or compost pile, you have a large variety of microbes, all going about their daily lives. They find something to eat, they poop, and they die. This is a continual process that goes on a billion times a second.
Microbes are opportunistic in that their populations will increase and decrease as the conditions change. Let’s assume you have not been doing too much in the garden so conditions are not changing. In that case the microbe populations remain steady. Things are chugging along at a normal pace and everybody is happy.
Now you dump a lot of molasses on the garden. Instantly, microbes sense the extra food and they start to multiply. Bacteria can divide (ie double the population) every 20 minutes. The population explodes very quickly. All those bacteria need to eat, and they quickly consume the molasses you added. As the food source runs out there is a massive famine and most of the bacteria die.
What has the molasses accomplished?
Not much. It is true that all of the dead bacteria go on to feed other microbes, and they help build soil structure. The minerals in the molasses stay in the soil and plants can use them, but your soil probably had enough calcium and iron before you added the molasses. The vitamins in molasses are of no value to plants.
Is the massive population explosion good for your plants? I don’t think anyone knows, but most things in nature are better off without massive changes, and plant roots depend very much on the population of microbes around their roots. I just can’t believe a bacteria population explosion is good for the plants.
Molasses might make your compost pile work quicker, but the first rain, or your hose, will wash the sugars out of the pile removing any benefits.
Do You Need to Feed the Microbes?
The reason for adding molasses is to feed the microbes, so it is important to ask, “Should the gardener feed the microbes?” The answer is a resounding YES! However, there are many ways to do this. Adding compost, wood chips or other organic matter as a mulch is the best way. This provides a slow, steady release of food for the microbes.
Molasses is a product that we can use to feed people and animals. I’d rather eat gingerbread cookies than compost and wood chips. From an environmental point of view it makes more sense to put non-edible organic matter in the garden and keep the food in the fridge.
There is no “magic” in molasses. It’s just another source of organic matter that will be decomposed in the garden. All organic matter contains carbohydrates, sugars, minerals and vitamins, just like molasses. Don’t believe me …… consider the fact that molasses is made from plants; sugar cane or sugar beets.
References:
1) Photo Source: Йоана Петрова
http://www.gardenmyths.com/molasses-for-plants/
Last edited:
NaturalFarmer
Well-Known Member
Starting to agree, cut it out this grow and have seen zero difference.
Dr.Nick Riviera
Well-Known Member
I have seen it cause more issues then help.
cricketkush
Member
makes sense that it grows the population of microbes and then starves them out.