Is Molasses beneficial in a premium soil/liquid neut grow?
- Thread starter Milovan
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The_Blue_Dreamer
New Member
I have used it outside with good results but a long time grower told me to use raw molasses. He also said when you flush your plants to keep using the molasses.
Milovan
Well-Known Member
.
I was wondering if molasses and liquid neuts could
be used and benefit a grow.
It seems redundant.
.
The_Blue_Dreamer
New Member
Sorry I miss read your question, I know he uses molasses his whole cycle with liquid nutes and he grows in soil. his yields are not the biggest(IMO this is because of the lighting and pot size) but the buds are premo,
The nutes are for the benefit of the plants directly - the molasses is, primarily, for the benefit of the microbes in the soil. You are feeding two different things, for two different reasons, using two different products!
Unless you are using real organic liquid nutes, the molasses probably isn't really helping you much anyway. Chemical nutes are in a form that is "Plant Ready" - they don't need microbial action to be taken-up by the root system. Organic nutes, on the other hand, mostly come in an "un-digestible" form that must be "pre-chewed" by microbes before they are beneficial to the plant. So, "long story short", molasses is good for the microbes - which is good for the organic nutrients, which is good for the plants. Molasses does have some hormones and other things are said to be good for plants, but it's benefit is mostly as a microbe tonic.
Milovan
Well-Known Member
Seems a lot of people use chemical nuets along with the organic nuets in premium soil such as FFOF.
Is there something not right with this method in your opinion?
I ask cause wouldn't molasses benefit the organic soil even though chemical neuts are used as well?
Kind of like a duel feeding simultaneously? Chemical and organic?
green217
Well-Known Member
If you use salt based fertilizers it will destroy the microorganisms in your soil, organic fertilizers promote these.
st0wandgrow
Well-Known Member
In an organic soil the plant will excrete exudes (sugars) from its roots to attract microbes to the rhizosphere. When you use synthetic nutrients the plants needs are being met so the exudes stop. This doesn't kill the microbes per se (providing that you aren't using obscene amounts of salts) but it kinda renders them useless.
As mentioned above, molasses is primarily used as a food stock for microbes. It does contain some trace minerals and a decent amount of potassium, but nothing that a well rounded fertilizer won't already have. IMO use molasses for brewing compost teas. Beyond that I don't see much use for it when feeding your plant (or soil).
green217
Well-Known Member
Thank you for the clarification. Its always nice to learn something.
green217
Well-Known Member
So you are saying the plants roots excrete sugars when in an organic environments, but this stops when salt base fertilizers are being used because it is not necessary. Right? If this is the case if you stop using the salt based fertilizers will the plants start producing the sugars again?
I will have to research this on my own too, sounds pretty interesting.
st0wandgrow
Well-Known Member
That's a good question. For us, growing weed in containers I'm not sure the plant would revert back quickly enough in such a small window of time. In nature, I would assume this takes place given enough time... ie if you were using synthetic fertilizer on your shrubs one season then stopped the following season. In all honestly I don't really know how quickly a plant will adapt from inorganic nutrients to organic nutrients.
I think this issue has aleady been addressed, but I'll give it another shot! Chemical nutes are typically harmfull to the beneficial microbes that live in soil. So, yeah, I would consider that "not right". On the other hand, adding molasses would be beneficial to those same (mistreated) microbes - but isn't that a little like beating them with a stick with one hand - while patting them on the head with the other hand?
What I am saying is - Chemical nutes and organic growing work at odds towards one another - what's the point of making it more difficult? There will always be those who have different oppinions - that's why we have these discussions!
If you are going to be implementing molasses into your grow just make sure you are using unsulphured organic version and the not sulphured. As that will kill your microbes and beneficials.
You want unsulphured blackstrap molasses which not only provides a food source for your microbes to grow but in turn conditions your soil as well. It also provides sugars and turns into carbs and is abundant in both macro and micro nutrients which when used in conjunction with base nutrients and also aids in uptake of nutrients since it will improve rhizosphere health and soil quality.
Ive used it in conjunction with synthetic ferts such as GH 3 part with much success. Its an old recipe many ppl on these forums im sure have access to or know someone running it right now.
But it does more for organic grown gardens and people who are using teas and making composts for its main intended purpose of feeding microbe colonies which in turn supply your plants with useful forms of nutrients by breaking down organic matter.
Molasses is an age old amendment and additive that serves great purpose in growing all around.
You want unsulphured blackstrap molasses which not only provides a food source for your microbes to grow but in turn conditions your soil as well. It also provides sugars and turns into carbs and is abundant in both macro and micro nutrients which when used in conjunction with base nutrients and also aids in uptake of nutrients since it will improve rhizosphere health and soil quality.
Ive used it in conjunction with synthetic ferts such as GH 3 part with much success. Its an old recipe many ppl on these forums im sure have access to or know someone running it right now.
But it does more for organic grown gardens and people who are using teas and making composts for its main intended purpose of feeding microbe colonies which in turn supply your plants with useful forms of nutrients by breaking down organic matter.
Molasses is an age old amendment and additive that serves great purpose in growing all around.
Im not here to start an argument or rile anyone up just want to soread knowledge and learn a few things myself while talkin to some growers who may help me along my journey.
With that said this is one giant misconception in the growing community and I dont know where it quiet started but synthetic nutrients "salts" dont kill off your microbes as people claim to do. Theres billions of bacteria living within a small amount of soil even in a tablespoon sized sample. Certain microbes and bacteria actually thrive and live off of these nutrients and salts depending on the source and how they are made available. Some of the synthetic nutrients like sulfur coated urea for example need certain microbes to break down the sulphur to slowly release the nitrogen to plants. Tis is just one small example but there are many others.
Synthetic fertilizers can cause some initial microbes to "reduce populating" but they will instantly come back since these types of fast acting fertilizers usually come and go in your medium within hours to a few days. which is why you constantly need to keep feeding everytime you water in soilless mediums and hydroponics opposed to soil medium using organics which break these sources down into useable forms over a longer period of time.
These microbes also need to be given the proper parameters to grow and populate which us another big misconception in this hobby that you can keep adding more and more bene and microbes through teas etc and they will keep multiplying (this is not always the case)! Make sure you have proper oxygen, good temperature and humidity, you need an aerobic environment with alot of carbon (breaking down organic matter) and a food source to thrive.
Synthetics wont just wipe your microbes out. Theres billions upon billions in your medium and you can use synthetic ferts throughout your grow with no harm to the microbe colonies so long as you are providing them a hospitable environment to grow and populate.