Molasses?

G

GreezzyGuy

Active Member
It contains about 3.5% K so its a organic source of potassium.
and has nothing to do with making it sweeter.that is an ignorant statement.
 
Y

youraveragehorticulturist

Well-Known Member
Even the skeptical guy said that molasses makes your microbes multiply.

So when is it good to get a big swarm of microbes going? Or when is it good to use molasses?

Maybe near the end of your plant's life, when it's not exuding sugar from it's roots. Theoretically you could add molasses to keep the bacteria and fungus thriving, to provide some nutrients to you plant. Allegedly, this will keep your plant going just a little longer to pack on weight and terpenes. Perhaps your buds would be more flavorful after that.

Maybe when you're mixing up some organic fertilizer. Like you've got some bat guano or fish meal soaking away in a bucket. You could add some EWC and molasses. Theoretically the "simple" food (molasses) multiplies the microbes in your EWC, then they munch on the guano/meal. Ideally, at the end you'd have the nutrients from the guano/meal broken down into a nice, useable form, all ready for your plants. Allegedly, you'll get better results from less fertilizer.

Another time to use molasses might be when you're trying to inoculate an "inert medium." Like I want to get some microbes established on my Rapid Rooter plugs, or in my peat based Seed Starter Mix. If you just add water + microbes, there will be nothing for the microbes to eat, so they won't really jump off. But with a little shot of molasses ( add maybe some kelp or fish hydrolysate) there is some food for the bacteria to eat, multiply, and really get established.

Personally, I would be real, real careful about trying to use molasses as a fertilizer, or for it's NPK. Too much can throw off the pH in your soil and yellow off all your leaves overnight, and still won't give a great amount of nutrition.
 
xtsho

xtsho

Well-Known Member
Molasses is eaten up extremely quickly so you just end up with an explosion of microbes and then a die off of microbes. Adding compost to your soil is a better way to create a healthy environment for microbial growth. A healthy soil rich in organic matter needs nothing added to maintain a thriving microbial population. Adding things like molasses can actually have a detrimental effect on the soil health over time. You want balance. Not boom to bust.
 
xtsho

xtsho

Well-Known Member
Rurumo said:
Actually that one shady company....Nukeheads, is it? They market a highly overpriced tiny jar of maple sugar as a superior alternative to molasses.
Click to expand...
They're not the only ones taking advantage of cannabis growers RAW is selling 2 oz packs of Cane Molasses for $12.95. I'm not a fan of Nukehead nor have I ever purchased anything from them and never will. The reality is that most companies selling products that can be classified in the fertilizer category targeting cannabis growers are doing the same thing.
 
Y

youraveragehorticulturist

Well-Known Member
conor c said:
True but kelp has some available nutrients in it also so id say its not just for microbes its also kind of like a natural pgr as well
Click to expand...
Now you're thinking! Kelp has a bunch of benefits, yucca and aloe are wetting agents, barley has enzymes, humic and fulvic aid uptake of nutrients, soy has amino acids for Nitrogen and to aid absorption of trace minerals...

So it's important not to get tunnel vision and focus on Just molasses being "good" or "bad.".
 
E

end_of_the_tunnel

Well-Known Member
cobshopgrow said:
Vinasse is some usable fertilizer.
not directly molasses, one step earlier in the process chain.
"Vinasse is a byproduct of the sugar or ethanol industry. Sugarcane or sugar beet is processed to produce crystalline sugar, pulp and molasses."

"vinasse has been used as a fertilizer since the beginning of the 20th 208 century (Hidalgo, 2009). "
Click to expand...
Back in the old days I heard of farmers utilising bagasse as an agricultural amendment. Guess vinasse can be used to describe waste from other raw stock as well as sugarcane. What about pressed pulp waste from the wine industry. On a side note vaguely remember Jodrey talking about smoking samples from guys who utilised grape pulp waste in their soil.
 
xtsho

xtsho

Well-Known Member
hillbill said:
Molasses does have ready to use carbon as well as K and Iron, always use it when making ACT. Molasses appears on the Ingredients on the labels of many “Booster” products.
Click to expand...
I recently made some ACT but I didn't use molasses. I had made a bunch of potato salad so I boiled up the peelings in a couple quarts of water, let it cool, and then added that to the bucket. Along with feeding microbes the potato is a rich source of potassium and other minerals as well. You use potato when making JMS. All you need is food for the microbes.

So don't throw away that potato water after boiling. Let it cool and use it to water your plants.
 
Hollatchaboy

Hollatchaboy

Well-Known Member
PadawanWarrior said:
I thought you were a hydro guy? Have you ever used it either?

I actually agree with some of what he said. But I'm not the only one who doubt's all that information. Just read the replies.

Personally I think it's best used in teas. It feeds the microbes more than anything. But it also does have nutrients in it.

I'll add in some when I mix up microbes to help feed them and let them multiply while I get ready to feed, but that's about the only time I add it anymore.

My first grow was the tastiest and smelliest yet, and I was adding molasses to EJ and making a tea each watering.

I need to add molasses every watering sometime to see if I can notice any difference. But too much molasses can lower soil pH.

I don't really buy the microbe population explosion, and crash thing. Dead microbes feed the plants. I did read a study where some microbes became more dominant than others for awhile, but it always balanced back in the long run.
Click to expand...
It's good for feeding microbes in aact to get them multiplying fast, but you want those microbes to start eating sugars provided by the plant, once they're in the soil, not from molasses.
 
cobshopgrow

cobshopgrow

Well-Known Member
probably its good if one understands that carbonhydrates are "simply" a long chain of single molecule sugars.
so everything rich in carbonhydrates will gonna be sugar at some point.

From the study:
- Enrich soils with micro-nutrients (e.g., vitamins and trace minerals),
- Maintain soil organic carbon levels,
- Enhance micro flora and fauna development within soils,
- Improve the nutritional profile of crops for human and animal consumption,
- Enhance the growth potential of crops.

71 Table 1. Composition and yield of vinasse from cane and beet molasses
cane beet
Nitrogen total (mg L–1 ) 153–1230 ,1800–4750
Phosphorus total (mg L–1 ) 1–190, 160–163
Potassium (mg L–1 ) 4893–11000, 10000–10030
Sulfate total (mg L–1 ) 1500–3480, 3500–3720
pH 4.46–4.80 4.30–5.35
Copper 0.27–1.71 mg L–1 2.1–5.0 mg kg–1
Cadmium 0.04–1.36 mg L–1 <1 mg kg–1
Lead 0.02–0.48 mg L–1 <5 mg kg–1
Iron 12.8–157.5 mg L–1 203–226 mg kg

so its pretty rich in K, quite low pH so one better dont overdo
"Suggested dosages are 1–2 g L–1 92 and 3–5 g L– ".
as beeing said, there are many sources of food for plants.

its a pretty complete study.
with all sources given.
 
G

GrodanLightfoot

Well-Known Member
obijohn said:
haha years ago I was told (here I think) that it was to be used in the last weeks of flower because it made the flavor of the bud sweeter
Click to expand...
I used to use molasses. One harvest, I had a single plant that was sticky as hell, but not in a "dank weed" way. Like it has been dipped in something. It smelled exactly like demerera sugar and motel a/c vent (toxic fungus) in a bad way. I couldn't identify the genetics until squeezing the bud and the sour kush smell came out. Every other plant in the grow was pure kush, clean, not even a trace of "earthy" or sweet or anything weird ,but that one single plant had a distinct layer of "unweed" going on: mycotoxins and molasses carbs...


Moral of the story: Nature is fucking weird and constantly demonstrates the miracle of evolution. In that it's a fukkin miracle that plants could ever fight off soil microbes or produce desirable flavors in the first place, with all the nasty shit they rub up against. Apparently it doesn't always work.
 
PadawanWarrior

PadawanWarrior

Well-Known Member
Hollatchaboy said:
It's good for feeding microbes in aact to get them multiplying fast, but you want those microbes to start eating sugars provided by the plant, once they're in the soil, not from molasses.
Click to expand...
Of course you want them to feed off the roots sugars, but I'm not sold on all that guy says.
 
Hollatchaboy

Hollatchaboy

Well-Known Member
PadawanWarrior said:
Of course you want them to feed off the roots sugars, but I'm not sold on all that guy says.
Click to expand...
I remember Jeremy saying that when brewing a tea, make sure you can't smell the molasses before applying. It's just a guess, but I believe that's why he said that. You want those microbes to immediately start feeding off the exudates. Again, it's just a guess though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top