I partially agree...to an extent. But are you honestly saying that nutrients are ONLY stored and transferred in the leaves of the plant? Also, I use every leaf of every plant for baking etc etc..so are you saying if I don't want to eat a bunch of chemicals etc.. that I Should flush? Also, It sent me right to this post above so this is ALL that I read so I could be totally wrong, but I am just interested. And in this post you don't point out the Negative effects of flushing ( like I said you might have stated it earlier ) What are they? What is your argument against flushing? Why is it BAD? These are the questions I ask just based off this post. Thanks
You need to read all my posts in the discussion I had with Gastanker, in this thread, to understand the crux of my point(s).
I'm not saying that only leaves store nutrients, roots & stem(s) are full of minerals as well.
According to the chart I linked, the leaves and stem(s) is where the majority of minerals are stored.
I agree that all bodies of the plant contains nutrients and store nutrients to some degree.
With the leaves and stem being the by far majority "shareholders".
If you leach (flush) your plants you by definition also cause nutrient deficiency, which can set in within days or weeks depending on your plants, usually days. If we assume that by leaching we mean replacing the nutrient solution with RO water or tap water, not just a lower solute ratio.
Therefore moveable minerals are moved from the leaves, and it will lower the amount "nutrients" in the leaves.
But you would end up with leaves not worth using in cooking (I assume you want 'fresh' green leaves).
I have stated the negative effects of flushing before.
Positive:
Leaching (flushing) can be used to correct errors in the grow medium.
It can also be used to clear a salt buildup.
Other claims like: improved bud; taste, odour, harshness (less) etc. are
not scientifically proven in my honest opinion.
Negative:
You cause a nutrient deficiency for your plants (if we assume that by leaching we mean replacing the nutrient solution with RO water or tap water, not just a lower solute ratio).
Because of this (if you look at the char I posted) productivity is lowered. If we assume most experienced growers are at around 85-100% productivity levels (how well the nutrient solution ratio fits the plants need), this means (if we take the char I posted) that you can in theory lose up to 90% of the plants productivity levels.
This can significantly lower final weight and in theory; taste, odour, THC levels and everything else which is affected by how well the plant grows and produces substances (from mineral breakdown procedures to trichome productivity).
I want to specify that I am talking about pre-harvest leaching (flushing).
I believe that leaching can be beneficial if you have grow medium problems and / or salt buildup etc. (in soil & hydro).