Best Hydroponic Nutrients for Cannabis
Growing cannabis hydroponically means keeping things much more grounded, ironically. But it's a fact that you still need to keep nourishment flowing around those roots! H2O can't do it all, so you're tasked with finding the best hydroponic nutrients for cannabis. There's no getting around the need to feed your weed, and fortunately for you and the steadily increasing number of home growers, Lotus Nutrients makes exactly what you need, and makes it simple.
Let's travel through how.
What does soil provide that hydroponics setups don't?
Using soil as a medium might be considered the beginner's approach to growing cannabis, but even the most dedicated hydro-enthusiasts have to admit it does have the edge in a few areas.
Soil can contain (and sustain if added post-facto) helpful microbes like:
Carnivorous Nematodes
These vicious yet tiny predators go after harmful root eating larvae with extreme prejudice.
Cyanobacteria
Bacteria that can photosynthesize falls into the category of cyanobacteria. Helpful species in this kingdom like the rhizobium family fix essential macronutrient Nitrogen into the soil to be taken up by the plants in it.
Fungivorous/Carnivorous fungi
Not all fungal growth in soil is bad! Crop-killers, like the root-rot causing fusarium family, can be consumed by allies like trichoderma, and even cannibalized by other species of fusarium. Yet other fungi like green muscardine can even kill and consume root eating beetle larvae.
Yet more microbes decay the organic matter that makes up soil in its entirety–sucking in what used to be plant matter and breaking it down into more essential macronutrients like Phosphorus, Nitrogen, and Sulfur.
This continual breaking down is what gives plants grown in soil natural leverage. Hydroponics represent a breakthrough in cannabis growth, but their natural place is in soil. Soil easily anchors roots without the potential pitfalls of improperly applied LECA or rockwool.
It's this simplicity that keeps even advanced growers sticking with soil to begin with. It's portable, cheaper to set up, and easy to get going.
But you’re growing hydroponic chronic for a reason. Despite the initial costs and learning curve, once you master your bubbles and buckets, you avoid the pitfalls of soil like:
Slower Growing
Soil is more natural, as proponents say, but what's natural and what's easiest for human harvest don't always go hand in hand. That's why cannabis has hundreds of strains after all. And those thicker-than-your-wrists stalks that you see in big outdoor grows take time! Hydroponic cannabis, and the strains most amenable to it trade tree like all-over growth for speed from seed to harvest.
Pest Control
Helpful microbes can come in soil…but so can harmful ones. Aspergillus and fusarium (black mold and one cause of root rot) live in soil and spread through contaminated tools, unsanitized pots, and even unwashed hands! Getting a handle on these is a huge hassle for soil growers–and though hydroponic growing doesn't mean there's no need to quarantine new plants or sterilize tools, it is undoubtedly easier to conduct control methods with watery media.
What are the Advantages of Growing Cannabis Hydroponically?
Whether you're just starting out or have been growing exclusively with hydro for years, you may not be fully aware of all the pros to this method of growing!
Hydroponic setups allow for bigger yields in a couple of different ways. Firstly the soil-less system allows the best hydroponic nutrients for cannabis full access to the absorbent roots! That means absolutely no nutrients lost to microbes within the soil, or carried down and out through gravity if a little too much water runs through pot drainage. With hydro, your grow gets literally every ounce of the nutrients you give it, and that means you get 100% of the growth that those nutrients help to impart.
Without any need for the recommended five gallon pots for each plant, growing hydroponically allows for more plants per space–also leading to bigger yields by quantity. Once your clones are started, from a mother or by order, the possibilities for giant harvests grow!
Conservation of water is also key in hydroponics. No water is lost through drainage, nor the same kind of evaporation that takes place in soil–and even though a lot of water is required up front, only the most negligent of growers will ever see the quantities in their setup dip below an inch.
Faster growth than in soil is also expected, again due to the direct contact of nutrients with roots, and lack of competition for absorption.
Awareness of just how much hydroponics can do for a grower is key to full understanding and ongoing respect for this method. Keeping these pros front-of-mind can build your morale through maintenance, learning curves (yes even for experts), and trim jail. But how does Lotus Nutrients make the most of these advantages to embody the best hydroponic nutrients for cannabis?
