Why you should not use Grow Boosters or Extra Nutrients

[Josh]

Good Morning GrowRoom420.

I keep hearing and people asking what kind of nutrients to use in flower. But do you really need them?

Overdoing it with nutrients and grow boosters is one of the most often made mistakes when cultivating cannabis. Learn how to use nutrients and grow boosters properly and why “less” is often more when you want to grow cannabis successfully.

If you are a cannabis grower who visits grow supply stores in person, or via the internet, you probably know just how many growing products exist out there. The sheer number of options can be overwhelming. Many companies feature a wide selection, from basic nutrients and fertilisers to grow boosters, bud enhancers and additives galore - not to mention the many other plant-enhancing supplements you could possibly imagine.

Quite often, the grower isn’t just advised to purchase a product or two for their operation. Instead, many of these companies recommend buying a lot of merchandise to make it seem like you can’t go another day without the latest (and most expensive) trend in cannabis plant care.

From that point of view, you can’t really blame growers when they fall for the hype and then, despite their best intentions, literally end up loving their plants to death! Frequent overfeeding and the administration of too many nutrients can cause more problems than they solve - an issue many new cultivators fall victim to.


Growth Problems from excess nutrients and improper nutrient balance

Considering that nutrient products are highly concentrated and that young plants are especially susceptible to incoming materials, it doesn’t take much to create a harmful imbalance and destroy your crop. Such excessive nutrients can cause all sorts of problems, including root and nutrient burn. When this happens, the roots or the leaves of your plant appear “burnt,” sustaining yellow and black discolourations.

Instances like these may urge you to go out and buy another product to fix the problem, but resist this desire! If your plants are suffering from root burn or nutrient burn, the first thing you should do is stop giving them anything and flush the plants.


Less is always Better!


Some less experienced growers think that cannabis requires some extraordinary skills, as well as a ton of different products. This is a common misconception that could not be further from the truth. Overdoing it, whether this means overwatering or packing your plants with unnecessary additives is a seemingly small mistake with giant repercussions. The good thing is, these slip-ups can easily be avoided!

A seasoned grower will inform you that some basic nutrients, the right amount of light and proper watering is (mostly) all it takes for a successful cultivation cycle. Even if some manufacturers claim their products “enhance” the flavour of your yield or make similar unsubstantiated claims, they often encourage the exact opposite effects.

The best case scenario when using certain unhelpful products will result in harsh or bitter tasting weed. The worst case scenario? Your entire crop starts shutting down plant by plant. If you really want to grow cannabis to achieve the most flavour and potency, you should keep things as simple and natural as possible.

When do you need special cannabis nutrients?

There are a few select cases where your plants may benefit from additional nutrients. NPK contained in potting soil doesn’t always last throughout the duration of a grow, but only for several weeks. While this will give your plants a good start, it may not be enough to achieve the kind of yields you are hoping for.

In such cases, you may want to consider administering nutrients after several weeks when the nutrients in the soil are mostly depleted. Once your plants have almost reached maturity, extra nutrients may give your crop a much-needed final kick during the flowering phase.

Some growers prefer to use unfertilised potting mix. This involves feeding your plants nutrients as soon as they are out of the seedling stage. This method allows experienced cultivators to regain more control over their crop, a helpful tactic to raise plants under unique growing conditions.

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE RIGHT BALANCE
When feeding nutrients to your cannabis plants, it's all about maintaining balance. More seasoned cultivators use their years of experience to “read” their plants, assessing what amount of nutrients to give. While this may sound complicated to novices, it is a skill that can be learned over multiple grow cycles, just by using your common sense.

So guys just keep it simple, don't go changing your nutrients halfway through the grow, only because someone told you "that's better". Less nutrients, easier to diagnose a problem and solve it. And most importantly - Don't be afraid to ask. That's why we're here to help!

Hey man, I just built my first dwc tub and planning on using it my next grow. I'm leaning towards using the lucas formula with the general hydroponics 3 part just to keep it nice and simple. But at the same time, a lot of growers are saying the lucas formula is way too stong for most plants. Any input on this?
Or do you have or know of a bulletproof nutrient line and feeding regimen that I could start with? I'm all ears
Also I should mention, I'll be using a chiller and RO water, so I'm sure I'll need a cal/mag supplement also?
Thanks in advance

Sent from my LGMP260 using Tapatalk

hi mate ive doe a few r/dwc grows with the canna aqua feed all you need is the vega flores and pk and just follow the guidelines on cannas website and you shouldnt have any issues

I'm doing dwc in a couple months and was looking to use canna nutes, what ec did you run during veg and flower and what weeks of flower did you use the pk? Thanks in advance

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[MrMan]

Hey man, I just built my first dwc tub and planning on using it my next grow. I'm leaning towards using the lucas formula with the general hydroponics 3 part just to keep it nice and simple. But at the same time, a lot of growers are saying the lucas formula is way too stong for most plants. Any input on this?
Or do you have or know of a bulletproof nutrient line and feeding regimen that I could start with? I'm all ears
Also I should mention, I'll be using a chiller and RO water, so I'm sure I'll need a cal/mag supplement also?
Thanks in advance

Sent from my LGMP260 using Tapatalk

hi mate ive doe a few r/dwc grows with the canna aqua feed all you need is the vega flores and pk and just follow the guidelines on cannas website and you shouldnt have any issues

I'm doing dwc in a couple months and was looking to use canna nutes, what ec did you run during veg and flower and what weeks of flower did you use the pk? Thanks in advance

Sent from my LGMP260 using Tapatalk

i dont measure ec or ph but here is the feed schedule i use ignore the boost cannazym can use rhizo in veg if you want and dont feel tied to those numbers but its a good starting point

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/ ... NNA_UK.pdf

http://www.canna-uk.com/growguide

[cannabeast_diary]

Can anybody suggest me when or how to use PK+ properly, when is best to add it on top of my A & B bloom? When pistols coming out or how.
Like at what week would i be start adding PK top up if i were growing a 10 weeks flowering plant?
Cheers.

[Clunge Muncher]

I'm going back to adding PK14/15 during week 5 and 6 for a 10 weeker, but you could start at week 4 at half strength then week 5 and 6 as should then week 7 at half strength again, then finish with A&B and ya Bloom till flush.
Theirs several people using it different times so theirs no set time to use it, just go in easy if you using it sooner.

Can anybody suggest me when or how to use PK+ properly, when is best to add it on top of my A & B bloom? When pistols coming out or how.
Like at what week would i be start adding PK top up if i were growing a 10 weeks flowering plant?
Cheers.

From Me Phone Enit..

[ShitsNgiggles]

So here is the thing. Different strains, even different pheno from the same strain will handle different levels of feeding. Over feeding has obvious symptoms, as does over watering.

I just use basic products, even growing in non soil substrates. My biggest budget item is pk13/14 (small bottle) and potassium silica. £20 roughly for both. Liquid potash, trace element powder, basic general, seaweed booster about £30. Enough for years of growing 5-6 plants every 4 months.

I've 20 liter x 3 part chelate for 8 x 2 m nft tray. I grow tomato and capsicum in there. Total cost £80 every 4 months.

You don't need all the pretty pics. You don't need an EC of 2 or greater during flower. You don't need 10 bottles of additives. Just know NPK. More N then p or k during vege and more p and k then enduring flower. Full trace elements are also needed.

Budget products from the nursery are not always bad. Just be aware of NPK values and use an EC wand. Don't get stuff with say N 40 P 15 K 20 unless you dilute the hell out of it. Always check with your wand. As you grow a strain you can see her needs with experience. Grow her a few times and it's dialed in.

[Hobbit]

I use Ionic products, almost exclusively for my clones and propagation so they get another vote. But also use Canna stuff, Old Timers and a few others too like Great White Shark. Depends what I am doing, and what medium I am growing in. Don't chase the fads but research the science behind certain things and do a cost to benefit evaluation. So in the case of Great White, the cost is really high for a very small amount of the powder but heck does it work, and a little goes a long long way. One little tub has lasted me more than two years and it is still three quarters full.

So to echo what Bulls is saying, what is key with growing is this. Less is more. Just as Bulls said.
Overfeeding, or over dosing a plant is a sure fire way to have a problem down the line.

Great thread Bulls.

Totally agree on the GWS, seems expensive but it goes a loooong way, even further if you culture it at home. I brew mine up with molasses for no more than 24hrs so 1 scoop becomes many scoops.

[Hobbit]

Budget products from the nursery are not always bad. Just be aware of NPK values and use an EC wand. Don't get stuff with say N 40 P 15 K 20 unless you dilute the hell out of it. Always check with your wand. As you grow a strain you can see her needs with experience. Grow her a few times and it's dialed in.

Which brand of fert would have those sorts of numbers mate?
Straight urea is only 6% more than the numbers your talking.

[Josh]

Budget products from the nursery are not always bad. Just be aware of NPK values and use an EC wand. Don't get stuff with say N 40 P 15 K 20 unless you dilute the hell out of it. Always check with your wand. As you grow a strain you can see her needs with experience. Grow her a few times and it's dialed in.

Which brand of fert would have those sorts of numbers mate?
Straight urea is only 6% more than the numbers your talking.

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[ShitsNgiggles]

Budget products from the nursery are not always bad. Just be aware of NPK values and use an EC wand. Don't get stuff with say N 40 P 15 K 20 unless you dilute the hell out of it. Always check with your wand. As you grow a strain you can see her needs with experience. Grow her a few times and it's dialed in.

Which brand of fert would have those sorts of numbers mate?
Straight urea is only 6% more than the numbers your talking.

Mate I've seen some crazy shit. Our favorite Monsanto put out something like this. A lawn fertilizer for golf course? Some yank on another forum wanted to know if it was good. Thrive general has an N vale of 25% available from bunnings lols. Have a look around especially lawn and general fertilizers. You and I wouldn't even look twice but some folks who are new Will. It's a broad statement yes, but it's true.

[Hobbit]

Been years since I used thrive , for obvious reasons. You do sound a bit like me i spend hours in Bunnings reading labels just because Im bored lol. Also being in the hort industry Its good to know whats out there. Most ferts hang around the 12-13% N, Im guessing most of the N in urea without having a label in front of me is going to be straight urea of which most will leach straight through. Ive never come across anything that high in P or K, as your probably aware P levels in fertilisers have been on the decrease for many years now. Your probably also aware that we refer to our Australian soils as P deficient and many natives are sensitive to it. Its not that our soils are P deff, its just a matter of knowing how to naturally unlock them. Enjoy your posts mate, keeps me on my toes.