12/29/2021
Weāve had some funš¤Ŗ recent discussions with some gardeners and growers on the use of molasses in gardens and grows, and we wanted to help clear the air.
From these recent talks, there seems to be some disconnection on the benefits of molasses to plants and the soil ecosystem, and we want to take the time to help clear up some of this info to help others with science.
To begin, yes molassesāor unsulfured blackstrap molasses to most of usācan feed soil organisms as worms and bacteria, as well as mycorrhizae yeast and fungi in the rhizome (or root zone), but it also does offer much more.
Starting at the plant level for a moment, molasses can provide ready available nutrients to plants too. A typical blackstrap molasses N-P-K, for example, might be a 1-0-3 to a 1-1-5, not including the calcium, magnesium, and iron micronutrients that are richly available, and not mentioning those great vitamins too.
However, typically a 1% concentration dictated per a molasses label or in a nute product, offers a TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) of ~10,000 ppm (parts per million) of that particular nutrient type like Nitrogen, Phosphate, Potash, etc.
ā”ļø This is equivalent to an EC (Electric conductivity) of ~20,000 mS/cm (mili-Siemens per centimeter) per a single product.
š¤ Now, this is where we will breakdown the feeding regiment and sciences furtherā¦ If you consider, at max a grower may feed a plant in veg and flower an EC of ~1.0- 3.0 mS/cm (~500-1500 ppm), then molasses technically provides more than just a very small amount of nutrients directly to your plant when properly diluted and used to feed the rhizome ecosystems.
The carbohydrates (or sugars) and nutrients in molasses will help feed the rhizome ecosystem for other organisms as microorganisms, but it also helps the plant quite a bit too. It can help with everything from swelling, aroma š, and taste š
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