Ive done alot of research the past few days about using organic nutrients and i still dont quiet understand how to use them, ive read all the different methods that could be used from using teas to mixing it in with the soil. Now what i want to know is if i use a natural organic medium will i have to still add nutes throught its growth cycle and is using a natural grow medium better then using a organic soil medium or is there even a difference? iono can someone please help me out and explain this to me.
How do you feed organic nutes to your plants and does the npk ratio matter?
- Thread starter weedsley
- Start date
Kalyx
Active Member
Just read threads here. There are two main methods at each end of a huge and mostly personal preference related spectrum:
1. more of a soilless (less npk in it) mix with heavier feedings of liquid concentrates in bottles made by nutrient companies and labeled organic. This method is more common and easier for newbies.
2. a true soil which is thoroughly amended with all npk a plant will need once the final transplant is done. Just add pure water.
Basically organic nutes are larger molecules that are 'fed' (either via soluble liquids or a amended mix or by top dressing or all 3) to a root zone that is as alive as possible with beneficial microbes, this is called using the soil food web in a container. These 'bennies' are delivered to our containers via inoculant products and via compost as well as AACT (actively aerated compost tea - there are whole threads just on tea here as well) and actually are responsible for the breakdown of the organic nutrients into plant available forms that the root can uptake (usually with the aid of mycorrhizae a symbiotic fungus). Synthetic nutrients are ionic meaning already root absorbable and skip all the steps of the soil food web. Using synth does not require a living medium so is usually run in a soilless style mix. Either way you choose to fertilize, the soil food web makes cannabis danker.
To address your question; I think you are calling a 'natural grow medium' soilless, and calling a 'organic soil medium' a true living soil. Yes there is a big difference, mainly in how the nutes (npk + secondary + trace ) are delivered to the plants; in soilless it comes from your water and is technically a hydro technique, in true living soil the mix truly feeds the plant facilitated by microbes = the soil food web. That should help you start reading in the right places, its a deep rabbit hole of danker meds you are delving into here...
1. more of a soilless (less npk in it) mix with heavier feedings of liquid concentrates in bottles made by nutrient companies and labeled organic. This method is more common and easier for newbies.
2. a true soil which is thoroughly amended with all npk a plant will need once the final transplant is done. Just add pure water.
Basically organic nutes are larger molecules that are 'fed' (either via soluble liquids or a amended mix or by top dressing or all 3) to a root zone that is as alive as possible with beneficial microbes, this is called using the soil food web in a container. These 'bennies' are delivered to our containers via inoculant products and via compost as well as AACT (actively aerated compost tea - there are whole threads just on tea here as well) and actually are responsible for the breakdown of the organic nutrients into plant available forms that the root can uptake (usually with the aid of mycorrhizae a symbiotic fungus). Synthetic nutrients are ionic meaning already root absorbable and skip all the steps of the soil food web. Using synth does not require a living medium so is usually run in a soilless style mix. Either way you choose to fertilize, the soil food web makes cannabis danker.
To address your question; I think you are calling a 'natural grow medium' soilless, and calling a 'organic soil medium' a true living soil. Yes there is a big difference, mainly in how the nutes (npk + secondary + trace ) are delivered to the plants; in soilless it comes from your water and is technically a hydro technique, in true living soil the mix truly feeds the plant facilitated by microbes = the soil food web. That should help you start reading in the right places, its a deep rabbit hole of danker meds you are delving into here...