# molasses in hydroponics?



## mobby420 (Dec 30, 2007)

can i use mollases when watering my plants in rockwool ? 

i am 3 weeks into flowering and would like to do everything possible to get those big juicy inflated looking calyxes

ive heard of lots of earth growers using them, but not hydro... so im askin the question!


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## sgtpeppr (Dec 30, 2007)

Go for it...but I would do it separately from you reservoir. I can't imagine molasses running through your plumbing system would be to good.....sticky. You could just feed them it manually.


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## jessesing315 (Dec 30, 2007)

you can use molasses for hydroponic but i would suggest a hydroponic supplement such as sugardaddy.


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## mobby420 (Dec 30, 2007)

i was originally looking for a supplement, but no one had any ideas so i thought of molasses, knowing a few earth growers that use it...... i just want something to help a little with the getting the bigs thick and juicy.... i already have a basic nutrient mix for flowering...


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## potroast (Dec 31, 2007)

Yeah, I've used it in hydro. When I was running B'Cuzz organic nutes, they call for their Flavor component during the second half of flowering, and it's mostly Beet Molasses. I use only 5ml/gallon of res nutes, added to regular flowering nutes. It causes the pH to rise daily, pretty dramatically, so you have to watch that.

I'm trying the Botanicare Sweet now, and haven't noticed any difference than without it.

What you actually want is Cane sugar and citric acid. Those 2 working together will do the trick. Those are the main ingredients in Sweet.

HTH


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## Brussels (Dec 31, 2007)

I have been using two organic Botanicare products in bubblers with great success. I feel that because they are organic products, adverse chemical interactions seldom occure. I use 'Pure Blend Pro Grow' and vegging has been vigorous and absolutely lush. I've used 1/4 oz/gal of water on cuttings for one week, and seedlings for three weeks, under 18/6 lights. I run it up to 1/2 oz/gal through one week after I flip to 12/12. I set pH at 5.3 to 5.6 for solutions changes, as checking in pH in bubblers will only frustrate you.

After one week at 12/12, I go to Botanicare's 'pureblend pro bloom' at 1/2 oz/gal, again running up to 3/4 oz/gal after one week. I remain at this solution for five weeks, give or take a little, just depending on the strain and flowering time. During the last week with Pro Bloom, I also add 1 oz of molasses to the solution and set pH. For the final week for a flush, I use only the molasses and water, going to 1 1/2 oz/gal with molassas. I've had some people scoff at my use of molassas, but i've used it with incredable results on organic outdoor grows, and now with my bubblers. You can see buds swell from day to day... There is never any "sticky stuff' like many ppl think. I clean my tub and airstones with every solution change anyway.
In the past, I have used other much more expensive solution mixes, with complicated formulas, but have now learned that "simple is good". Botanicare has worked very well for me, with few problems. And no, i dont work for, or sell this stuff. I simply grow very smooth and sweet smokin cannibis...B


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## pandabear (Dec 31, 2007)

Let me tell u a fatful story one that will live in imfamy,


First grow, 6 five foot budding plants, halfway through flower.


Enter the molassis in the res. 

Enter "THE DEMON"

plants rooted rotted within 2 days, it was to late to fix,


finally came to the ULTIMATE realization and chopped all 6 plants down, nothing was smokable.

Molassis in Hydro, i as absolutly not. maybe so professional surgary products maybe, but never again shall the deadly molssasis blob ever enter my babies roots, NEVER!!!!!!!!!!!


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## bongspit (Dec 31, 2007)

I use molasses in my soil grow, but I have read really bad things about molasses in hydro. It stops up pumps and I have read some posts from people that tried it in hydro and it turns the roots to slime....


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## towlie (Jan 2, 2008)

The grow-FAQ section of this site recommends throwing some pure vanilla, blueberry or whatever in 3-hours before harvest. Has anyone tried this with success???


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## Dowd1 (Jan 17, 2010)

ive used mollassess in my hydro unit now for 6 grows and not one problem. I introduced my plants to it almost from day one.My nutes are chemical and the mollasses are organic which i have read is suppossed to be a nono,And once again ive never had a problem.The mollasses are a source of complex carbohydrates for the plants using it in veg increases the stem thickness by almost double compared to plants grown without.
I dont know where you guys come up with mollasses in hydro is bad.old boy who introduced his plants to it the third week of bloom and they got root rot and everything else did something else wrong.ive never seen mollasses destroy any plants only improve them,no matter what way you go( organic or chemical) sugars are a necesary part of your plants growth and should be present in all stages of growth


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## Dowd1 (Jan 17, 2010)

My pumps are strong as could be.They are taken apart after every grow and are cleaned very well.Ive never noticed any sticky parts or gumming up anywhere in the pump.As for the roots i have all white root system with a tint of brown that washes away with a byweekly flushing with clearex.I also use hydrogen peroxide once a week which probably helps keep things inline.I put my plants into bud 10 days ago and they are more than twice the size,How can anyone say mollasses in hydro is bad?


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## whythef*not? (Feb 2, 2010)

Dowd1 said:


> My pumps are strong as could be.They are taken apart after every grow and are cleaned very well.Ive never noticed any sticky parts or gumming up anywhere in the pump.As for the roots i have all white root system with a tint of brown that washes away with a byweekly flushing with clearex.I also use hydrogen peroxide once a week which probably helps keep things inline.I put my plants into bud 10 days ago and they are more than twice the size,How can anyone say mollasses in hydro is bad?


I would be willing to bet that molasses can help to make your res more susceptible to things like root rot or other root-based diseases.
If it doesn't work for you in hydro, your res is probably too hot or too stagnant. Or you're not using the right molasses.
I've had bad luck with it in the past, but I kept trying and finally got the hang of it.


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## morrisgreenberg (Feb 2, 2010)

the original poster asked if he could feed molasses in RW, i would not do this personally and its not worth it yet, since RW holds onto salts and water, it will and should hold onto the sweet sticky stuff, attracting bugs. most people only want the best for thier garden and dont fully understand why sweets are used, it is not used primarily for flavor but during late flower and if used during final flush it will alter the flavor of your smoke. the genteleman who posted about root rot is dead on, if you add molasses to your rez you have about a 50/50 chance of getting root rot, this molasses will feed bacterias, this is good if you have beneficials in your soil and bad if you have bad bacterias in water, this can make your res a very hospitable place for these bad bacteria to flourish in. the whole idea is too add carbohydrates to the plant, thru minerals, water and sunlight and thru the process of photosynthesis plants make they're own food by way of turning all those elements into carbs, thus giving the plant energy, now if you took some sugar daddy, sweet, or floranectar which are perfectly watered down and made from about 17% sugar cane this would be just right for hydro. this will add energy for your plants, who wouldnt want to give the plants a boost? makes life easier for the plants and if you like a sweet tasting final product go for it. so sweetners for hydro and molasses or sugar water for soil.


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## OldSoul777 (Jun 9, 2015)

Dowd1 said:


> ive used mollassess in my hydro unit now for 6 grows and not one problem. I introduced my plants to it almost from day one.My nutes are chemical and the mollasses are organic which i have read is suppossed to be a nono,And once again ive never had a problem.The mollasses are a source of complex carbohydrates for the plants using it in veg increases the stem thickness by almost double compared to plants grown without.
> I dont know where you guys come up with molasses in hydro is bad.old boy who introduced his plants to it the third week of bloom and they got root rot and everything else did something else wrong. ive never seen molasses destroy any plants only improve them,no matter what way you go( organic or chemical) sugars are a necessary part of your plants growth and should be present in all stages of growth


I know this an old thread but I think those who say their roots rotted are just mistaken. I thought the same thing when I used it. the roots were slimy and brown but if i rinsed them off really well you would start to see the molasses is covering the roots giving it a rotted appearance. I let it run for 2 days with a nasty ass foam in my res till I decided to do away with it. after a few days without it and another water cange my roots were white again. I dont use it anymore in hydro because of the mess. I use great white and was told that its counter productive to use molasses with beneficial bacteria. I dont know how true that is but I stopped using it in hydro just the same.


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## DirtyMcCurdy (Jun 10, 2015)

Dowd1 said:


> ive used mollassess in my hydro unit now for 6 grows and not one problem. I introduced my plants to it almost from day one.My nutes are chemical and the mollasses are organic which i have read is suppossed to be a nono,And once again ive never had a problem.The mollasses are a source of complex carbohydrates for the plants using it in veg increases the stem thickness by almost double compared to plants grown without.
> I dont know where you guys come up with mollasses in hydro is bad.old boy who introduced his plants to it the third week of bloom and they got root rot and everything else did something else wrong.ive never seen mollasses destroy any plants only improve them,no matter what way you go( organic or chemical) sugars are a necesary part of your plants growth and should be present in all stages of growth


Plants produce all the sugars they need. They, themselves cannot even break down complex sugars. Soil growers can* use it to feed to the micro-organisms* in the soil, which then aid in nutrient uptake. Just becasue it doesn't do any harm to your plants that doesn't mean its doing any good. The part where you say that using it increases the stem size to almost double... I call bullshit. Again, its used to feed bacteria and fungi, which then help your plants. It itself does nothing for your plant.


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## OldSoul777 (Jun 11, 2015)

*Best additive or supplement in my opinion is a kelp, fulvic, hummic blend. Thats all I add besides my 3 part, cal-mag and a 
Mycorrhizae + Trichoderma blend. I have yet to try bloom boosters or vegging booster and think the blend I use seems to serve that purpose in both flower and veg. Very noticeable difference when not used! I add with every watering. Very cheap if you buy from kelp4less.com. Awesome site! I have no affiliation. Once you use it you wont be able to do without. 20bux will get you enough mix to make 1 gallon concentrate used 5ml per gallon. *


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## DirtyMcCurdy (Jun 11, 2015)

OldSoul777 said:


> *Best additive or supplement in my opinion is a kelp, fulvic, hummic blend. Thats all I add besides my 3 part, cal-mag and a
> Mycorrhizae + Trichoderma blend. I have yet to try bloom boosters or vegging booster and think the blend I use seems to serve that purpose in both flower and veg. Very noticeable difference when not used! I add with every watering. Very cheap if you buy from kelp4less.com. Awesome site! I have no affiliation. Once you use it you wont be able to do without. 20bux will get you enough mix to make 1 gallon concentrate used 5ml per gallon. *


Agree with the kelp and humic. I think the benefits of humic, or fulvic, acids are underrated.


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