If you are looking for the best soil for marijuana, then this post can help you.
Before starting to grow your own marijuana plants, growers need to undergo several decision-making processes on how to successfully grow their plants. Besides considering an outdoor or an indoor grow, growers also need to choose whether they are planting in soil or in hydroponics.
Usually, most growers choose to grow their marijuana plants in soil for the first time. For practical reasons, this step provides newer growers an allowance for some common mistakes without risking a large amount of money in case they fail. However, choosing the best type of soil for your plants can add a little struggle if you don’t have adequate knowledge about what your plants need.
Nonetheless, this article will cover all the things you need to know about the best soil for your marijuana plants.
Soil Nutrients for Your Marijuana
In the wild, the soil naturally has lots of nutrients already since it is rich with organic materials like rotting plant parts, animal wastes and several helpful microorganisms to participate in the breaking down process.
However, this natural phenomenon is lacking in an indoor growing set-up. That is why it is very important for growers to sterilize their soil at the beginning and fill it with nutrients to ensure that your plants are safe and gets only the nutrients they need to become healthy.
Although potting soil mix appropriate for cannabis can be bought at your local gardening center, it is very essential that you know what’s in it—just in case you decide to make your own.
3 Essential Nutrients Your Marijuana Plants Need
The best soil for marijuana and any other plant contains NPK – Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K).
Nitrogen
Almost all plants need Nitrogen to aid them in chlorophyll production which is vital in the process of photosynthesis. A marijuana plant deficient of Nitrogen slowly starts to turn yellow and die when not given an immediate attention.
A Nitrogen deficiency can be corrected with the help of fertilizers high in N in the N-P-K ratio. However, if you want to prevent it, make sure to always follow correct watering and feeding schedule to guarantee that you’ll grow a healthy marijuana plant.
Phosphorus
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient used by your marijuana in every phases of your plants’ growth. When a marijuana plant becomes deficient of this nutrient, you will notice its leaves will have occasional stains of brown or bronze splotches and they will start to curl downwards.
To address the problem of phosphorus deficiency, make sure you take care of your plants roots and also check for the pH of your soil regularly as this is commonly a result from root damage due to incorrect pH of the soil.
Potassium
Potassium is a vital nutrient for transporting water in every plant part. Also, it is very important in the production of healthy and big buds. It is also responsible for photosynthesis, growth of thick and healthy stems, and it is also essential in fighting off plant diseases.
When a marijuana plant is deficient in Potassium, the leaves develop necrotic spots and eventually, the plant dies. Keep track of your watering and feeding schedule to ensure that your plants get all the nutrients and hydration they need.
In order to achieve a healthy marijuana grow, you should master the right balance of each nutrients your plants need. Marijuana needs high levels of Nitrogen during its vegetative growth while they require a little of Nitrogen and more of Potassium and Phosphorus when they are in their flowering stage. Even so, there are still a lot of nutrients your plants needs to help them grow and produce healthy buds.
Soil Mix for your Marijuana Plants
Preparing your own soil mix is pretty much easy if you’re particular with the ratios. In fact, a well prepared soil can even turn your marijuana into the best tasting ones.
Before you start, it is important to consider that marijuana plants need different amounts of nutrients during the course of their growth cycle. So this means that you will also have to adjust your ratios of nutrients and other soil additions in every stage your plants are in.
The first step is to always choose the best base soil because this will serve as the top soil that will initially supply all the essential requirements your plants will need to survive. The idea is to supply your plants with enough nutrients without overwhelming them with nutrients that are still not needed while they grow. A balanced amount of perlite, turf and worm meal will do during the early stages while during vegetative and flowering stages, you will have to balance ratios of turf, compost and worm meal to encourage healthy growth for your plants.
In addition, liquid fertilizers can be the best way to add nutrients in the soil while your plants are growing. The good news is, you can even make them yourself. However, if you’re a little nervous about burning or overwhelming your plants with nutrients, you can opt for commercially prepared fertilizers available in the market.
Using high quality soil in your marijuana plants will make you produce a high quality yield of potent harvest.