CEA Tech Tips: Boosting Root Development in Cannabis Crops

Cannabis growers are a diverse group. Some grow hemp, others grow marijuana. Some produce organic crops, others use conventional products. But, all cannabis growers have one thing in common: They need healthy roots as quickly as possible.

Proper moisture management is the key to good root growth. Early in propagation, maintain high humidity around seeds and cuttings without adding moisture to the media, which should be wet but not saturated. As roots develop, careful irrigation maintains even media in the wet to moist state. Once roots reach the bottom of the cells, allow the media to dry to the lower end of moist, widening the moisture cycle as the roots continue to develop. Media should never be allowed to reach a dry stage during propagation.

Essential Plus 1-0-1

To boost root development, Griffin’s GGSPro technical team encourages cannabis growers to utilize Essential 1-0-1. Essential 1-0-1 is a liquid, nutritional supplement containing humic acid, yucca (natural wetting agent) and amino acids in a solution with a very low nutritional charge. This OMRI-listed, organic product has no pesticidal activity or claims, which means it is universally acceptable for use on cannabis. Essential 1-0-1 has a proven track record of speeding and increasing root growth in a wide variety of crops, and we are seeing the same thing in cannabis. Cultivators report stronger root growth and positive impacts on secondary compounds. Apply once as roots start to develop in propagation and again at transplant at 32 oz/100 gal. Many growers realized benefits when repeating application every four weeks throughout the crop. Essential 1-0-1 is compatible with most water-soluble fertilizers, which means you can blend it in your concentrated stock tanks and inject right along with your fertilizer. Or, mix it at final rate in your batch reservoirs.

Add Essential 1-0-1 to your SOP, watch your moisture levels and build roots more quickly for ongoing crop health.