What is Molasses

Molasses is better known as black treacle in the United Kingdom that is made from sugar. It is dark and very thick like a syrup. When you separate the sweet crystals from the syrup, you will get the so-called molasses. This is often used as food sweetener and flavoring, too.

Molasses come in many different types that have varied levels of sweetness and in which some may not be allowed for growing plants. Those that are made with low-quality sometimes contain dangerous and unnecessary ingredients like chemicals and other stuff that can destroy your crops. So, it is better to be careful when buying one in the market for planting.

Five Different Types of Molasses

1. Cooking Molasses

The right molasses for preparing food, which is a combination of Fancy and Blackstrap type of molasses. This is the version that’s not so sweet but darker in color, too. Cooking molasses is best for baked products.

2. Blackstrap Molasses

The finished product of processing sugar that has a very dark color and tastes very bitter. Refined sugars that produce that thick, syrupy liquid is what creates this type of molasses. Instead of using it for food, Blackstrap molasses is used for making alcohol and in livestock, especially for horses.

3. Fancy Molasses

Like what the word “fancy” means, this type is perfect as an accessory or added design and flavoring to food such as topping to biscuits and bread. It is also called as Gold Star because once you use it for baking, its color becomes light-colored and sweet.

4. Unsulphured Molasses

The most favorite product made from 12 to 15 month-old sugar cane. It also features the best-tasting flavor of all.

5. Lite Molasses

Lighter in color and up to 40% less sugary than others. When you add this to any food, the flavor tends to be more subtle, too. This is taken from sugar after its first boiling. Cookies that contain Lite Molasses are smoother and softer as well.

Molasses for Cannabis

Now, another topic that links to the popularity and versatility of molasses is about its usefulness in growing cannabis plants. Although there are already some existing supplements available in the market for the healthy growth of weeds, molasses’ rich flavors and easy preparation caused it to be an interesting subject for cannabis growing studies and experiments.

Two different ways to use molasses as a supplement to weed growing is now known to many growers and which seemed effective. Below is a quick list of all possible ways to do that in your garden.

Method #1 – Regular Feeding Schedule

Here you can just add molasses to the soil while preparing it for the seeds to be implanted. This can be a great start for your precious cannabis to live a healthy plant life, too.

Method #2 – Water Schedule

Molasses may be dissolved into the water you will be using for your crops and just pour it like you always do to your plants. This is the easiest way to go, as well.

How to Prepare Molasses Supplement

How to prepare such solutions made with molasses is the next thing that you might be wondering about. It’s just as simple as when you are applying it. 

Use molasses of 1 to 2 tablespoon in every 5 liters of water. Lukewarm water is better to be used so that molasses will dissolve easily, too. Putting just the right amount or maybe small doses also avoids the plants from feeling stressed or overwhelmed, particularly those that are still on its early stage of growth. 

To use molasses as a supplement is better done earlier than later because that allows the plants to adapt to its effect sooner than when it is already a little older. Added molasses to your plant’s soil together with other artificial nutrient feeds fine as long as you can monitor and manage the pH level of the soil. 

Why Molasses is Good for Cannabis Growing

Good soil is equivalent to a good harvest. It must be packed with the appropriate minerals, nutrients, and natural substances that will support its healthy, growing all the way. Also, your cannabis plants specifically need nutrients and minerals like phosphorus, nitrogen, calcium, and iron, to name a few. 

Although soils naturally are made to provide those elements, it is unavoidable sometimes to lack one or two of those. As a solution to that, molasses can be used to supplement what is missing. At the same time, molasses are a favorite delicacy of microorganisms that live in soils so that it can, in return, nurture the plant in it. So basically, molasses are not meant for the plant directly but for the soil where it is planted to stay healthy.

Other than that, molasses for cannabis is also beneficial to the other crops that you are growing.

• Protects the plant from insect and pests that ruin your crops
• Prevents pathogens and other harmful elements from living in the soil
• Enhances the soil’s ability to hold water better
• Avoids the danger of having too much salt in the soil that hinders healthy nutrient absorption

Other Health Benefits of Molasses

1. Serves as an effective antioxidant – specifically, blackstrap molasses are better than refined sugar and corn syrup that protects the body from cancer, heart and lung problems as well.
2. Helps in fighting iron deficiency – iron is better achieved from this substance instead of red meat and other fatty foods. Such minerals, including magnesium, are useful in preventing blood clots, menstrual cramps, and healthy muscles in the uterus.
3. Helps in managing weight and avoiding obesity – the properties that molasses contains are found to be effective in managing gain weight by lowering the calorie content in the body.
4. Provides a high amount of calcium – again, blackstrap molasses is perfect for calcium needs that are healthy for the bones, teeth, and protection from diseases concerning the bone. 
5. Stabilizes the level of blood sugar in the body – aids people with diabetes by slowing down the digestion of carbs and thus results in lower insulin to be produced. It also helps the body to avoid storing too many fats into the bloodstream.
6. Promotes healthy growing hair – through its extracts, the hair benefits from consuming molasses and becomes softer and well-conditioned. Graying is also prevented despite the aging of some consumers.

Final Thoughts

There is nothing wrong with using organic and non-organic supplements to support and maintain the healthy growth of your cannabis crops. But, if you want it to be easier and less expensive, this is the way to go; use molasses for cannabis, which you can do it yourself at home. Use molasses partnered with the perfect soil you can find and discover how healthier your harvest can be in the coming days. It’s probably going to be one of your most memorable and rewarding experience, knowing that you made the right decision for your crops.