Have you ever heard the saying, “Feed the soil, not the plants?” It’s a popular mantra within the organic gardening community, and it speaks volumes to the philosophy of building the soil food web that we mentioned in Part 1 of this series. In reality, a healthy organic substrate has everything it needs (with the exception of water) to give your plants what they require to provide abundance.
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However, by maintaining your soil with proper organic additives, you can drive production even further. In Part 3 of our Super Soil series, we go over popular organic soil amendments, feeding regiments, and a few tips and tricks for maximizing abundant soil life that will help give your cannabis garden the extra boost it needs to provide you with the highest quality yields possible.
Why Amend Your Super Soil Mix?
You already have this super-charged soil, so why continue to amend it over time? After all, it should feasibly have everything your cannabis plant would need for the continuation of its growth cycle, right?
While this is technically, true, amending your soil will continue to replenish and fortify new life within, thus strengthening the ever-important soil food web. Subsequently, a healthy and more biodiverse soil food web will help maintain the proper ratios of nutrient availability for your plants, provide a stronger and more resilient defense mechanism for pests and diseases, and protect your root system from potentially inclement conditions. Maintaining and amending your soil is the single most important step that an organic cannabis cultivator can take in ensuring a flawless crop.
Below are three proven methods you can use to amend your super soil.
Mulching
Simply put, mulching is the act of spreading organic material over the topsoil in your cannabis garden. Microbes are the lifeblood of a soil food web, and they love to feed on mulch.
This process is amazingly multifaceted in benefiting your garden by providing anaerobic decomposition (which will provide food for the web), top cover protection from elements such as weeds and pests, and temperature control for the soil life to stay happy and thriving. Furthermore, mulching has an amazing ability to retain water within your soil, allowing you to water less during feeding schedules and to not worry as much about drought conditions.
You can use just about any organic material for mulch, but a few that work exceptionally well are compost, straw, wood chips, or even processed harvested cannabis branches. Maintain between 1-5 inches of fresh mulch…
