Best Compost and Fertilizers for Outdoor Marijuana Plants

Now that marijuana is legal across most of the United States, more people than ever have access to the recreational and medical benefits of this age-old natural herb. Still, news write-ups say dispensaries throughout the nation may be a bit slow to expand their inventories. At the same time, not all cannabis seed strains are going to be available through public sources.

Because of all this, people from California to Minnesota are increasingly considering the benefits of growing their own cannabis crops at home. Doing so gives them greater freedom of choice over the strains they use, more control over the quality of their buds, and a wide range of other advantages.

While numerous factors go into growing marijuana, understanding the best compost and fertilizers for outdoor marijuana plants will undoubtedly help you get more out of your crop. Whether you grow in a greenhouse in Colorado, or just in your back garden in Florida, there are several options are available and not all of them are created equally.

Hashing Out Marijuana’s Nutritional Needs

In essence, marijuana needs a blend of 17 crucial vitamins and minerals. Each one plays a role in how the plants grow, branch out, flower, and become ready for harvest. They also have a hand in bud development and potency.

Some vitamins and minerals fall into the category of macronutrients. This means plants need them in larger quantities, and they’re present in higher concentrations throughout plants’ bodies. Others are micronutrients, meaning plants only require them in small amounts.

Three essential macronutrients are carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Plants get these from air and water. All the other nutrients come from the soil, and this is where fertilizer becomes incredibly important. Three of the most critical soil-derived macronutrients for marijuana plants are nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, or N, P, and K.

• Nitrogen: Nitrogen is one of the primary components in chlorophyll, the chemical plants use to complete the process of photosynthesis. This element helps keep cannabis growing during its vegetative stage. It also aids in maintaining the plant’s DNA structure. Nitrogen fosters all the desired traits of the strain you choose to grow.
• Phosphorus: Though plants need phosphorus throughout their lifecycles, this element is most crucial during the flowering stage. It helps buds develop and grow and is partially responsible for increasing their THC and CBD concentrations.
• Potassium: Potassium work in several ways to promote plant growth and health. It’s important for nutrient exchange and helps plants generate food and energy. It also ensures they’re able to store excess energy for use when they need it.

Outdoor marijuana plants rely on their soil for the nutrients they need with the exceptions of hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon. Some soil is optimal for plant growth because it already contains all the nutrients your Arizona cannabis garden needs to thrive. Nutrient-rich soil is generally dark brown or almost black in color, and it feels a bit soft to the touch. In other cases, though, you have to intervene.