Maximum Yield Cannabis USA March/April 2019 | Page 21

ESSENTIAL
NUTRIENTS
FOR
GROWING
CANNABIS
All plants, including cannabis, require certain
essential nutrients to grow healthy, strong, and
productive. Chris Bond identifies these nutrients,
how many are needed, and their role in development
so you can grow the most fruitful cannabis plants.
C
by Chris Bond
annabis may have thousands of unique properties, but
like any other plant it requires the same essential nutri-
ents to properly grow and produce the desired yield of buds.
Plants need relatively large amounts of macronutrients, lesser
amounts of secondary nutrients, and small to trace amounts
of micronutrients to germinate, grow, flower, and produce
seed. All told, there are about 20 essential nutrients needed for
optimal cannabis growth and development.
A nutrient is considered essential when it meets certain
criteria. It must be directly involved in plant nutrition, be a
vital component to the plant’s life cycle such that without it,
the plant would die or not be able to perform one or more of
its necessary functions, and it must be unique enough that no
other nutrient can replace it or perform the same function. Let’s
examine which nutrients found in nature are essential for the
cultivation of top-shelf cannabis.
Essential Macronutrients
The group of nutrients needed in large quantities by plants
are collectively known as macronutrients. Some of these are
provided by the environment and some are provided by or
need to be added to the soil. Oxygen (O), hydrogen (H), and
carbon (C) are provided by air and rain and are sometimes not
included in discussions of essential nutrients because they
are not elements that are often lacking, despite being needed
in large amounts, and are not ones that are components of
any fertilizer or commercially available nutrient package.
The other macronutrients that are needed and can be added
to soils or other media are nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and
potassium (K). Most commercial formulations of dry or liquid
fertilizers will have three numbers on their packaging. These
three numbers refer to the percentage by volume of N, P and K.
Each of these individual essential nutrients performs a differ-
ent but vital function to cannabis plants. What follows is an
oversimplification of the exact roles of each nutrient (in some
cases, we still don’t know what all essential nutrients do
and how exactly they interact with one another). Nitrogen is
needed for the development of foliage and the production of
proteins. Phosphorus is critical for root, flower, and seed devel-
opment. Potassium is a requirement of overall plant health
and aids in water absorption.
Maximum Yield
21