Whats The Deal With Molasses?

[sknkwrks]

ok people whats the deal with molasses I have heard many times of people useing it but never met anyone that actualy used it. Whats its purpous? does it realy work? If so how much do You use and when should you use it?

[lkline300]

teaspoon per gallon at flower,does wonders.

[Ian]

MOLASSES

There are three main types of Molasses:-

Unsulphured

Sulphured

Blackstrap

 

Unsulphured Molasses are the finest quality, they are taken from the juice of sun-ripened Sugar Cane whihc is then clarified and concentrated.

 

Sulphured - These are made from green sugar that has not been matured enough, it is treated with sulphur fumes during the sugar extracting process. It then goes through a first boiling process - the Molasses from this first boil are the best as only a small amount of sugar has been removed. The process then goes into it's second boil which makes the Molasses a much darker colour, they are also not as sweet and are not distinctively flavoured.

 

Blackstrap - These are Molasses that have gone through the third boil. There main use is in the manufacturer of Cattle Food and Industrial Uses. Saying that these Molasses are extremely high in Iron and are also used in the health food industry.

 

Molasses and our plants!

Molasses is a syrupy, thick juice created by the processing of either sugar beets or the sugar cane plant. Depending on the definition used, Sweet Sorghum also qualifies as a molasses, although technically it’s a thickened syrup more akin to Maple Syrup than to molasses. The grade and type of molasses depends on the maturity of the sugar cane or beet and the method of extraction. The different molasses’ have names like: first molasses, second molasses, unsulphured molasses, sulphured molasses, and blackstrap molasses. For gardeners the sweet syrup can work as a carbohydrate source to feed and stimulate microorganisms. And, because molasses (average NPK 1-0-5) contains potash, sulfur, and many trace minerals, it can serve as a nutritious soil amendment. Molasses is also an excellent chelating agent.

 

Several grades and types of molasses are produced by sugar cane processing. First the plants are harvested and stripped of their leaves, and then the sugar cane is usually crushed or mashed to extract it’s sugary juice. Sugar manufacturing begins by boiling cane juice until it reaches the proper consistency, it is then processed to extract sugar. This first boiling and processing produces what is called first molasses, this has the highest sugar content of the molasses because relatively little sugar has been extracted from the juice. Green (unripe) sugar cane that has been treated with sulphur fumes during sugar extraction produces sulphured molasses. The juice of sun-ripened cane which has been clarified and concentrated produces unsulphured molasses. Another boiling and sugar extraction produces second molasses which has a slight bitter tinge to its taste.

 

Further rounds of processing and boiling yield dark colored blackstrap molasses, which is the most nutritionally valuable of the various types of molasses. It is commonly used as a sweetner in the manufacture of cattle and other animal feeds, and is even sold as a human health supplement. Any kind of molasses will work to provide benefit for soil and growing plants, but blackstrap molasses is the best choice because it contains the greatest concentration of sulfur, iron and micronutrients from the original cane material. Dry molasses is something different still. It’s not exactly just dried molasses either, it’s molasses sprayed on grain residue which acts as a “carrier”.

 

Molasses production is a bit different when it comes to the sugar beet. You might say “bird’s know beets” because one of our flock grew up near Canada’s “sugar beet capitol” in Alberta. Their family worked side by side with migrant workers tending the beet fields. The work consisted of weeding and thinning by hand, culling the thinner and weaker plants to leave behind the best beets. After the growing season and several hard frosts - which increase the sugar content - the beets are harvested by machines, piled on trucks and delivered to their destination.

 

At harvest time, a huge pile of beets will begin to build up outside of the sugar factory that will eventually dwarf the factory itself in size. Gradually throughout the winter the pile will diminish as the whole beets are ground into a mash and then cooked. The cooking serves to reduce and clarify the beet mash, releasing huge columns of stinky (but harmless) beet steam into the air. Sometimes, if the air is cold enough, the steam will fall to the ground around the factory as snow!

 

As we’ve already learned, in the of sugar cane the consecutive rounds of sugar manufacturing produce first molasses and second molasses. With the humble sugar beet, the intermediate syrups get names like high green and low green, it’s only the syrup left after the final stage of sugar extraction that is called molasses. After final processing, the leftover sugar beet mash is dried then combined with the thick black colored molasses to serve as fodder for cattle. Sugar beet molasses is also used to sweeten feed for horses, sheep, chickens, etc.

 

Sugar beet molasses is only considered useful as an animal feed additive because it has fairly high concentrations of many salts including calcium, potassium, oxalate, and chloride. Despite the fact that it’s not suitable for human consumption and some consider it to be an industrial waste or industrial by-product, molasses produced from sugar beets makes a wonderful plant fertilizer. While humans may reject beet molasses due to the various “extras” the sugar beet brings to the table, to our plant’s it’s a different story. Sugar beet molasses is usually fairly chemical free as well, at least in our experience. Although farmers generally fertilize their fields in the spring using the various arrays of available fertilizers, weed chemicals (herbicides) are not used for this crop due to the beet plant’s relatively delicate nature.

 

There is at least one other type of “molasses” we are aware of, and that would be sorghum molasses. It’s made from a plant known as sweet sorghum or sorghum cane in treatments somewhat similar to sugar beets and/or sugar cane processing. If our understanding is correct, sorghum molasses is more correctly called a thickened syrup rather than a by-product of sugar production. So in our eyes sorghum molasses is probably more like Maple Syrup than a true molasses.

 

In the distant past sorghum syrup was a common locally produced sweetener in many areas, but today it is fairly rare speciality product that could get fairly pricey compared to Molasses. Because sorghum molasses is the final product of sweet sorghum processing, and blackstrap and sugar beet molasses are simply waste by-products of sugar manufacturing, it’s pretty easy to understand the difference in expense between the products. The word from the birds is - there isn’t any apparent advantage to justify the extra expense of using sorghum molasses as a substitute for blackstrap or sugar beet molasses in the garden. So if you find sorghum molasses, instead of using it in your garden, you’ll probably want to use it as an alternate sweetener on some biscuits.

 

That’s a quick bird’s eye look at the differences between the various types and grades of molasses and how they are produced. Now it’s time to get a peek at the why’s and how’s of using molasses in gardening.

 

 

Why Molasses?

The reason nutrient manufacturer’s have “discovered” molasses is the simple fact that it’s a great source of carbohydrates to stimulate the growth of beneficial microorganisms. “Carbohydrate” is really just a fancy word for sugar, and molasses is the best sugar for horticultural use. Folks who have read some of our prior essays know that we are big fans of promoting and nourishing soil life, and that we attribute a good portion of our growing success to the attention we pay to building a thriving “micro-herd” to work in concert with plant roots to digest and assimilate nutrients. We really do buy into the old organic gardening adage - “Feed the soil not the plant.”

 

Molasses is a good, quick source of energy for the various forms of microbes and soil life in a compost pile or good living soil. As we said earlier, molasses is a carbon source that feeds the beneficial microbes that create greater natural soil fertility. But, if giving a sugar boost was the only goal, there would be lot’s of alternatives. We could even go with the old Milly Blunt story of using Coke on plants as a child, after all Coke would be a great source of sugar to feed microbes and it also contains phosphoric acid to provide phosphorus for strengthening roots and encouraging blooming. In our eyes though, the primary thing that makes molasses the best sugar for agricultural use is it’s trace minerals.

 

In addition to sugars, molasses contains significant amounts of potash, sulfur, and a variety of micronutrients. Because molasses is derived from plants, and because the manufacturing processes that create it remove mostly sugars, the majority of the mineral nutrients that were contained in the original sugar cane or sugar beet are still present in molasses. This is a critical factor because a balanced supply of mineral nutrients is essential for those “beneficial beasties” to survive and thrive. That’s one of the secrets we’ve discovered to really successful organic gardening, the micronutrients found in organic amendments like molasses, kelp, and alfalfa were all derived from other plant sources and are quickly and easily available to our soil and plants. This is especially important for the soil “micro-herd” of critters who depend on tiny amounts of those trace minerals as catalysts to make the enzymes that create biochemical transformations. That last sentence was our fancy way of saying - it’s actually the critters in “live soil” that break down organic fertilizers and “feed” it to our plants.

 

One final benefit molasses can provide to your garden is it’s ability to work as a chelating agent. That’s a scientific way of saying that molasses is one of those “magical” substances that can convert some chemical nutrients into a form that’s easily available for critters and plants. Chelated minerals can be absorbed directly and remain available and stable in the soil. Rather than spend a lot of time and effort explaining the relationships between chelates and micronutrients, we are going to quote one of our favorite sources for explaining soil for scientific laymen.

 

“Micronutrients occur, in cells as well as in soil, as part of large, complex organic molecules in chelated form. The word chelate (pronounced “KEE-late”) comes from the Greek word for “claw,” which indicates how a single nutrient ion is held in the center of the larger molecule. The finely balanced interactions between micronutrients are complex and not fully understood. We do know that balance is crucial; any micronutrient, when present in excessive amounts, will become a poison, and certain poisonous elements, such as chlorine are also essential micronutrients.

For this reason natural, organic sources of micronutrients are the best means of supplying them to the soil; they are present in balanced quantities and not liable to be over applied through error or ignorance. When used in naturally chelated form, excess micronutrients will be locked up and prevented from disrupting soil balance.”

 

ref: http://forum.grasscity.com/general-i...ur-plants.html

[Moss]

Molasses is in (or is) many of the expensive nutrients you can get at a store. Many people decide to skip the over priced hype and add it themselves. You want unsulphured blackstrap molasses.

 

Plants just like the human body love to run on sugar, it's easy to break down. Molasses is a carbohydrate a.k.a. a sugar or rather the by product of the sugar making process which contains, sugar. The reason for molasses over say table sugar is because the manufacturing processes that create it remove mostly sugars, the majority of the mineral nutrients that were contained in the original sugar cane or sugar beet are still present in molasses. The average NPK is said to be 1-0-5. Molasses is also a chelating agent which means it can convert some chemical nutrients into a form that’s easily available for beneficial microorganisms and plants.

[nigel]

Molasses is in (or is) many of the expensive nutrients you can get at a store. Many people decide to skip the over priced hype and add it themselves. You want unsulphured blackstrap molasses.

 

Plants just like the human body love to run on sugar, it's easy to break down. Molasses is a carbohydrate a.k.a. a sugar or rather the by product of the sugar making process which contains, sugar. The reason for molasses over say table sugar is because the manufacturing processes that create it remove mostly sugars, the majority of the mineral nutrients that were contained in the original sugar cane or sugar beet are still present in molasses. The average NPK is said to be 1-0-5. Molasses is also a chelating agent which means it can convert some chemical nutrients into a form that’s easily available for beneficial microorganisms and plants.

Yep

 

wholesome sweeteners organic molasses

per 1 tablespoon/22 g, in 1 gallon of water/3.785 liters:

 

potassium: 730 mg/~20% of 3500 mg dv for k/730/3.785=192.86 ppm

 

calcium: 115 mg/~10% of 1000 mg dv for ca/115/3.785=30.38 ppm

 

magnesium: 8% of 400 mg dv for mg/.08*400=32/3.785=8.4 ppm

 

iron: 15% of 18 mg dv for fe/.15*18=2.7/3.785=0.71 ppm

 

*vitamin b6: 10% of 2.0 mg dv for vit b6/2*.1=.2/3.785=.05 ppm

 

*sugars: 10g

 

*total carbohydrates: 14g

[greenleaf]

Stop using it around week 6.

[Boaterman]

I've heard of people using fresh orange juice also, but think I'll stick to the unsulphered molasses. I know that works. Ian's post pretty much said it all.

[kruztydj]

100% apple juice works too

[stonecrowe316]

is this used in veg stage or flower stage,and do i put it in a different gal jug or put in with my nutes

[Michigan Medical Gardens]

I go very light on it cause it is in other nutes i put in. I use 1/4 tablespoon per gallon, sometimes less. in weeks 3-6 only. try it. your buds will be nice and sugary! but go easy!

[christinax4]

does this change the taste of the final product?

[Pot Pharmer]

I use 1 tbsp per gallon of nutes; I premix it in hot water to make mixing easier. I mix it in with my nutes and use it at the first sign of flowering (after killing off male plants)and keep using it until I flush for harvest. I mix it up with every other batch of flush, alternating with very weak nutrient solution. The weak nutes flushes better than pH adjusted plain water due to the ionic bond pulling out your salt buildups. I use the molasses right up until harvest, but stop ionic flushes after week six. I have not noticed any change in taste, but seems to make cured product smoother to smoke. Could just be my imagination, but I will always use unsulfured molasses from now on. I cannot attest to the claims that it increases harvest weight, I just know that I don't cough until I fire the bottom of the bowl.

[outsideinthecold]

Apple juice? Orange Juice?

 

Well, why not. But being from Michigan, how about Michigan maple syrup. Yep, it's more expensive than molasses but then at one teaspoon per gallon or less, it's cheaper than a doctor's recommendation.

 

Life is good. oitc

[samtheclam]

what about using the sugar water from the trees to water with?

[christinax4]

orange juice and apple juice? i would think that would be too acidic? I certainly wouldnt use any citrus unless its been broken down first by sitting in the sun or generating compost on any of my OTHER plants...tropicals and palms, orchids, ferns, and a giant wooley morning glory...

[greenleaf]

does this change the taste of the final product?

Yes. More flavor, more potency.

[greenleaf]

what about using the sugar water from the trees to water with?

?

[greenleaf]

100% apple juice works too

More potecny? less? or?

 

Ever do a side-by-side or before-and-after with the same clone?

[The Pharmacist]

The simpilist thing that I can say about this subject is to use BIO BIZZ products. They are 100% organic from the mother land The Netherlands. All of there products are based on molasses and the living microbe community of your soil. It does not need to be ph adjusted if you use reverse ozmosis water. They have the full range of products from start to finish with other innovative products to activate the others. I use them in conjunction with Fox Farm Happy Frog and Ocean Forest soils and a ton of perlite and vermiculite for great drainage and finally Plant Success granular microbes sprinkled on top to import billions of workers to help out down under. I've used all of the products and nothing compares to this leathal combonation. People wanting to try something new should use this recipie and if anyone wants to talk about the products or results from before and after I would love to share. Please trust me people these nutes are the real deal and are instant uptake so they can be used everyday as stated on the bottle. Please try them you will see instant results and no I have no ties to the company:)

[GanjaWarrior]

The simpilist thing that I can say about this subject is to use BIO BIZZ products. They are 100% organic from the mother land The Netherlands. All of there products are based on molasses and the living microbe community of your soil. It does not need to be ph adjusted if you use reverse ozmosis water. They have the full range of products from start to finish with other innovative products to activate the others. I use them in conjunction with Fox Farm Happy Frog and Ocean Forest soils and a ton of perlite and vermiculite for great drainage and finally Plant Success granular microbes sprinkled on top to import billions of workers to help out down under. I've used all of the products and nothing compares to this leathal combonation. People wanting to try something new should use this recipie and if anyone wants to talk about the products or results from before and after I would love to share. Please trust me people these nutes are the real deal and are instant uptake so they can be used everyday as stated on the bottle. Please try them you will see instant results and no I have no ties to the company:)

seems soo many of those type of products could be replaced by using molasses. I guess im just too poor to spend my money on that stuff. Are you from the Netherlands? just wondering about your "motherland" comment.

[xxsesimeseedxx]

BubbleGrower? Your 2 cents?

[CannabisPatient#1]

what about using the sugar water from the trees to water with?

I don't know much about using molasses on cannabis, but I do know a bit about making maple syrup. The ratio of sap to syrup is 40:1. If you are diluting syrup to that ratio you basically have sap. It would be easier to store syrup if you have limited space. I get my syrup from the Amish. They charge $9 dollars for a quart jar. Great price. Black strap molasses should be way cheaper. If you have access to maple sap give it a go and let us know. Sap only runs in the spring when night temps are below freezing and daytime temps are above freezing. Molasses is available at the supermarket year round. I am a cheap gentleman so for me it is no contest. Worm castings from my worm farm and black strap is the way that I am going.