The myth that cannabis needs an abundance of calcium added perpetually is just that, a myth:
Debunking the Cal/Mag Myth in Cannabis Cultivation
I have been growing a very long time, as has the author of this article, Jennifer Martin, winner of the '98 Bay Area Cannabis Cup. One thing I’ve unavoidably noticed is the unique ability for trends in Cannabis that negatively impact crop quality to persist. Excess calcium is one of those trends I’ve been rolling my eyes at for a long while.
Cannabis is not like other plants. Cannabis uptakes calcium extremely easy. I skimmed through Jennifer’s article a second time and her findings match mine to a T. In potting mix preloaded with large amounts of calcium, the fight to get potassium into the plant is real. I switched from potassium sulfate to potassium citrate, to a blended potassium acetate product after ruining my soil based on recommendations by dozens if not hundreds of calcium cult members… I sacrificed many plants to find the upper limits of potassium acetate. I smoked a ton of nasty home grown weed, after ruining entire crops. What was I doing wrong? I made no changes. Except for the extra calcium.
I no longer pre mix large amounts of calcium into my soil. And I no longer take advice from anyone in those groups (and yes I’m talking about the popular groupthink grow podcasts, the defensive cannabis consultants, the snarky shady eye soil builders, the pop-nute purveyors that cannot even describe photosynthesis correctly, the lying legacy breeders, the sockpuppet seed slingers, etc, etc that have steered the Cannabis community right off a cliff).
Calcium in my garden is now treated like nitrogen. We use the correct forms to save our plants energy and maximize flavor compounds. We use the correct amount as to avoid “burning” our plants. This “burn”, the white tips, brown margins and leathery dark leaves that have become normalized with the younger generation, is the result of excess calcium.
What do you have to blame for your crispy margins and droopy twisted leaves? Deficiencies induced by excess calcium.
What do you have to blame for bland cannabis that dries too quickly and doesn’t provide the desired effects? Excess calcium.
Why do so many breeders hunt endlessly for old expressions that seem all but lost? Excess calcium.
Why have so many smokers learned to settle for subpar cannabis? Excess Calcium.
WHO do you have to blame for the sad state of modern Cannabis, which I attribute directly to nutrient imbalance?
That masculine ego, which drives men to seek an insta-baked position of holding the right knowledge, the socially-accepted knowledge, rather than the correct knowledge.
I will likely never listen to another word a man says about Cannabis, as ego and societal standing, not knowledge, always come first with men. The influential men in the Cannabis scene will be left dukes of foolery when all is said and done. Every time I try listening to breeding podcast, the angry white men fighting and whining about how unfair it is to them, that they are not elevated on a pedestal, that they are not seen as celebrities in the legal era, that they can no longer live a life of luxury selling pesticide tainted product, these men have nothing to offer but bad attitudes and mistruth. These men have not earned their anger, they’re actively, collectively, earning their spot as yesman to a king of fools. And they’ll all abandon their king when a new narrative becomes accepted. I’ve attempted conversations with many of them. I’ve attended their conferences. The majority of men in the Cannabis scene have a major napoleon complex. We don’t accept them. The future of Cannabis doesn’t accept them. The future of craft level Cannabis lies in the hands of us women.
The men can keep fighting about commercial standards, provenance of strains no one smokes, black market vs white market, investors suck, rules and regulations suck, regional pride of transplanted meth dealers, we’ll let them have all that. You can have the “old cannabis”. Every regulation in state Cannabis programs was intended to keep these meritless men out. If you can’t take the time to fill out paperwork, that’s your fault. If you can’t attend meetings without getting loud and sweaty and yelling profanities, that’s your fault.
Men, this thread began about Calcium, but the more I think of it, the masculine ego is the biggest aspect negatively affecting Cannabis today.
Tell us what you think about calcium, please!
