DIY CarboLoad type bud sweetener

Advanced Techniques
#1

Instead of paying top dollar for AN CarboLoad bud sweetener, or other similar products, you can easily make your own for pennies per gallon (and it is much more effective).

RECIPE:
EQUAL parts (1/3 of a cup is a good place to start) of :

  • unsulphured molasses
  • natural maple syrup
  • turbinado raw cane sugar (or simple syrup made from the turbinado sugar - see below)
  • raw honey (unfiltered)
  • raw agave syrup (if you can find it)
  • natural sorghum (if you can find it)
    (NOTE: always use pure, raw and organic versions of the sweeteners)

Heat in a sauce pan under low heat until all of the cane sugar dissolves and the liquid bubbles slightly. It is Important not to stir the mixture because that will cause the sugar to crystallize. Instead, swirl the pot to combine the mixture.. Pour into a jar and let cool.

To use, add 1 to 4 tablespoons per gallon of water, every other week (or as often as you would normally use a bud sweetener). For example, start off with 1 tablespoon every other week during veg and increase to 2 when you flip to flowering, then increase the amount as you progress through flowering.

The idea is to use raw organic natural sweeteners, and combine them to make a power packed carb loaded treat of every type of natural sugar that is available in nature to feed to your plants. I have used this for many years and have compared it to CarboLoad (or just using molasses) and I get much better results when I use this homemade version (and I also know exactly what I am feeding my plants, which is awesome). The recipe isn’t strict, you can use any combination of natural sugars that are available to you, it doesn’t have to be equal amounts, I just like to do it that way.

Another option to adding the raw cane sugar to the mixture is to make a simple syrup, such as you would use in any recipe in the kitchen. To make a simple syrup:

  1. boil some water and add an equal amount of sugar to the water (so if you are boiling 3 cups of water, add 3 cups of sugar, etc)
  2. bring the syrup and water mixture back to a boil, while stirring the mixture gently as it heats
  3. allow that mixture to boil for one minute
  4. reduce the heat and boil gently for another 4 minutes while stirring gently,
  5. allow to cool

That will dissolve the sugar in the water properly without crystallizing it, and you can then add that syrup to your other liquid sweeteners, and make as directed above.

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Why is it so hard to adjust the PH?
#2

what effect does this have on the end result and when to you start feeding this?

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#3

When you feed carbs to your marijuana plants in flowering your plants get an energy burst that helps them create bigger buds with more THC. Plants use photosynthesis to create carbohydrates, which are their primary internal energy source. Those carbs to create roots, stems, leaves, and buds. Carbohydrate metabolism is part of the process that forms THC and other cannabinoids, as well as tasty terpenoids. Marijuana plants naturally store carbs for use during bloom phase because that’s when they will have reduced light hours and other factors that diminish the amount of carbohydrates they can produce. Most carbohydrate production and storage happens during the veg phase and the first three weeks of flowering, and then it pretty much stops. Marijuana plants need lots of carbohydrate energy to produce big fat buds and cannabinoids, so by feeding them lots of carbs during this part of the flowering phase you are fattening them up so they can make denser and sweeter buds, however you can safely feed them extra carbs during their entire life cycle (past seedling) because the plants will store the carbs up for use as needed.

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#4

This is very interesting and easy enough for anyone to aquire and try. Thanks for sharing this, I’ll look into it more and perhaps use it.

Question, if it does crystallize a little or say if it does around the sides of your pot, what is the impact? Does it ruin the mixture or just make it more difficult to diffuse in water afterwards?

Thanks

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#5

If the sugar crystallizes while making the mixture, and it makes it in to the soil, the crystallized sugar will bind up the soil a bit, however that is unlikely to happen since you are allowing the mixture to cool, and during that process the sugar (if undissolved) will settle at the bottom of your jar. If that happens, it doesn’t ruin the mixture, it is just unusable by the plant if it is sitting at the bottom of the jar. You are adding relatively small amounts to the water (64:1 and 256:1) every other week, so it doesn’t really cause the soil to crystallize by itself. The sugars will wash out with a flush along with the rest of the nutrients. One option if you feel uncomfortable about dissolving the sugar, etc. is to leave out the cane sugar and just go with the other types of sugar that are naturally in liquid form - just heat them gently to mix, being careful not to stir the mixture, just swirl it around. It’s not that hard to dissolve the cane sugar properly if you follow the instructions I posted.

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#6

I just love dyi stuff like this ! Save money by using stuff already in your kitchen cupboards! Why pay 20x grow store products prices that can be made on the cheap! Thanks for sharing @monkeyman

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#7

Another option to adding the raw cane sugar to the mixture is to make a simple syrup, such as you would use in any recipe in the kitchen (or bar). To make a simple syrup boil some water and add an equal amount of sugar to the water (so if you are boiling 3 cups of water, add 3 cups of sugar, etc). bring the syrup and water mixture back to a boil, while stirring the mixture gently as it heats, and allow that mixture to boil for one minute, then reduce the heat and boil gently for another 4 minutes while stirring gently, and allow to cool. That will dissolve the sugar in the water properly without crystallizing it, and you can then add that syrup to your other liquid sweeteners, and make as directed above.

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#8

I just might have to divert some of my mojito mix fixings now! Lol

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