The Lost Art of Foliar Feeding

[stowandgrow]

quick question - i hit up walmart the other day - got super thrive, and some insecticide. is it possible, to mix the two, so i can insecticide while foliar feeding?

I don't see why not ............. but I also don't see why you would need to do this?? There is really no need to treat the plants daily with an insecticide. The first treatment will hopefully knock down the adult insects, and then you're best to wait a few days until the eggs on the plant have hatched, and then re-apply the insecticide. Why not just foliar feed on the days in between the insecticide treatments? You're just wasting insecticide by doing it daily, imo.

 

[charranoid]

I do the same above except for using hydroponics pro bloom...works wonders

 

[akgrown]

I foiler Feed with recommend doses of Thrive Alive B-1 Green. My plants love it like I love cupcakes, and I love cupcakes.

 

[abefroman35]

All in all im a big fan of foliar feeding!!

hahahaha dude ss your picture kills me! hahaha! thats quite a donkey dick. hahaha. funny shit man.

 

[anomolies]

Can you foliar feed and water the soil with this recipe at the same time? (won't be too much nutrients?) wasn't clear on that part.. Or do you just water with regular water...

Also, when do you start foliar feeding?

 

[greenman28]

Didn't read everything in this thread, but just want to weigh-in on a few things.

Ladybugs will NOT take care of a mite infestation in any reasonable time before harvest is necessary. When you get them they are too tired to do anything but have sex and reproduce, then they die off, and the future generation will eventually go to work. This will take months, or the entire lifetime of the plant. If your plants went year-round, a large-enough number of ladybugs might be able to control the problem before harvest time, though your plant will still have a poor yield, pop, and taste like crap. They are better-suited to creating a population in a certain area outdoors to prevent other pests from establishing themselves in the future.

Foliar feeding works like a charmduring any stage of the plant's growth, though I recommend stopping within a few weeks of harvest for taste reasons. I always foliar feed with an oscillating fan under reasonably warm conditions when humidity is low. When the solution is starting to dry up I hit it with plain distilled water to prevent residue and allow the plants to absorb any remaining nutes. I heard someone say foliar feeding is "not a miracle", to downplay the benefits of it, but I would compare the benefits to what you would get using CO2. I think most people would agree that the benefits of CO2 are undeniably huge, and I believe foliar feeding to be comparable in its performance. When there are significant buds I will spray more lightly (little or no dripping). Water can generally escape if it gets inside the buds, but it takes time and I like to give a week between sprays. Sometimes I like to spray from above with a dollar store spray bottle, about one spray per 2'x2' area. Not enough for it to drip, but enough for the solution to touch the tops/leaves, to give them a boost. When doing it this way I do it repeatedly, but when I'm done I let it dry for a week. I have a cooltube, so I do it first thing in the "morning" with lights on, no problems.

There was someone showing a Dalat harvest to show the benefits of foliar feeding. Not trying to start an argument, but that's not an abnormally large Dalat cola, that's just the way the plant grows and it isn't really that dense. I've seen other cola pictures around here that probably represented a much greater yield.

 

[ManicOrganic86]

Awesome thread. Great references. I'll be trying to come up with a spray line of my own with the pieces everyone has left Thanks again!

 

[Miss MeanWeed]

What a good thread

 

[overmyhead]

very interesting thread. my first grow I foliar fed very slightly with sonic bloom and had great results. Since then I cut it out because of a mold scare, but I think that air movement is the key to that, since then I've used no dehumidifier just lots of fans moveing air around the bases of the plants and no probs. So now I'm using the sonic bloom again and liquid light/penetrator. The LL combo produces an almost immediate, observable reaction in the plants. Back to this thread, out of curiosity, when you feed in the root zone are you using a mild mix? What I mean is, could the same results be achieved if you bumped up the nutrients a little bit? Second, when you make your mix, does it have to be fresh each time or do you mix for like a week at a time. Thanks for all your effort!

 

[whiteflour]

Typically you should always be increasing your nutrients. As plants grow they need more food. If you're just following some nutrient schedule you'll probably never be growing to max potential, but you won't risk burning either. I can't recall ever burning a plant from foliar feeding with the exception of leaving salts on the plant. It's always a good idea to rinse your plant down before it goes under light if youve used a soluble fertilizer.

You can mix up the ferts ahead of time but it's usually best to mix them as needed. With organic nutrients microrganisms will die after long durations and chemicals may change composition if exposed to fluctuating temperatures or light.

 

[overmyhead]

Thanks whiteflour, also, what is the benefit of foliar feeding with prozyme? could hygrozyme be subbed?

 

[siamjim]

I just mist over every thing and in the last phase of the bloom I just use water to help wash off residue.
I don't flush, I run all the way to the end due to the fact that I multi-harvest plants.

killer thread.... minus the bug management

hey Spl1 can you explain more in depth on the washing off residue? you said you do it at the last phase, is this in the 5th week or last week of flowering...and how many times? just once or multi days....detail PLEASE... also note i'm using 0-49-32+FV ("ferti vant" a non-destructive and long-lasting in vivo delivery system for foliar nutrients)

siam

 

[harinama]

i used to foliar feed a lot, not so much anymore. Since i've received a dozen different strains via clones from other mmj users, i am very worried about pm(which has shown up on occasion). Foliar feeding takes my humidity too high (over 60%), so it's not beneficial enough for me. I will, however ff when i need to to resolve def, pm or bug attacks. Now that i am defoliating throughout the grow, i "might" reconsider ff.

Basically i feel that if you are feeding your plants right, with the proper additives(ie. calmag,humic/fulvic acid,etc), then they should already be as healthy as possible.

 

[spl1]

killer thread.... minus the bug management

hey Spl1 can you explain more in depth on the washing off residue? you said you do it at the last phase, is this in the 5th week or last week of flowering...and how many times? just once or multi days....detail PLEASE... also note i'm using 0-49-32+FV ("ferti vant" a non-destructive and long-lasting in vivo delivery system for foliar nutrients)

siam

Just use plain water once the buds get to the size of about a quarter. it will take a few days and it will be all gone.

 

[spl1]

Thanks whiteflour, also, what is the benefit of foliar feeding with prozyme? could hygrozyme be subbed?

Enzymes on the the leaves will help stop mold, silica on the leaves will make mist leave

 

[spl1]

I don't see why not ............. but I also don't see why you would need to do this?? There is really no need to treat the plants daily with an insecticide. The first treatment will hopefully knock down the adult insects, and then you're best to wait a few days until the eggs on the plant have hatched, and then re-apply the insecticide. Why not just foliar feed on the days in between the insecticide treatments? You're just wasting insecticide by doing it daily, imo.

Only use insecticide once every 3 to 4 days as needed, if you are trying to kill of thing the natural way it takes a long time. If you are fighting spidemites and are losing the battle use flromite SC

 

[spl1]

very interesting thread. my first grow I foliar fed very slightly with sonic bloom and had great results. Since then I cut it out because of a mold scare, but I think that air movement is the key to that, since then I've used no dehumidifier just lots of fans moveing air around the bases of the plants and no probs. So now I'm using the sonic bloom again and liquid light/penetrator. The LL combo produces an almost immediate, observable reaction in the plants. Back to this thread, out of curiosity, when you feed in the root zone are you using a mild mix? What I mean is, could the same results be achieved if you bumped up the nutrients a little bit? Second, when you make your mix, does it have to be fresh each time or do you mix for like a week at a time. Thanks for all your effort!

I use a 1/4 tsp every single watering of MC and I use 2 ml of ST 1ML of humic acid per gallon This was a 2 foot tall plant that netted a little over 4 oz dried and cured

 

[anomolies]

oh yea I got the same question too.. does the mix have to be fresh or can you let it sit for a week? Cus I usually just make 3 gallons for watering the plants and I take a liter of that and set it aside for foliar feeding. It usually starts getting cloudy and a later of film floating on top. On some occasions it also starts smelling like sulfur or rotten eggs.

MC = miracle grow? I thought you used 1 teaspoon per gallon for watering?

I've been using 1 tsp per gallon every other watering.. My plants are really healthy with your formula.. only got burned when I accidentally fed twice in a row at full strength.

 

[spl1]

oh yea I got the same question too.. does the mix have to be fresh or can you let it sit for a week? Cus I usually just make 3 gallons for watering the plants and I take a liter of that and set it aside for foliar feeding. It usually starts getting cloudy and a later of film floating on top. On some occasions it also starts smelling like sulfur or rotten eggs.

MC = miracle grow? I thought you used 1 teaspoon per gallon for watering?

I've been using 1 tsp per gallon every other watering.. My plants are really healthy with your formula.. only got burned when I accidentally fed twice in a row at full strength.

You can per make it if you want I do.

Sorry guys I have been gone for a while writing my book and also writing for a grow magazine as well. I will try to keep up as much a s possible when I free time

 

[anomolies]

As I test I foliar fed my plant at least 10 times throughout the day at the recommended CNS17 dosage of 3 tsp/gal.

Curious as to why it doesn't/can't get nute burn at this dosage rate no matter how many times I feed it. Whereas, if I give it like 5tsp/gal or something crazy then it'll get bad nute burn.

Does foliar feeding it 2, 5, or 10 times throughout the day have any benefit as opposed to once?

wondering if the OP could answer this question or explain the science behind it.