Calcium is paramount for the growth of cannabis crops. Calcium is overlooked by growers without acknowledging that calcium should be recognized separately from NPK nutrients. Recognizing calcium’s relationship with cannabis is critical for maintaining healthy plants and achieving typical yield potential.
Cannabis plants use calcium for cell wall structure, enzyme activation, and nutrient uptake regulation. When calcium is not adequately supplied for plant cell replacement, the plant is unable to properly uptake nutrient requirements within the plant programs causing calamitous potassium and other nutrient deficiencies. Every other nutrient deficiency can lead to another deficiency and inclination to weaken the plant to the verge of destruction.
Recognizing Calcium Deficiency Symptoms
The early symptoms of deficiency will present as small brown necrotic or rust coloration spots, which develop on older fan leaves from the edges or near or starting at or near the edge of the leaf. Unlike other nutrient deficiencies where you would first note yellow above on the plant; with calcium it is the other way as necrotic spots show first.
In more advanced calcium-deficiency you can see curling, stunted growth, and weak stems. The relationship of calcium and cannabis is shown in the plant’s inability to hold its own weight as it has a weak cell structure to facilitate regular growth development.
Environmental Factors and Solutions:
In hydroponic systems, pH level affects calcium availability, pH levels that are below 6.0 or above 7.5, calcium will not be optimally available. And temperature can also adversely affect calcium availability, so maintaining a consistent temperature is equally important in calcium and cannabis uptake effectiveness.
Organic growers can add biologically available calcium from diet, bone meal, gypsum, or lime, whereas hydroponic systems will have soluble forms of calcium. Some soluble nutrient sources to introduce calcium include calcium nitrate, and importantly introduce calcium and magnesium with other nutrients for cannabis nutrient ratios.
Prevention and Quality Impact:
Routine testing will alert the grower whether they are supplying calcium levels at structural levels, 150–300 ppm in hydroponics solutions or 1000–2000 ppm in soil solutions. Conventional thought, to ensure appropriate consumption of calcium throughout all growth stages, and is understandable regarding the conditions of the quality of any final product they have grown without calcium. Unsurprisingly, if cannabis has calcium deficiency, the consumer should expect reduced effects known as bud size and potency benefits.
Another impact of calcium deficiency is less terpenes from reduced and total amounts of the biochemicals that add flavour and aroma to cannabis. The relationship of calcium and cannabis does go beyond a healthy plant but goes beyond the sensory quality of that cannabis consumer.
Management Plan:
Management framework strategies for cannabis must involve continuous calcium management throughout the entire cannabis plant cycle. When growers recognize symptoms of deficiencies, foliar feeding to mitigate perceived symptoms is useful and soil amendments are a form of nutrient management, for increased or root zone availability. Just be cautious with the overall amount of calcium that you amend to the plant, as excess calcium can affect many other soil nutrient availability.
The relationship of calcium and marijuana goes beyond deficiency and should consider management strategies appropriate long-term health management strategies. Growers who are cautious about and who recognize calcium nutrition develop healthy plants and thus will be able to consistently develop a quality and yield.