molasses as fertilizer?

[mountaindweller]

I read that molasses can be used as fertilizer and tried this todaz, without really knowing what it does. (one teaspoon on one bucket of water)
Could it replaced by sugar too, this would be far cheaper and less stricky.

[steev]

Pretty much any organic matter can be used as fertilizer. The question is whether the benefits outweigh the cost. You could use Osestra caviar as fertilizer, were cost no concern.

[MikeH]

It's used as one of the ingredients in making effective microorganisms. Here's an example of a recipe.

Related or maybe the same since terminology gets a little loose is Beneficial Indigenous Organisms (BIM) developed by Gil A Carandang. Rodale wrote an article a number of years ago.

[oxbowfarm]

I've more often heard of it used as a compost activator. You'd basically be feeding micro-organisms of some kind either way. Molasses theoretically has higher mineral content than refined sugar.

[keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.)]

Yes, i believe it is a good fertilizer. Really you are giving something that the bacteria and other microorganisms can use, and they will eventually break it down and release carbon, etc.. Which then the plants can use. It also works well for speeding compost along.

[bonsaioutlaw]

I swear by it.

[mountaindweller]

Thanks. My guess is that our fill site needs some bugs. The recipe is a bit expensive. Would simply molasses or a teaspoon of sugar do the job?

[templeton]

Interesting...
The application of sugar has been used in environmental weed control, namely annual grasses in woodlands. I believe the mode of action is as way of lowering soil fertility, and thereby disadvantaging the weeds that prefer higher nitrogen soils, Lower the nitrogen, and the natives come back. Check out the report here, <http://www.csu.edu.au/faculty/science/herbarium/woodlandweb/restoration/sweet_end_to_weeds.htm> and the refereed papers by Thiele, Prober and Lunt.

So
I'm surprised that folks might be using molasses as a fertiliser, since its action as reported by these researchers is to lower soil fertility.
T

[davida]

Dec 14, 2012 7:31:47 GMT -5 templeton said:

Interesting...
The application of sugar has been used in environmental weed control, namely annual grasses in woodlands. I believe the mode of action is as way of lowering soil fertility, and thereby disadvantaging the weeds that prefer higher nitrogen soils, Lower the nitrogen, and the natives come back. Check out the report here, <http://www.csu.edu.au/faculty/science/herbarium/woodlandweb/restoration/sweet_end_to_weeds.htm> and the refereed papers by Thiele, Prober and Lunt.

So
I'm surprised that folks might be using molasses as a fertilizer, since its action as reported by these researchers is to lower soil fertility.
T

Interesting article and thanks for bringing it to our attention. I have an interest EM and foliar sprays. The answer is explained in the article:

"The researchers, who spread half a kilogram of refined white sugar to each square metre [approximately 1.1 pounds per 3 foot square for us non-metric types] of soil every three months, found this inhibited weed growth of most annual weeds giving the native plants the opportunity to become well-established. However more research is required to work out the optimum rate of application. “We realise that the sugar levels we used in our trials would not be economic to use over broad scales”, said Dr Prober, “but at the moment we don’t know if we would get similar results if we used less sugar or if we used cheaper alternatives such as molasses or sawdust”.

So how does sugar reduce soil nutrients? “When sugar is spread on the soil, it feeds soil micro-organisms, which then absorb lots of soil nutrients as they grow,” explains Dr Ian Lunt from CSU’s Institute for Land, Water and Society. “The micro-organisms then hold these nutrients so the weeds can’t gobble them up. In effect we are ‘starving’ the weed species that require lots of nutrients to grow.” The lack of nutrients stopped the weeds from growing large, allowing the native plants, which can grow well in low nutrient levels, to grow bigger and faster."

So they are using ALOT of refined white sugar to feed the soil micro-organisms. They are saying that sugar help micro-organisms to grow which is what I desire. At the present time, I am using Lactic Acid Bacteria(LAB) mixed with equal parts molasses to feed the LAB. A small amount of this mixture should feed the micro-organisms without causing a major loss of nutrients.

My question is if the micro nutrients in their study become a "slow release fertilizer". Are they creating enough micro-organisms to absorb the soil nutrients that reduces weeds and reduces nutrient leaching and then these micro-organisms feed the plants?

[keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.)]

So how does sugar reduce soil nutrients? “When sugar is spread on the soil, it feeds soil micro-organisms, which then absorb lots of soil nutrients as they grow,” explains Dr Ian Lunt from CSU’s Institute for Land, Water and Society. “The micro-organisms then hold these nutrients so the weeds can’t gobble them up. In effect we are ‘starving’ the weed species that require lots of nutrients to grow.” The lack of nutrients stopped the weeds from growing large, allowing the native plants, which can grow well in low nutrient levels, to grow bigger and faster."

So they are using ALOT of refined white sugar to feed the soil micro-organisms. They are saying that sugar help micro-organisms to grow which is what I desire. At the present time, I am using Lactic Acid Bacteria(LAB) mixed with equal parts molasses to feed the LAB. A small amount of this mixture should feed the micro-organisms without causing a major loss of nutrients.

I'm just guessing, but i think they used very large quantities of sugar in their weed control study. I'm also guessing, but i would think that since they were using A LOT of sugar that in effect that reduces the soil fertility because it lowers the ratio of nitrogen, etc., with that of carbon. While they are not reducing nitrogen in the soil they are adding so much of the sugar that it swamps out the other important nutrients. The same would probably happen if you added a dumptruck of sand. Nothing could grow if there were no nutrients.

[logrus9]

It's one of the ingredients in making compost tea. My guess is that in small amounts it jumpstarts biological activity but in large quantities it allows them to take over.

[raymondo]

The effect of lowering nutrients is only short lived. The increased simple sugars causes a sudden and dramatic rise in bacterial numbers which ties up a number of nutrients, N among them. The native grasses are better scavengers than introduced weeds so they have a window of opportunity and can get better established. Eventually though, balance is restored, perhaps at a new level, but by this time, with any luck, the native grasses have a better grip on things.
I would not be drenching the soil in my vegie garden with molasses, or any other simple sugars for that matter. Better to apply more complex sugars in the form of mulch. You could spray the mulch with molasses, if you wanted it to break down more rapidly.

[littleminnie]

I ordered potatoes 4 years ago and the package had a thing about using molasses so I have been doing so ever since. I have had good and bad potato crops but I do believe the science shows it works. It is very cheap at the feed store. Bring your own bucket. I use 1-2 ice cream buckets per year.

[canadamike]

I recommend to all growers to use molasses in their fertilizing mix, organic or not. They help the bacterial fauna/flora like crazy, and diluted in a foliar spray, provide sugras right where they are needed, Most of the good pot growers use molasses in foliar feeding arounf here.

I really do not care for pot, I do not grow it nor do I want anything to do with it, but as Michael Pollan sais in the ''botany of desire'' they are the best gardeners in the world. They use the best techniques and go for quality over volume...id only we could spend as much money for our crops...

But there is a bright side...the pot plant does not know it is drugs...but they know they want it to flower a lot.....we are back to simple business, with different economics...most of them use molasses, »I do, and God knows I do not grow pot or else illegal....

My theory, which has to be confirmed ( but meanwhile, waiting for a scientifuc explanation to come it works,,,so the explanation has to follow the success) is that plants need to produce nectar, which is sugar, and if you give it some it will make the job easier...

Anyway, the bacterias in the soil judst love molasses.

I have a cleint, an organic grower, who one year bought up the leftover molasses from his AG COOP, HE PAID ALMOST NOTHING FOR IT, THEY WANTED TO GET RID OF IT...5 TONS IN HIS 50 ACRES....he had the harvest of his life...

[mountaindweller]

5 tons per 50 acres are 0,1 ton per acre
an acre is roughly 4047 m² and a ton 907 kg if it is not a metric one; that would be 22 grams per m².
Hope I got this right. That would be roughly a tablespoon per m² and season, that is actually a lot unless you have a cheap source.