I consider myself to be a pretty savvy grower but wanted to run this by anyone with a horticultural/botany degree or someone currently schooled in plant sciences. We have all heard of using different tasty things in our soil such as molasses for the obvious benefits. Well I have been doing some research about the Blue Agave and how it may be useful to us. There are certain antibacterial properties, Polysaccharides, and other compounds that seem like they would be beneficial. The Organic Blue Agave Syrup that i found was next to the molasses in the organic section of my local grocery. It seems to me that it has nothing but carbs for our plants (according to the label), unlike molasses which has iron, mg, b vitamins, calcium, etc.. but on our label it has only the sugars/carbs. I was thinking.... Many growers use molasses throughout the entire flowering stage (including the flush) and some do not like to use it during the flush. Well, one reason it may not be the best in the flush is because it contains the cal/mag/iron, but the agave does not (it does but it is such small amounts it is not reported on the label), which may make it useful to those who use molasses but stop during the flush as they could substitute now with some possible additional benefits to boot. Not that i think that it would only be good during those last 7-14days, but maybe throughout the whole grow. I think it would work as an organic wetting agent as well as it is soapy in texture and slightly bubbles like soap when you run water over it. I think I may be on to something new here. I am hoping that someone with the schooling could tell me why not or even what they think about Blue Agave. All I am trying to do is spark a discussion (like AB 390) on this subject, so chime in. Regardless I am going to run some experiments with it and will post some results (bad or good). I searched all over the internet and found nothing for this topic. I may be the first to consider it. I am not going to be able to conduct the tests until april/may because I am on a schedule. But i will start with 32 plants of which 16 will be control (normal nutrients), 6 with molasses (3 normal nutes, 3- 3/4 nutes) 6 with agave (3 normal nutes, 3- 3/4 nutes) and 4 with mix of agave and molasses (2 normal nutes, 2- 3/4 nutes) and will flush them differently at the end. Going to be a long experiment with lots of data.
Will you please keep us posted if you find any additional information. LOL I do find this amuzing that you say to use beer ( I know it works) in one post and now your talking about a tequila plant in another.
Don Piano, Great thread and timely. I frequent another forum's organic's section and agave nectar is a tried and true carb source for compost teas. According to wiki......agave nectar or syrup as they call it does have iron, potassium, calcium and magnesium, so it's quite similar to molasses in that respect. Most of the folks I network with use it as an additive to their aerated compost teas rather than a routine additive to their watering schedules. There are a couple of growers that use a mixture of agave nectar and honey as a rooting dip for the anti bacterial properties. I have a couple of bottles sitting in my pantry that I got at Costco, and have yet to try it, but i may give it a shot in my teas. I don't think I will be able to tell the difference between agave nectar and molasses however, but it doesn't actually matter either. They're both carb sources with trace minerals and organic. The nectar being anti-bacterial could be beneficial IMO. What is interesting to me is the possibility of the nectar having properties of a wetting agent. Hope some will chime in on that aspect. I don't like to use molasses as many here do......I use it sparingly...mostly in ACT's. I will water with a 1 tsp/ga mixture a couple of times during the entire grow. I look forward to following your test grow. Please give me a heads up if/when you start your journal. Thanks again for starting this thread. chunk
Great to hear. Thank you for chiming in everyone. Chuck, glad to see you stop by here. was hoping for it. Glad people use it. The one thing I did find is that (like you said) it contains iron cal mag and such but the labels I find have no reporting on them like molasses, it says 0% for all of the above. It does have a higher carb count than Brer rabbit. One other thing that is not in the agave is sodium. I like that too. Here is the comparison. Brer rabbit Un-sulphured full flavor molasses green label. sodium 30mg iron 60mg mag 210mg cal 180mg Carbs 15g (from sugar11g) Wholesome sweteners organic raw blue agave (copied from their website) NUTRITIONAL FACTS (Typical analysis*) Serving Size: 1 Tablespoon (21g) Servings per package: varies depending on the package size Calories per serving: 60 Calories from fat: 0 Total fat (g): 0 Saturated fat (g): 0 Cholesterol (mg): 0 Sodium (mg): 0 Total carbohydrate (g):16 Dietary fiber (g): 0 Sugars (g): 16 Proteins (g): 0 Calcium (mg): 0 Iron (mg): 0 What really interests me is the saponins and fructans, namely inulin. Found on the internet at random.... "Saponins are found in many plant roots, the most famous being ginseng." Cant wait to get to the experiment. Still have a few months though until i can do the full scale tests with controls and such. Right now my garden consists of about 30 plants being 20 different kinds (looking for that gem). But I am going to get some agave at the store next time i go so I can try it on a kind that I have a pair of. So I will kind of have some control, but no real variation to the tests as far as nutrients or molasses mixes go. Thanks for stopping by all, maybe someone else has some input about the saponins and fructans and their possible benefits.
Never tried it myself, but it looks to have a lower glycemic index than honey and is actually sweeter. hatchplzhelp: Will you please keep us posted if you find any additional information. Will DO
[quote name='Don Piano']Never tried it myself, but it looks to have a lower glycemic index than honey and is actually sweeter. yes it does not raise your glycemic index like honey does either...agave is very "clean" assimilates well
First off bro i think its cool that you even know what Agave Nectar is. Ive worked in a organic grocery for a couple years(i manage it) and most people only ever see it on Oprah or some other mainstream diet lol. However, i dont think it will work very well for your MJ(certainly not as well as molasses). Molasses is pretty unique in not only the chemicals contained within it, but also their amounts. Molasses is loaded with Calcium, Magnesium, Iron, and also smaller amounts of vitamins and tracer minerals plants use. This is why its used to make nutrient solutions. Alot of bloom nutrients out there are derived straight from molasses if you didnt know. Agave on the other hand has none of these. No magnesium, no iron, no calcium. The lack of those three is whats leading me to believe this wont work. Im still very interested though. just my .02. if you do an experiment with it i hope you let us know how it turns out.
RE: Blue Agave Nectar This is a great product as long as you only buy the organic product. The organic product(s) are processed differently than conventionally produced agave nectar. I'll decline to enter the urban legend mine field of adding huge amounts of carbohydrates to a soil but if you're so inclined to use sugars/carbohydrates it's my opinion that organic blue agave nectar will serve you well. Probably better than the typical livestock molasses (which is made from sugar beets and not sugar cane). HTH LD
Xylocaine might work, but it's pretty expensive. I've found molasses at the dollar store for $1 a bottle.
Xylocaine (Lidocaine) as a replacement for molasses? An interesting concept I suppose or could it be that you posted this on the wrong thread? Just curious as usual. LD
Might you have meant Xylitol ? I would think that a sugar alcohol might be detrimental, however I too am curious. chunk
XYLITOL is highly toxic, and even in small amounts, can be deadly to dogs (and probably also to cats). I am growing MJ for my personal use as well as for my dogs and cats. If the MJ plant sucks up XYLITOL, my fear in using it is my plants would be toxic to use in MJ medicines for my pets. Anyone please comment on xylocaine being used to grow MJ?.
QUESTIONS ABOUT AGAVE NECTAR, ALOE VERA GEL which have anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties being harmful to beneficial microbes? Since agave nectar and aloe vera apparently have anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties, my worry is that using them in organic MJ grows could reverse the efforts I have invested in developing a living soil full of beneficial microbes. I am following the advice of organic the "feed the soil" methodologists and therefore am hesitant about using anything (e.g., aloe vera juice, hydrogen peroxide, neem, karanja), that might harm the vigor and health of my soil microbial herd. Others have mentioned that non-species-specific anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agents do not distinguish between "good" and "bad" bacteria/fungi. Especially with neem products, I am sitting on the fence. I've read much about its benefits. However, I have not found anything about the negative results it may have on beneficial microbes in the soil.. Please educate me. This is my first attempt at growing.