How to Utilize Living Soil For Bigger and Better Buds

Cannabis plants thrive in a diverse ecosystem teeming with beneficial microorganisms and organic matter. With enhanced nutrient availability, improved soil structure, and natural pest control, living soil promotes sustainable growing practices while yielding bigger and better buds at harvest—an ideal combination for the marketplace.

Living soil cultivation comes with its share of benefits and drawbacks. Depending on your needs as a cannabis cultivator, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with all of the details before making the switch. 

What’s alive in living soil?

Living soil is teeming with beneficial microorganisms that help break down organic matter throughout the plant’s life cycle. Any type of natural soil contains small and large actors, like bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, predators, and other organic matter. When working in a balanced ecosystem, these actors work naturally to create a food web to help keep the soil fertile and improve water retention. 

When utilized properly, living soil can provide a happy medium between controlled cultivation and a completely natural process, allowing growers to reap the benefits from both sides of the equation.

Three living soil benefits

There are quite a few benefits of utilizing nutrient-rich living soil in cannabis cultivation, but it all depends on the desired outcome as a grower. Here are some of the major reasons cultivators in the industry turn to living soil.

• Living soil mimics nature. With a living soil mix, growers are able to optimize the aforementioned soil food web, which allows nutrients to break down in a diverse array that’s as close to nature as it gets. This creates a sort of super soil that combines the best of meticulous preparation and natural processes. 

• Living soil is more cost-effective than other methods. Other cultivation methods require a great deal of expensive equipment, especially when growing indoors and manipulating the elements with machinery. Living soil can be reused for upward of 30 grow cycles, providing great long-term value.

• Living soil results in a more diverse terpene and cannabinoid expression. Because living soil cultivation allows for a diverse and true-to-nature ecosystem, plants blossom to their fullest potential in a variety of ways. For growers, operators, and consumers alike, the biggest benefit here is plant compound expression. 

Two living soil drawbacks

As with any growing method, living soil cultivation has some potential downsides.

• Higher upfront costs. Living soils are typically produced in smaller quantities than other commercial grow mediums. As a result, the upfront cost for high-quality living soil or the complete set of ingredients to create one is relatively expensive compared to other commercially available options.

• There’s no substitute for experience. Without a solid understanding of what each cultivar needs to flourish, it’s difficult if not impossible to build the ideal mix. Managing the grow also requires a deeper understanding of soil biology to maintain a balanced environment for the microorganisms.

How to make living soil

Adding organic soil to the farm will require a bit more TLC, but if full-spectrum cannabis is the top priority, it’s worth it. From compost teas and kelp meal to worm castings and coco coir, there are plenty of highly utilized soil recipes in the industry to help commercial farmers get started. However, the native soil will play a key role so it’s important to start with a basic soil test and begin adding other ingredients to achieve a balanced mix. Any nutrient-dense organic soil recipe published online or in a book is not likely the ideal fit for every growing environment or unique cultivar.

Building soil from scratch:

1. Compost

The first and most vital aspect of homemade living soil is high-quality compost. Whether purchasing online or building at home, make sure to prioritize diversity. When ordering soil, try to ensure it’s from a local distributor. Soil native to your geographic region is a better fit, resulting in higher-quality cannabis products.

2. Grow media

The grow medium of choice is imperative to a quality soil structure with an ideal water-to-air ratio. A proper amount of water only covers one aspect of the growth process. For each plant’s microbes to thrive, cultivators consider as many external environmental factors as possible.

• Sphagnum peat moss

Sphagnum peat moss is the most common growing medium for living soil. With excellent water retention and draining capacity, peat moss allows for a slow release of organic compounds for optimal plant growth.

• Coco coir

Produced from the pith surrounding coconuts, coco coir allows for valuable soil input, ensuring living soil tests well for high water-holding capacity. It’s also more sustainable than peat; coco coir breaks down slowly, making it easier to reuse.

• Protein meals

Protein meals extend beyond the cannabis industry as far as agricultural cultivation methods go, often used as supplementary livestock feed. With natural hormones and trace minerals to promote plant health, protein meals are a cost-effective and sustainable option for living soil growers. 

These mixtures are mainly used to top-dress the soil or replenish the media with added nutrients to promote continued growth and plant health. Growers can utilize kelp meal, crustacean meal, alfalfa meal, fishbone meal, feather meal, and or blood meal.

Emily’s Soil Recipe

For a basic starting point, follow Emerald Harvest’s growing specialist Emily Chavez’s favorite soil recipe below:

Vegetative Tea: 55 Gallons

• Alaska Humisoil: 2 Liters
• Earthworm Castings: 1 Liter
• Emerald Goddess: 220ml
• Honey Chome: 110ml
• Plant Root Wizard: 110ml or Mycorrhizal Inoculant: 2 heaping Tbsp

Bloom Tea: 55 Gallons

• Alaska Humisoil: 2 Liters
• Earthworm Castings: 1 Liter
• Emerald Goddess: 220ml
• Honey Chome: 110ml
• King Kola: 110ml
• Plant Root Wizard: 110ml