Month: March 2021

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Medi One’s Role in an Organic Garden

There has always been a large debate centered around the benefits of organic versus synthetic farming. It’s clear that mineral-based fertilizers have their place in specific hydroponic systems, for instance, in recirculating reservoirs or aeroponic applications. But for gardeners who prefer to produce crops in coco or peat-based mediums, the debate is left wide-open, as a drain to waste garden utilizes chemicals, organics or mixed-method approaches to nutrient enrichment easily and with little resistance throughout the plant’s life cycle. Being that the garden is full of variables, the choice that will provide a heavier, more quality-driven crop is often shadowed by more important factors such as plant genetics, environmental conditions and gardening techniques; although, in specific situations, it’s evident that choosing the right fertilizer can make or break a garden.  

Organic growing is a great option for coco or peat-based mediums!

So, why the debate? Although the benefits of using an organic nutrient arguably rival that of synthetics, there are two simple worries associated with the use of organic fertilizers in the garden: control and nutrient availability. In an average organic garden, fertilizers like blood meal, worm casting or bat guano, are pre-amended into the medium of choice, and then are left to “cook-off”, releasing available elements to the plant as they are broken down by humic acids, microorganisms and fungi. This process, however natural, can often lack control and speed for gardeners that are focused on perpetual production. Furthermore, miscalculating the amending process is a common mistake, and can be devastating to a crop.

Despite these worries, there is one product available in today’s market, GreenPlanet Nutrients Medi One, which settles the debate between synthetic and organic fertilizers. This one-part base nutrient offers the control and availability of a synthetic fertilizer with the added certification and sustainability of organic production. 

What is Medi-One?

Medi One is an OMRI Listed, one-part, organic base nutrient. Meaning, Medi One is a certified organic product that can be used as a foundation for plant growth and general health throughout the entirety of a plant’s life cycle. As discussed above, organic supplements are usually composed of single-sourced entities, like worm casting, kelp or bone meal. Medi One is formulated from multiple organic sources including hydrolyzed, slow-steamed Atlantic Menhaden, sea kelp, and naturally sourced potassium sulphate. Not only does this fertilizer supply your crop with the balanced NPK ratio of 4-3-3, but due to the steaming process of fish and kelp which preserves naturally occurring amino acids, Medi One is an overflowing reservoir of important micronutrients like copper, boron, manganese and zinc. 

Front Label Icons
Back Label Icons

Referring to our icons above. FRONT LABEL: Medi One is a Liquid  Base Nutrient which you use throughout the Vegetative and Flowering Stages of growth. BACK LABEL: You can use this product within a coco based medium, continuous liquid feed program, and a soil/soilless medium. Medi One NPK Values are 4 – 3 – 3

Readily Available Elements

Because Medi One is a liquid fertilizer, the aggressive growth and blooming powers of this nutrient system are readily available for your plants to uptake. Similar to a synthetic fertilizing program, the nutrient enriching qualities of Medi One will be available to your plants within hours of fertilizing. But even more exciting, because of all the hidden organic benefits this fertilizer has to offer, Medi One will continue to break down in the soil over time, continually enriching your plant’s root-zone with crucial nutrients until their next irrigation. Upon flooding your medium with Medi One, vibrant and rich sources of vitamins, amino acids, microorganisms and fungi will begin to cultivate a living space in the root-zone. In short, this process of microbe enrichment will help to speed along the ecological processes of nutrient uptake and delivery. 

Medi One enriches your root zone with readily available organic elements.

Award-Winning Nutrient Formula

Along with the help of supreme genetics and careful growing conduct, Medi One was the nutrient system that helped cannabis educator, John Berfelo, win the Medical Cannabis Cup award in 2011 with his prized strain, Medi-Kush. In the article titled, “The Story Behind My Award-Winning Medi Kush Strain”, Berfelo explains the process of strain hunting the sugar-coated, tri-coloured flowers once known to the market as, “Christmas Kush”.

John Berfelo’s Medi Kush, grown with Medi One.

For John, this strain offered him extraordinary pain relief; and so, it was only a matter of time before he was able to find seeds, and begin the journey of cultivating this plant at home in a medicinal garden. Five years after popping the first of his seeds, Berfelo entered the organically grown “Medi Kush” into the private grower’s category of the Medical Cannabis Cup competition, taking home first prize in 2011, and later placing second in 2012. 

Use and Concentration 

Medi One is perhaps the easiest to use organic fertilizer on the market. In a liquid concentration form, applying Medi One throughout the plant’s life cycle in indoor, outdoor and greenhouse operations couldn’t be simpler. Depending on the size and durability of your selected crop, mix Medi One in your desired quantity of water at a rate of 1-5 ml/L (4-19 ml/Gal) of water twice per week, making sure to shake the bottle before use and adjusting the pH to a range of 5.8 – 6.5 depending on your medium. For the best results, consult our Medi One feeding chart.

Click Here For The Medi One Feed Chart
Click to use our Nutrient Calculator

Settling the Debate

With the recent interest in organic supplements, GreenPlanet Nutrients Medi One is here to settle the contentious debate between the potential benefits of synthetic versus organic fertilizers. With all the control and availability of a synthetic fertilizer, Medi One is the only certified organic product on the market today that can deliver the quantity and quality you expect from an award-winning nutrient. And so, if you’ve ever thought of crossing over into the world of organic farming, your chance is finally here with the help of Medi One.

Now is your chance to access the rich and diverse compounds of Medi One. Contact a member of the GreenPlanet sales team, or your local garden supply store for product information and purchasing inquiries.

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The Difference Between Organic and Synthetic Gardening

As long as the tools for growing indoors have been available, the advantages of growing organically, or supplementing your garden with synthetic nutrients, have remained a hotly debated topic. While the practices of growing with either organic or synthetic supplements are theoretically different, the ultimate goal, in this case, the goal of producing a clean and heavy harvest, is identical. Whatever your preferences in the garden, the choice between growing with organics or synthetics typically causes growers to commit to a specific medium, one which complements the inert, or mineral-based style of fertilizer. Whether you’re growing organically in soil, or synthetically in peat, coco or rockwool, chances are, GreenPlanet Nutrients has the perfect feeding solution for your garden. 

So What’s the Difference?

The main difference between an organic and synthetic garden lies in the way that essential elements are introduced and broken down in the root-zone. In an organic garden, inert elements such as worm casting, oyster shell flour, kelp meal, and other raw materials are pre-amended into a soil or soilless mix and left to “cook-off” and break down into elements which can be readily absorbed by plants. In a synthetically fed garden, plants are placed into a porous medium like peat, coco, or rockwool, and then irrigated with water and chemical plant food. Unlike a traditional organic garden, a synthetic garden can be fed with measured inputs exactly to the gardener’s specifications. This does not mean, however, that feeding synthetically has a specific advantage over an organic garden, as natural ingredients, which contain wellsprings of microbes and living beneficial bacteria and fungi, arguably affect the inputs in positive ways we can’t yet understand.

  • Soil or Soilless.
  • Inert elements are pre- amended into the mix.
  • Allowed to “cook-off” into absorbable elements.
  • Porous Medium.
  • Irrigated with water and chemical plant food.
  • Fed with measured inputs exactly to specifications.

Choosing Your Medium 

One aspect of the garden that growing with either organic or mineral-based compounds will affect, is the medium in which your plants will grow. Most purely organic fertilizers, in short, will not be compatible with certain styles of growing. For example, GreenPlanet Nutrients Medi One is an extremely viscous and concentrated fertilizer, formulated with thick inert ingredients including fish hydrolysate, sea kelp, and specially sourced potassium sulphate; unfortunately, because of the viscosity of this nutrient system, it is not recommended to use Medi One in a hydroponic or water-based garden. So, keep in mind that the medium you’re working with will need to be able to support the living qualities of the organic fertilizer in your feeding arsenal. To find out which media will work best for your synthetic or organic garden, consult the passages below. 

Take a look at the back of a GreenPlanet Nutrients Product or click on the product page to ensure you can grow in your medium of choice.

Mediums Suitable for an Organic Garden:

Soil

The term “soil” is a broad term used to describe a mixture of organic compounds including earth, “top-soil”, and forest fines (a logging industry term for bark and the organics that fall off of logs during the sorting process). While most soils in the industry are amended with organic ingredients, like fish waste, this medium is a perfect candidate for the introduction of other liquid or powered organic nutrients.

Peat Moss

Peat moss is arguably the favourite choice of indoor and outdoor growers in the industry. Being that sphagnum peat moss has an extremely porous nature, meaning that it can absorb and expel water at an amazing rate, peat gardens are in some ways the most reliable for drain to waste systems. Peat moss naturally has a very acidic pH; so, once this medium has been buffer, or limed with pH adjusting compounds, it is a perfectly acceptable medium for an organic garden.

Coco Coir

Made from the discarded husks of the coconut fruit, coco is the halfway point between gardening in a “soil/soilless” medium, and a hydroponic system. Although coco occupies a somewhat contentious grey area on the spectrum of gardening methods, if fed properly, coco mediums will perform with excellent success in an organic garden. 

Mediums Suitable for a Synthetic Garden:

Rockwool  

Rockwool is a completely sterile medium made from the action of heating and spinning rock materials like slag or ceramic. Unlike peat moss, rockwool is naturally alkaline, and prior to transplanting into a rockwool medium, gardeners must buffer the pH of this medium to ensure the root-zone remains in an adequate range of acidity. Because of the propensity of rockwool to develop algae growth on the ridges of media which are exposed to light, organic fertilizers, which contain vibrant sources of bacteria, are not recommended for use. 

Water-Based Gardens 

There are countless ways to garden completely in water. Among the most popular in the industry are aeroponic gardens, ebb and flow systems, drip irrigation and deep water culture (DWC). Being that these systems use air and water to churn and circulate water throughout the reservoir, an organic supplement would likely become a mess of bubbling organisms and proteins within a few days, if not a few hours. To ensure your reservoir is sterile and free of any unwanted contaminants, a concentrated and highly soluble liquid nutrient, like GreenPlanet Nutrients Dual Fuel, would be a reliable choice of fertilizer in a water-based garden.

Choosing Your Fertilizer

Now that you know the difference between growing with organic and mineral-based compounds, and that this choice will influence the system in which your plants will grow, choosing a clean and well-rounded nutrient system is sure to be less of a debate, and more of a concise choice. Whether your garden is organic, synthetic, soil-based or hydroponic, GreenPlanet Nutrients has a variety of nutrient systems available to suit your needs. For a detailed list of nutrient programs currently offered by GreenPlanet Nutrients, see blow below. 

Want to learn more about Medi One? Read our blog titled Medi One: Now Officially OMRI Listed. For all other questions, contact a member of the GreenPlanet sales team, or your local garden supply store for product information and purchasing inquiries. 

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What Are Base Nutrients?

A base nutrient, or a base nutrient system, can be described as the main source of plant food given to indoor or outdoor crops throughout the lifecycle of growth and bloom. To beginners, this topic of conversation can appear daunting, especially with the massive selection of nutrient brands and programs available in today’s market. However, the principles of plant nutrition, and the products which seek to promote plant health, are respectively similar in their content. This article, if anything, will simplify the seemingly complicated topic of plant nutrition, and shed light on the contents of “base nutrient” programs. 

A Closer Look at Base Nutrients

So what are base nutrients? Like us, plants are only able to digest certain elements throughout their lifecycle; and so, a base nutrient could be described as any liquid or powdered plant food that contains most of, or all of the essential elements for plant health and stability. Although base nutrient systems vary in many ways, most notable in price, brand, and in the number of “parts”, an adequate base nutrient program will contain a well-rounded list of macro and micro-elements, be highly concentrated, and provide your plants with essential minerals throughout periods of growth and bloom. For an explanation of base nutrient parts, read our blog titled: Understanding the Parts of GreenPlanet Nutrients Base Fertilizer Programs.

Micronutrients and Macronutrients essential for plant growth
Hassani, 2018, Forestrypedia.com

Macronutrients

The most important elements to consider when choosing a base nutrient is Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K). Since plant biology has been understood at the molecular level, there has been a general consensus of the importance of these macronutrients; for instance, among other essential elements, Nitrogen is required in the largest quantities, and its availability and internal concentration affect the partitioning of biomass between roots and shoots (Razaq et al, 2015, p. 2). Phosphorus and Potassium, on the other hand, are equally important. From Graham Reinders in-depth book titled, Secrets Of High Yield Plant Growth, the author states the following on the overall significance of Phosphorus and Potassium: 

Phosphorus is an energy carrier for hardy plants, and promotes early maturity for good flower, fruit and seed formation. Plants need Potassium to create the proteins that increase oil content which in turn enhance flavour and colour on flowers, fruits and vegetables.

(Reinders, 2001, p. 108)

Micronutrients

Although a solid N-P-K ratio is essential in the formation of a base nutrient program, other elements called “micronutrients”, have an important role to play in a well-rounded base nutrient system. These trace elements, although only available in small amounts, help facilitate a plants healthy metabolism; furthermore, if a plant is lacking a specific micronutrient, deficiencies such as slow or stunted growth, or in some cases, cell death may be observed (Boundless Biology, LibreText, p. 3).

Example of Micronutrients that are essential to plant growth
HaifaMicro, 2020, Haifa-Group.com

What to Look for in a Base Nutrient Program

If you can grasp a basic understanding of plant nutrition, choosing an appropriate base nutrient program is easy. But in short, when choosing a system of plant nutrition for your garden, make sure that the elements above are listed in well rounded and abundant quantities. Because a base nutrient is your plant’s main source of food, any system worth its weight should provide your garden with an adequate and wide range of elements. To see all available plant elements, refer to the guaranteed analysis.

All elements are documented in our Guaranteed Analysis, which can be found on the backs of our GreenPlanet bottles or located on the product tab on our shop page.

View GP3 Micro’s Guaranteed Analysis

The Contents of a Fertilizer

Before purchasing a base nutrient fertilizer, consider the contents of the bottle. For example, our OMRI listed organic base nutrient, Medi One, has a balanced N-P-K ratio of 4-3-3, as well as a host of other important micro-elements like copper, boron, manganese and zinc. If you’re curious about exact quantities of elements in your fertilizer of choice, ratios can be found in the “guaranteed analysis” section of any reputable fertilizer and are usually located on the back of the bottle, or in a peel-back label on the front of the container. 

Preferences, Skills and Systems

A few other aspects to consider when purchasing a base nutrient program is the gardening system and your own preferences as a grower. If you have an interest in growing organically, for instance, this preference would narrow the choices of the available base nutrient systems on the market. Conversely, if you happen to operate a hydroponic garden, experts in the field would typically recommend the use of a highly soluble synthetic fertilizer, one which has multiple parts, and in some cases, varying ratios. Our Dual Fuel system, among other options,  is arguably the most popular choice of mineral-based fertilizers which fit the former description of high solubility. 

Whatever your style of garden, chances are, GreenPlanet Nutrients has the perfect base nutrient program. To access the programs available at GreenPlanet Nutrients, contact a member of the GreenPlanet sales team, or your local garden supply store for product information and purchasing inquiries. 

Works Cited

  • Boundless Biology. (2020). Essential nutrients for plants. LibreText
  • Hassani, N. (2018). Macro and micronutrients essential for the growth of plants: Flow chart. Forestrypedia.com
  • Razaq M, Zhang P, Shen H-l, Salahuddin. (2017). Influence of nitrogen and phosphorous on the growth and root morphology of Acer mono. PLoS ONE. 
  • Reinders, G. (2001). Secrets of High Yield Plant Growth. Cybo Press. 
  • Haifa Group. (2020). HaifaMicro Chart. Retrieved February 4th, 2021 from Haifa-Group.com

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