Why You Need to Use Clean Water to Grow Cannabis Plants

The Importance Of Using Clean Water For Your Cannabis Plants

cannabis clean water act

Water is an essential requirement for life – including plants. It’s a basic need for indoor and outdoor gardening too, and your cannabis plant is no different.

However, very much unlike other plants, your cannabis plant will not thrive if you water it with grey water. Many homes have made it a habit of reusing gray water, or even water from fish aquariums, to water plants and gardens. It might be seen as an environmentally safe way to reuse water in your home, and while your other plants may do well, this isn’t advisable for your cannabis plants.

Clean, Good-Quality Water Promotes Healthy Cannabis Plants

The quality of water used tends to be one of the most underrated aspects of growing cannabis. There’s much more to it than simply using clean water because when you understand the science behind why it’s so important for your pot, it will empower you to take even better care of your plants.

Let’s start with the basics: for plants, water is responsible for helping transport nutrients throughout from tip to root. It also plays a huge role in photosynthesis; without water, photosynthesis will not occur. During the day, water goes to the leaves via the stems and eventually evaporates through the stomata (holes) where it converts into carbon dioxide. This process is known as transpiration. Carbon dioxide together with light then produces sugars which serves as the nourishment of the plants through the process of photosynthesis.

What Happens To Your Cannabis When You Feed It Poor-Quality Water

Feeding your cannabis plants with poor or low-quality water will affect the very processes that keep the plant healthy and alive. What you get is less bud whose potency has already been diminished.

Whether you’re growing indoors or outdoors, the quality of your water is very important.

Factors Of Good Quality Water

Figuring out the quality of water you’re using isn’t rocket science. There are a few things to keep in mind:

pH: pH levels affect the ability of your cannabis plant to carry carbohydrates and nutrients all throughout. Cannabis grows best with pH levels that are just around 6.5. Even if it’s a little lower or higher will be okay but 6.5 is the sweet spot. To check your water’s pH levels are easy – just use a pH meter in some water runoff. However, there are many different kinds of pH testing tools out there to suit your needs, budget, and growing mediums.

If you find that your water has high pH levels, you can introduce some garden lime into the water to bring down pH levels. To do the opposite, add white vinegar which will make it more acidic.

PPM and EC: These refer to parts per million (PPM) and electrical conductivity (EC). Both of these terms measure the quantity of minerals that are dissolved in the water you’re using. For example, ppm readings of 100 means that you have 100mg of minerals in each liter of your water. This might seem like an insignificant figure to you, but your plants are only able to absorb a small amount of minerals and nutrients each day. Adjusting ppm levels helps your crops get the most out of them.

Another benefit of understanding your ppm is that it helps you prevent nutrient burn because you’d know exactly when to adjust how much minerals you’re adding to the water. After cloning, cannabis thrive with 500-600ppm, during vegetation 800-900ppm, and when flowering, 1000-1100ppm. Several different types of meters, devices, and probes are available that can help you measure ppm precisely. The total dissolved solids (TDS) meter is the most common, and it also happen to be very easy to use.

Other Things To Keep In Mind

Many growers, cannabis or not, have the misconception that rain water is good for growing plants because of its neutral pH levels. Actually, it’s more acidic but the carbon dioxide dissolves in it, turning it into a carbolic acid with mild pH level of 5.6

You also want to avoid using a reverse osmosis filter because it turns your water into a completely mineral-free water. This water should never be used to flush out your plants, or even as a foliage spray. Reverse osmosis water will get rid of all the valuable nutrients from your plants particularly magnesium and calcium.

Keeping tabs on water quality doesn’t have to be hard. Just keep these tips in mind and when you make some changes, watch your cannabis plants grow like mad.