Molasses for Plants: Is It Good for Plants & Soil?
Molasses is a popular sweetener used in cookies, cakes, and other sweet treats that many people enjoy. But did you know that molasses is good for plants? Well, that’s not entirely accurate – but it’s a great keyword that may have landed you here! Truth is, plants are not capable of directly processing this nutrient dense substance. Instead, the micronutrients of molasses are processed by the organisms in the soil which then provides a nutrients-boost to the plant – and how this process works is pretty sweet (pun intended), but we’ll get into that later.
Unless you’re an agronomist, chances are you’re not familiar with all the benefits molasses provides for plant health. In this blog, we’ll discuss the various benefits of molasses, the methods of feeding plants molasses, and how this nutrient rich substance can be a cost-effective tool for organic farms of all sizes.
Zook Molasses manufactures high-quality molasses for agronomy and offers nationwide shipping to large commercial farms and small organic farmers alike. Contact us today or continue reading to learn more!
Contact Us Today!Benefits of Molasses for Plant Health
Plants need microbes. Microbes need sugar. Molasses is sugar. Therefore, molasses can be beneficial for healthier plants! Specifically, unsulfured blackstrap molasses. This is the grade of molasses commonly used by farmers and gardeners with it being the most nutritionally dense.
Let’s highlight some of the benefits of molasses for plant health:
- Increased Micronutrients: Soil is full of microscopic life, like fungi, protozoa, nematodes, and bacteria (some good, some bad). These microbes exist naturally in the ground, but the volume and type of bacteria that exists depends on the environment and soil conditions. Unsulfured molasses is full of micronutrients such as calcium, magnesium, iron, and potassium which helps enzyme function and maintains protein structures in a microorganism. (Fun fact: up to a billion bacteria can be found living in one teaspoon of soil!)
- Chemical-Free Insecticide: Not only does molasses have great benefits for plant health and fertility, but also insect and disease control. The addition of molasses can help deter soft bodied pests like aphids, ants, and root knot nematodes, as well as bad fungi.
- Organic & Cost-Effective Option: More and more, people are looking for ways to eliminate chemicals that can be harmful to the environment and contaminate their crops and produce. Molasses is an organic substance that can replace the need of chemically based fertilizers and insecticides. Not to mention the cost benefits! Unsulfured molasses is more often a much cheaper option than man-made chemical solutions.
Feeding Plants Molasses: How to Apply to Your Soil
Up to this point we’ve learned how feeding plants molasses can help you yield a larger crop and grow larger plants by increasing the microbial health of your soil. Now that you have a general understanding of the benefits of molasses for plants, you may be wondering how you can apply it to your fields, garden, or even your house plants!
First off, not all molasses for agronomy is the same. Aside from food grade and animal feed grade, there is sulfured and unsulfured molasses – which is a big difference for the soil. The use of sulfured molasses will alter the pH balance of the soil by increasing the acidity, which is harmful to good bacteria. Unsulfured blackstrap molasses does just the opposite, only providing the micronutrients that microbes crave!
There are various methods of mixing unsulfured molasses with water for application. These are the most common tips for applying molasses to your soil:
- For every 1,000 square feet, use 1/2 cup liquid molasses.
- When applying to individual plants, mix two tablespoons of molasses per gallon of water.
- Apply every two weeks. More frequent application is unnecessary and can potentially throw off the pH balance of the soil.
Where to Purchase Molasses for Plants
With all the proven benefits of molasses for plant health, choosing to use it for your crops, organic garden, or your everyday house plant is a great idea! Zook Molasses offers bulk unsulfured molasses at affordable costs, and our sister company, Golden Barrel, offers it in smaller volumes. We also ship nationwide!
If you’re looking for quality molasses for plants, look no further than Zook Molasses – contact us today to learn more!
