Many marijuana growers spend a lot of time giving their plants the right ingredients, environmental factors and special supplements they need. Outdoor growers get a lot of things for free, such as natural sunlight, oxygen and carbon dioxide (Co2). For indoor growing, sufficient lighting is usually provided by a sodium vapour lamp. This is still relatively simple, but what is often not sufficiently taken into account are vital components such as oxygen (O2) and carbon dioxide (Co2). Plants need both to develop vigorously, quickly and healthily.
It is therefore important to provide a direct fresh air supply from outside in the growroom so that sufficient CO2 and oxygen are available. Especially when the lamp(s) are running. Increasing the CO2 level in the growroom at the right time will lead to increased growth, increased yields and better plant health. Plants live in two worlds at the same time: The green part of the plant converts CO2 together with light into energy that the plant needs to grow (photsynthesis). The lower part of the plant, i.e. the roots, absorb water and nutrients.
Simply put, the green part of the plant needs CO2 (carbon dioxide) while the root zone needs O2 (oxygen). Similarly to how increasing the CO2 level in the growroom has a positive effect and improves growth, increasing the oxygen level in the root zone leads to healthy plants, higher yields and increased metabolic activity.
Adding CO2 to a healthy grow set-up has been shown to increase yields by 10-20% and shorten both the growing and flowering time. Furthermore, higher CO2 levels mean that pests are less prevalent and have a harder time spreading. The usual atmospheric CO2 level is about 500 ppm (parts per million). If this level is increased to 800-1800 ppm, there will be a significant improvement in quality and yield.
How can the CO2 (carbon dioxide) content in the growroom be increased?
As described above, the constant and direct supply of fresh air is fundamentally important. There are also ways to increase the CO2 content even further. With the special CO2 boost e.g. Co2 can be generated in the growroom and made available to the plants. They will start to grow magnificently, vigorously and quickly. The Co2 tablets add additional CO2 to the irrigation water and thus to the plants and are also excellent for hydroponic systems, where they are added to the nutrient tank.
In addition, there is the possibility of bringing Co2 into the grow room with the help of carbon dioxide bottles and appropriate fittings. However, these systems are so expensive that they are probably only worthwhile for larger (commercial) growing areas. This is also where they are used and increase yields accordingly.
Higher yields due to more oxygen (O2) in the root zone
The roots receive oxygen mainly during and through watering. Roots in hydroponic systems receive a particularly large amount of oxygen, with a constant or regular flow of nutrients through the root system. With hydroponics, a Sprinkler nutrient tank should be used, which, among other things, increases the oxygen content of the nutrient solution.
When growing in soil, you can improve the oxygen supply to the roots by ensuring sufficient aeration of this zone. It is therefore advisable to place a drainage layer at the bottom of the pot. Expanded clay (approx. 7-10 cm) and fill the soil with sufficient Perlites so that there are enough oxygen pockets. It is also important that the plant pots have enough holes for excess water to drain off. If the plants can absorb and remove the water in their pot more quickly, it is also possible to water more frequently, i.e. to supply oxygen more often. Therefore, it does not make sense to use planters that are too large. At the very least, a plant should be able to remove most of the water from the pot and absorb it within 24 hours, so that it can be watered again. This means that if you water your plant and the soil is still completely wet after 3 days, it means that you have used too much water and that your planter is probably too big.
If there is waterlogging in the root area, there is no more room for oxygen, so to speak, the roots start to rot and the plant gets in an extremely bad mood. For this reason Deep-water systemsFor this reason, plants in which the roots are constantly suspended in water only work if oxygen is constantly supplied to the nutrient solution with the help of a bubbler. Otherwise the roots would rot and the plants would die within a short time.
Cooler water can hold more oxygen than warm water. Therefore, the ideal temperature of watering water and in hydroponic systems is 22° C.
For the grow area, there are also special plant containers which, due to their air permeability, ensure an improved as well as increased oxygen supply in the root zone and thus produce higher yields, e.g. the Airpot:
