Augmenting Nutrient Acquisition Ranges of Greenhouse Grown CBD (Cannabidiol) Hemp (Cannabis sativa) Cultivars

Abstract

There is a growing interest in the production of hemp for the extraction of cannabidiol (CBD) due to reported therapeutic benefits. Recent policy reform has permitted state hemp pilot programs, including the land grant research institutions, the ability to investigate the potential of growing and harvesting Cannabis sativa plants (≤0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol) for these purposes in the U.S. There are vast gaps of knowledge regarding the fertility requirements of hemp cultivars grown in a horticultural production setting for floral attributes such as the cannabinoid constituents. Foliar tissue analysis provides an avenue to determine adequate ranges for nutrient uptake and estimating fertilizer requirements prior to visual symptoms of deficiency or toxicity. To facilitate a survey range of elemental nutrient acquisition in hemp cultivars propagated for CBD production, foliar analysis was executed using the most recently mature leaves (MRML) of mother stock plants. All plants were maintained in the vegetative stage for twelve weeks, prior to initiation of cutting for clone harvesting. A total of thirteen cultivars were utilized to broaden previously reported baseline survey ranges. Significant differences were found among all thirteen cultivars in accumulation of both micro and macro essential nutrients, widening the range of the fertility requirements of Cannabis plants grown in this production model for CBD harvesting.

Hemp Growth in Vitro and in Vivo: A Comparison of Growing Media and Growing Environments across 10 Accessions

“…That said, the amount of sulfur in DKW is 8.5 times greater than in MS (Supplemental Table S3). Across 13 CBD hemp cultivars, Kalinowski et al (2020) observed an average leaf sulfur concentration of 0.31%, which is greater than the average of 0.23% measured across 536 nonwoody plant species (Fratte et al, 2021). This relatively high leaf concentration of (and possibly requirement for) sulfur in hemp could explain the greater vigor observed with DKW compared with MS in our study.…”

Sustainable Cannabis Nutrition: Elevated root-zone phosphorus significantly increases leachate P and does not improve yield or quality

“…High rates of P can affect the uptake of other ions but increasing P supply resulted in only small differences in the nutrient content of flowers and leaves ( Figure 1 ). The nutrient content of the leaves were within published optimal ranges for all P treatments ( Cockson et al., 2019 ; Landis et al., 2019 ; Kalinowski et al., 2020 ).…”

“…At ambient CO 2 (415 ppm), WUE is typically around 3 grams per L ( Bugbee, 2004 ; Langenfeld et al., 2022 ). Using a mass balance approach, assuming an optimal leaf P concentration of 0.4% ( Cockson et al., 2019 ; Landis et al., 2019 ; Kalinowski et al., 2020 ), the theoretical P demand is 12 mg per L at ambient CO 2 . Elevated CO 2 reduces transpiration rate and increases photosynthetic rate ( Morison, 1985 ).…”

Beneficial Insects for Biological Pest Control in Greenhouse Cannabis Production

“…Managing the environmental hazards is paramount to getting the best probabilities of success, higher yields, better quality and higher profits (Straten et al, 2010). It is a common practice to cultivate cannabis in greenhouses (Kalinowski et al, 2020).…”