THE FIVE W’S TO WATERING
“NO WATER, NO LIFE. NO BLUE, NO GREEN” - SYLVIA EARLE
I'm sure everyone knows a little something about watering, but we all have our own idiosyncrasies on ways of doing it. Here at Evercure farms, we take pride in all that we do and watering plays a HUGE part in our day to day life. As we all know, water is essential when it comes to maintaining life on earth, thus why it is so important. Plus, without water, there would be no corn, therefore no bourbon. Yikes! Could you imagine? Kentuckians love their bourbon. Almost as much as we love our cannabis! Without a consistent water supply, we would have no cannabis…therefore no CBD oil. I’m not even sure what any of us did before growing, but I do know that none of us can imagine a life without it now!
Here’s to our journey of keeping our plants happy and healthy with all the water they need…
Outdoor planting season begins the first of May and harvest doesn’t begin until late September/early October. During that five months, especially in Kentucky, we experience many, many different types of weather scenarios. In the several years that we have been growing, we have went through hail storms, thunder storms, high winds, and many frost advisories. Most of the time, when people think of watering plants, they think about doing it because they are “thirsty.” Plants actually like to eat too. We add our nutrients into our irrigation system. Watering before a frost is equally as important- this helps insulate the plants from those freezing temperatures.
So…here comes the FIVE W’s to Water
WHY DO WE WATER?
You guessed it! Because plants need water to survive! When plants become dry, they draw their water source from surrounding soil until there is nothing left. This supply must be replenished. Like stated above, plants need their nutrients and water plays a crucial role in the delivery of those nutrients. Not only that, water also helps with stable temperature control of our cannabis plants
WHEN DO WE WATER?
As our dad’s have always said…”Happy wife, happy life.” Knowing when to water is essential. A watering schedule is very beneficial once they’re settled into their new homes. Once they have been acclimated, our girls will let us know when they’re thirsty or hungry. We will then work according to their schedule. If they’re thirsty or hungry for an extended period of time, the plants will start to droop and eventually wilt. They will then begin to shrivel up and then die if left unattended too long. They can also lose their vibrant green leaves. Sunshine and temperature variation also affect the watering cycle. Of course, like any plant, the leaves can burn if watered under bright sun. The time of day that you water can greatly influence the health and vigor of the cannabis plant. We run a tight ship when it comes to tracking our watering and feeding schedules. But, the good news is is that since plants are fed, using the irrigation system, they can coincide. We enjoy watching our girls reach towards the sky!
WHERE DO WE WATER?
Where watering occurs depends on the location of the plant. We have an indoor and outdoor growing operation. We use a variety of watering techniques. Depending on the location and set up of the plant, we water at the soil line, under the soil, or what we consider misting the tops of the plants. Depending on the amount of love each plant needs, we might use one technique or all three. Some of our girls might be hand watered or even set up on timers. Again, its all about being able to read the plant and knowing what signs to look for.
WHAT DO WE PUT IN THE WATER?
As Bobby Boucher says…”Now that’s what I call high quality H2O!” We personally use city water due to it’s consistency and cleanliness, but any water source will work; you might just need to put in a little leg work to ensure that the PH and temperature is perfect. Cannabis prefers a PH of 6.8. Tap water usually has a PH right around 7 and the temperature is well maintained. The nutrients we add depend on several variables. Those variables being the size of our crop, the location of our crop, that particular time in the season, and the type of soil being used.
WHO DOES THE WATERING?
Mother Nature is a great source of water, although she is rather unpredictable. Too much rain can be just as problematic as too little rain. Plus, it can wash pivotal nutrients away, which is never a good thing. We do become quite avid weather watchers during this time! Our team at Evercure also utilizes our above ground and underground water irrigation systems. They have been life savers at times! Our team is also just blessed to have a tribe standing behind us, waiting to jump in and lend a helping hand whenever needed.
Thanks for reading, following, or joining in our journey here at Evercure Farms!