By Max Sargent Reviewed by: Gloria Payá


Are you one of those growers who seeks out ever better yields? Or, do you simply love understanding exactly how cannabis plants work? Well, today we’ll take a look at lactic acid bacteria (LAB), which can enhance various aspects of plant performance—and give you an opportunity to fine-tune your grow one step further!

In this article, we'll discuss how LAB works in relation to weed, and how you can harness it to get the most out of your grow.

What Are Lactic Acid Bacteria?

LAB are a diverse group of beneficial microbes known for their ability to ferment sugars into lactic acid. These bacteria are naturally present in a wide variety of environments, including soil, plants, and the gastrointestinal tracts of humans and animals. LAB play an important part in regulating the balance of the microbiome in both plants and humans, so why not utilise this to the benefit of your crop?

You might be more familiar with these bacteria than you initially think. For instance, in the food industry, LAB are widely used for the fermentation of dairy products such as yoghurt, cheese, and kefir, as well as in the production of fermented vegetables like sauerkraut and kimchi. If you’ve ever looked into improving your gut health with fermented foods, you’ve likely come across products that use LAB!

More recently, LAB have been studied as a promising new avenue for agriculture. Their application in farming offers a sustainable approach to improving plant health, enhancing soil fertility, and boosting crop yields.

What is lactic acid bacteria

The Benefits of LAB When Growing Weed

LAB can act as a powerful probiotic for plants, including weed, and this can help to enhance the way they process nutrients, meaning they use everything at their disposal optimally. But what does this mean come harvest time? Well, ultimately it means bigger yields of more potent buds, and the potential for more flavour to boot. Now, using LAB isn’t going to change your life if other factors aren’t dialled in, but if you’re looking for that extra 1%, this might be it.

  • LAB as a Biostimulant

Lactic acid bacteria function as a biostimulant by enhancing the plant's natural processes, leading to improved growth and development. When applied effectively to cannabis plants, LAB can have a whole range of benefits, such as the stimulation of metabolic activities, promotion of root growth, and the enhancement of nutrient uptake. Some studies[1] have even shown that LAB can improve the efficiency of photosynthesis, which leads to more robust and vigorous growth. This results in healthier plants with higher yields and better-quality buds—which should make all growers happy!

  • LAB as a Biofertiliser

As a biofertiliser[2], LAB can improve soil fertility by helping to increase the decomposition of organic matter and nutrient cycling when added to the soil as an amendment. When used in this way, it breaks down complex organic compounds into simpler forms that plants can easily absorb, increasing uptake of macronutrients and micronutrients—and further increasing the effectiveness of organic feeding methods.

This process enriches the soil with essential nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, and lesser-known nutrients that all contribute to healthy and vigorous growth. What’s more, LAB can even help to maintain soil structure and increase its water-holding capacity, which can reduce the amount of water you need to give to your plants, and help to stabilise pH levels.

LAB as a biofertiliser
  • LAB Fight Off Pests and Disease

Another advantage of using LAB in cannabis cultivation is the ability to protect plants from pests and diseases. You might not be too worried about the presence of pathogens[3], until one day they strike, at which point you’ll realise how annoying, or devastating, they can be! So use LAB, and you may never have to find out.

LAB produce various antimicrobial substances, including bacteriocins and organic acids, that inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria, fungi, and other pathogens on the plant and in the soil. These natural defence mechanisms help to reduce the incidence of common cannabis diseases[4] such as powdery mildew, root rot, and Botrytis. Combine these effects with the fact that LAB can help your plants absorb more nutrients, and you have the perfect recipe for a strong plant immune system and a healthier environment!

  • LAB Help Foster Living Soil

Living soil is a concept that emphasises the importance of a healthy, dynamic soil ecosystem where diverse microorganisms, organic matter, and plants interact to create a self-sustaining environment—basically mimicking a true, healthy natural habitat. Soil should be a thriving ecosystem, not a vessel for inert nutrients.

Lactic acid bacteria play a crucial role in fostering living soil by accelerating the decomposition of organic matter and promoting nutrient cycling, which encourages the growth of a whole range of microorganisms in the soil biosphere. Furthermore, the bacteria themselves serve as a food source for other beneficial microbes, creating a balanced and thriving soil microbiome. This microbial diversity enhances soil fertility, improves plant health, reduces the development of pathogens in the soil, and leads to more resilient cannabis crops.

  • LAB Enhance Cannabis Seed Germination

Using LAB is thought to be able to significantly improve the germination rates of cannabis seeds. LAB-treated seeds have demonstrated increased germination speed and higher success rates, ensuring a strong start for your plants. Though the beneficial effects of LAB on seed germination are not fully understood, they are generally attributed to their ability to enhance nutrient availability, stimulate root growth, and protect seeds from soil-borne pathogens.

LAB shouldn’t be your first port of call when it comes to germinating seeds, as there are other far more important factors. But if you’re experienced and you know what you’re doing, then it can make a highly valuable addition.

How to Make LAB for Weed Plants

Creating LAB at home is simple and cost-effective, and anyone who wants to should be able to do it very easily. Below, find the equipment you’ll need followed by the necessary steps to add LAB to your crop!

Equipment

  • Rice
  • Water
  • Milk (preferably raw or unpasteurised)
  • Jar with a lid
  • Cheesecloth or breathable fabric
  • Rubber band
  • Measuring jug and spoons
  • Strainer or fine mesh sieve
  • Pipette

Directions

  1. Prepare rice water: First, rinse around 200 g of rice with 250 ml of water. Do not dispose of the rinse water, but collect it in a jar, as it contains the starches and beneficial microbes that will serve as a nutrient source for the LAB.
  2. Fermentation: Cover the jar with cheesecloth and secure it with a rubber band. Let it sit at room temperature for 3–7 days while it ferments. During this period, naturally occurring lactic acid bacteria that are already present will start to multiply in the rice water.
  3. Add milk: Now, strain the fermented liquid to remove any solid particles, and mix the liquid with roughly 10 parts milk. This milk will provide additional nutrients and a suitable environment for LAB to thrive and grow (think kefir). Then, allow this mixture to ferment for another 7 days. During this stage, you will notice a separation into layers, with the clear liquid (LAB serum) on top.
  4. Harvest LAB: After the fermentation is complete, use a pipette to carefully collect the clear liquid (LAB serum) from the top layer. This serum is rich in lactic acid bacteria and can be stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for several months without feeding—it will lie dormant. The LAB serum can be used directly as a foliar spray or soil drench for your cannabis plants. You can dispose of the milk.
How to make LAB for weed plants

How to Use LAB on Cannabis Plants

Using LAB on your cannabis plants is straightforward. Here's how to do it.

  • Foliar spray: To use it as a foliar spray, dilute the LAB serum with water at a 1:20 ratio (one part LAB serum to 20 parts water) and spray it liberally onto the leaves of your cannabis plants. Foliar application can help to boost plant immunity, improve nutrient absorption, and protect against foliar diseases. For best results, spray the plants early in the morning or late in the evening to avoid leaf burn from the sun; if growing indoors, spray after you’ve switched the lights off.
  • Soil drench: If you want to improve the soil biome, mix the LAB serum with water at a 1:10 ratio and apply it directly to the soil around the base of your cannabis plants. You can do this as part of a normal watering routine to avoid overwatering your plants. This method, as mentioned, can promote root health, enhance nutrient uptake, and support the overall soil microbiome. Apply the soil drench once a week for best results.
  • Seed treatment: To improve germination rates, soak your cannabis seeds in a diluted LAB solution (1:30 ratio) for a few hours before planting them in their first substrate. This treatment is thought to be able to improve germination rates and protect seedlings from soil-borne diseases.

Lactic Acid Bacteria and Weed: Harness the Power of Microbes

Using lactic acid bacteria in your weed grow can potentially lead to healthier plants, better yields, and a more sustainable growing process. Not only can it improve the quality of soil, but it can also fight off pathogens and even speed up and increase rates of germination.

As stated, the addition of LAB to your grow isn’t going to revolutionise your growing experience. Rather, if you’re already providing your plants with superior care and attention, it will add another beneficial element to your overall practice, helping to make for an even more refined product and process!

External Resources:
  1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0038071716304151
  2. Applied Sciences | Free Full-Text | Importance of Lactic Acid Bacteria as an Emerging Group of Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria in Sustainable Agroecosystems https://www.mdpi.com
  3. Agriculture | Free Full-Text | The Biocontrol of Plant Pathogenic Fungi by Selected Lactic Acid Bacteria: From Laboratory to Field Study https://www.mdpi.com
  4. The potential of lactic acid bacteria in mediating the control of plant diseases and plant growth stimulation in crop production - A mini review - PMC https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Disclaimer:
This content is for educational purposes only. The information provided is derived from research gathered from external sources.

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Privacy Policy - Royal Queen Seeds

To ensure a safe online environment and guarantee adequate data protection, we strictly comply with all legal requirements. In this privacy statement, we provide information about how and for what purpose data is collected, safety measures, storage periods and contact details.


COMPANY NAME: SNORKEL SPAIN, SL (hereinafter ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS)

C/ Vilar d'Abdelà, 5 (nave 1) CP: 08170 de Montornès del Vallès

+34 937 379 846

support@royalqueenseeds.com


The present Privacy Policy sets out the terms on which we will treat personal data at ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS; this includes any personal data collected through our website https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/ as well as any other data we process in the course of our business activities.

ROYAL QUEEN SEEDS collects the following personal data for the purposes listed below:

SECTION 1 – PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

1.1 Account purchases

Account purchases can only be made if you are in possession of a personal account. When you create an account or purchase something from our shop, as part of the buying and selling process we collect the following personal information that you provide to us:

This information is required for delivery. In addition, when you browse our shop, we automatically receive the Internet Protocol (IP) address of your computer. Based on this information, we can optimise your online experience and at the same time protect our online environment.

Purpose of data collection

We collect and store account-related data for the following purposes:

(a) to carry out obligations arising from any contracts between you and us, and to provide you with information, products and services that you may request from us;

(b) to set up, manage and communicate with you about your account and your orders;

(c) to conduct market research and analysis;

(d) to confirm your age and identity, and to detect and prevent fraud.

1.2 Newsletters

With your explicit permission, we may send you newsletters about our shop, new products and other updates. We send newsletters based on your explicit consent. In the event that you purchase a product, and in accordance with current regulations, we may send you commercial communications in accordance with the legitimate interest of our company, always about products or services similar to those you have purchased or contracted. In any case, you may exercise your right of opposition through the channels announced in this Privacy Policy. The following information is collected in relation to the newsletter:

We do not need to know the sex of the person in order to send the newsletter (data minimisation: by law we must ask for data that is strictly necessary to provide the service, and in this case knowing the sex is not necessary to send the newsletter).

Purpose of data collection

The data collected is used to:

(a) personalise our emails, including your name and gender;

(b) provide gender-specific content.

You can withdraw your consent at any time by using the link provided in the newsletter or the contact information provided in section 2.

1.3 Customer service and contact form

In order to provide appropriate support, our customer service employees have access to information related to the account. Consequently, their support will be highly effective and friendly. The data provided in our contact form is used by our CRM provider, SuperOffice. We will only use your details to respond to your message.

SECTION 2 – LEGITIMATE INTEREST

If you have purchased any of our products, please note that we may process your personal data for promotional purposes, based on Royal Queen Seeds' legitimate interest only to offer you products or services from our company and about products or services similar to those you have purchased. You may exercise your right to opt out of future messages by the means set out in this Privacy Policy or through any notification you receive.

2.1 How do you withdraw consent?

If you change your mind, you can withdraw your consent for us to contact you for the purpose of collecting, using, or disclosing your data at any time by reaching out to us at: support@royalqueenseeds.com.

SECTION 3 – DISCLOSURE

We may disclose your personal information if we are required to do so by law or if you breach our Terms of Service.

SECTION 4 – HOW LONG DO WE KEEP YOUR DATA?

At Royal Queen Seeds, we will not retain your data for longer than is necessary for the purposes described in this Policy. Different retention periods apply for different types of data; however, the longest period we will normally hold any personal data is 10 years.

4.1 Account information

Data relating to the account remains relevant for as long as the consumer is in possession of an account. Therefore, the data remains documented for as long as the account exists. When our customers delete an account, the associated data will be deleted within a reasonable period of time. Requests regarding the inspection or correction of stored personal data or the deletion of an account can be sent to support@royalqueenseeds.com.

4.2 Newsletters

In the event that you give us your consent to inform you about our products or services, we will keep your data until you express your wish not to receive any further communications from us. However, we regularly (every month) carry out a relevance check. Registered customers (and their personal information) will be deleted whenever customers do not reply to our request. In addition, our newsletter mailing has an opt-out feature. Consumers can withdraw their consent by using this opt-out feature.

SECTION 5 – COOKIES

Cookies are small information files that notify your computer of previous interactions with our website. These cookies are stored on your hard drive, not on our website. Essentially, when you use our website, your computer displays its cookies to us, informing our site that you have visited before. This allows our website to function more quickly and remember aspects related to your previous visits (such as your username), making your experience more convenient. At Royal Queen Seeds, we use two types of cookies: functional and analytical.

5.1 Functional Cookies

Functional cookies are used to enhance your online experience. Among other things, these cookies track what is added to your shopping cart. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

5.2 Analytical Cookies

Analytical cookies are used for research and market analysis. The data collected with these analytical cookies is anonymous, making it unusable for third parties. The use of these cookies does not require prior authorization.

SECTION 5 – THIRD-PARTY SERVICES

Third-party services are required to conduct transactions and provide our services. In general, the third-party providers we use will only collect, use and disclose your information to the extent necessary to enable them to perform the services they provide to us.

However, certain third-party service providers, such as payment gateways and other payment transaction processors, have their own privacy policies regarding the information we must provide to them for your transactions.

We encourage you to read the privacy policies of these providers so that you can understand how these providers will handle your personal information.

In particular, certain suppliers may be located or have facilities located in a different jurisdiction than yours or ours. Therefore, if you choose to proceed with a transaction involving the services of a third party, your information may be subject to the laws of the jurisdiction in which that service provider or its facilities are located.

Once you leave our website or are redirected to a third-party website or application, you are no longer governed by this Privacy Policy or the Terms of Service of our website.

Web analytics service (anonymous data)

On this website we have integrated an element of a web analytics service (with anonymisation functionality). Web analytics can be defined as the gathering, processing and analysis of data about the behaviour of visitors to websites. An analytics service collects, among other things, data about which website a person came from (the so-called referrer), which sub-pages they visited or how often and for how long they visited a sub-page. Web analytics is mainly used for website optimisation and for a cost–benefit analysis of internet advertising.

Courier service

To complete deliveries we use a courier service. This courier service carries out the delivery between our company and the consumer's home. To complete these logistics, the company requires access to the consumer's name and address information.

Mailing service

Royal Queen Seeds uses a third-party mail service provider to send its newsletter. This provider has access to limited account information related to opt-in consent (e.g. email address).

Marketing services

Royal Queen Seeds has the support of a company that specialises in marketing and communication activities. Their access to personal information is very limited and mostly anonymous.

Payment services

At Royal Queen Seeds we use external payment services to handle our transactions (e.g. credit card payments).

SECTION 6 – SECURITY

To protect your personal information, we take reasonable precautions and follow industry standard best practices to ensure that it is not inappropriately lost, misused, accessed, disclosed, altered or destroyed.

If you provide us with your credit card information, the information is encrypted using secure socket layer technology (SSL) and stored using AES-256 encryption. Although no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, we follow all PCI-DSS requirements and implement additional industry standards that are commonly accepted. Information related to the account is protected with a hashing method. This method transforms the information into a generated hash. As a result, confidential information is protected and invisible, even to us. In addition, our databases are exceptionally protected against unauthorised access. For example, access to the database is only possible and permitted via approved IP addresses (e.g. from Royal Queen Seeds headquarters). Other attempts and addresses are rejected at all times.

Furthermore, data is anonymised as much as possible, so it cannot be directly linked to a specific consumer. With this data, however, we may be able to carry out market research and analysis. In addition, the third parties concerned (e.g. mailing service) are examined prior to our collaboration, comply with the GDPR from the EU and receive a processing agreement. Within Royal Queen Seeds, employees are assigned different access permissions. Specific permission provides access only to information that is strictly required to perform a task. Digital security measures are subject to change and must meet high requirements to ensure the safety of online customers. That is why, at Royal Queen Seeds, we appoint a security officer. Regular verification and improvement of security measures (where necessary) are part of the role.

SECTION 7 – CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time, so please check back regularly. Changes and clarifications will be effective immediately upon being published on the Website. If we make substantial changes to this policy, we will notify you here that it has been updated so you will know what information we collect, how we use it and under what circumstances, if any, we use and/or disclose it.

SECTION 8 – YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO: