Organic nutrients and their potential to enhance agronomic performance measures and cannabinoid levels in cultivated Cannabis sativa L.

Abstract

Farmers in Thailand are improving agricultural practices and organic approaches in crop production. When cultivating cannabis for cannabinoids, organic nutrients are thought to be better than inorganic options. This study investigates the effect of organic and inorganic nutrients on the growth and cannabinoid yield of Cannabis sativa KKU05 under field conditions. We tested four fertilizer treatments: no fertilizer, chicken manure, vermicompost, and inorganic nitrogen-phosphorous-potassium (NPK) fertilizer. Unfertilised plants yielded the lowest concentrations of cannabidiol, while plants fertilised with inorganic NPK or vermicompost performed the best, with cannabidiol concentrations of 4.94% and 4.91%, respectively. Vermicompost application was also associated with significantly higher concentrations of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (0.21%) and cannabidiol (4.91%) compared to the no fertilizer method. There were no statistically significant differences in leaf and floret biomass or omega fatty acid concentrations among the chicken manure, vermicompost, and inorganic NPK fertilizer methods. This study demonstrates that vermicompost has excellent potential to improve cannabis yields for the production of cannabinoids under Good Agricultural Practices.