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What do you do with your Compost teas?
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Author:  CaptainCompostAL [ Mon Mar 10, 2003 2:34 pm ]
Post subject:  What do you do with your Compost teas?

I love compost teas! I've been using them now in all my gardening and lawn systems now for 3 years. In the last 12 months I have learned the power of aerated compost teas. I have developed several of my own recipes that I modified from both Dirt Doctor and Dr. Elaine Ingham (SoilFoodWeb.com).

Here is a list of most of the uses I have for homemade teas:

1. Quick liquid fertilizer
2. Foliar Spray
3. Soil Drench
4. Soil Biostimulant
5. Disease/Fungicide Control
6. Compost pile nitrogen activator
7. Compost pile microbial activator

What are you doing with teas these days?

Happy Gardening!

Author:  CaptainCompostAL [ Tue Mar 11, 2003 3:35 pm ]
Post subject: 

Besides good compost what else do y'all use in your teas?

I sometimes add several rich bacterial or fungal foods to my tea brews in order to greatly increase the beneficial aerobic microbes in my teas.

Here's my list of favorites:

1. Molasses
2. Liquified Seaweed
3. Fish scraps like mackerel or sardines
4. Old horse manure
5. Human urine
6. Catle/Horse feeds
7. Old forest soil (full of beneficial fungi)
8. Corn meal
9. Green weeds
10. Rotten fruit - (extra fungi)

Author:  The Ent [ Thu Mar 20, 2003 8:12 am ]
Post subject: 

I have a 50-gallon barrel that I use to catch rainwater. I have a pump in the bottom that I use to circulate and oxygenate the water.

Once I have enough colected, I fill an old sock (I use it like a huge tea bag here) with a mix of earthworm castings, bat guano, mushroom compost, and a bit of dry humate. I Let the filter sock hang in the water while it circulates. Then I add 1 cup of horticultural molasses to feed the microbes. The molasses keeps the beneficial microbes growing and multiplying which keeps out pathogens.

After about 48 hours, I have great compost tea as a result and can use it for any number of things, as Capt Compost noted above.

Author:  dirty dave [ Tue Jun 17, 2003 4:52 pm ]
Post subject: 

hello captain why is it so important to use rain water in your teas? how can you use regular tap water?

Author:  CaptainCompostAL [ Wed Jun 18, 2003 7:27 am ]
Post subject: 

Probably the worst thing about faucet water, is the chlorine or chlorime that is added to it. Both of these chemicals are deadly to aerobic bacteria and fungi in tea brewing. Chlorinated water can slow down microbial growth and organic matter decomposition in all composting methods.

One way to avoid this issue, is to use old stale faucet water, or let your water bubble in your bucket or tub for a few hours before applying your compost tea ingredients.

Some people use a little Tang (citrus acid) or hydrogen peroxide in their fresh faucet water in tea brewing to counteract the chlorinated water.

I keep a couple of 50 gallon rain barrels full at all times just for hot composting piles and aerated tea brewing. I sometimes toss a cup of urine or compost in the rain barrels to add extra nitrogen and microbes in the water.

Another lesser or minor issue of faucet water is pH. Based on where you live, some tap waters are too alkaline with calcium deposits. Most true rain water is slightly acid. Compost has a natural near neutral pH. Therefore simple compost leachates have a near neutral pH. Adding a few tblsp per 5 gallons of tea, of apple cider vinegar or citrus acid, is one way to get back to a slightly acidic pH that maximizes most natural foliar sprays, according to experts.

On the other hand, if you are like me, I use my aerated teas as both a foliar and soil drench all the time. Not just as a foliar spray. Since plants can tolerance good teas that have a pH from about 5.5 to 8.0, I don't bother about adding a natural acid to my teas for that reason. The available lime in my soil, and the beneficial soil microherd, take care of buffering the soil pH.

I have read that chlorine is easily diffused from faucet water after 24 hours anyway. That is why watering your organic lawn is not a big problem. The soil microbes quickly recover.

Author:  happywithorganics [ Sun Jul 06, 2003 9:13 am ]
Post subject:  Compost Tea - Aerated vs Unaerated

How much of a difference does aerating do? What type of aerator would be good to use & how long to aerate?

Author:  CaptainCompostAL [ Mon Jul 07, 2003 7:59 am ]
Post subject: 

Aeration makes a big difference! Without aeration all you got is a powerful, highly nutritious liquid fertilizer, little beneficial aerobic soil microbes in it. With aeration you got a powerful biostimulant.

The secret to plant and soil health, composting, and soil building is all in the aerobic soil microbes. Without these guys you got nothing but just good looking plants, but no real healthy soil or strong plant immunity systems.

All aerobic microbes are beneficial to gardening and soil building. These special teas can fight diseases and pests, and even loosen up soil texture and provide better soil conditioning. It can also speed up composting and make your composts and mulches work as least twice as better than they do by themselves!

A good aerobic 5 gallon tea brew can contain as much aerobic bacteria and fungi as about 10 tons or 40 cubic yards of regular compost!

Author:  tfavre [ Sun Jul 20, 2003 1:51 am ]
Post subject: 

So what's the best way to get an aerated compost system set up? I have a traditional compost pile but would like to expand it and also get a rain barrel system going. Then the aeration set up after that. Any recommendations for a first set up would be appreciated!

Author:  senegaltictac [ Fri Aug 08, 2003 6:58 pm ]
Post subject:  What I do with compost tea

I put compost tea in a garden hose sprayer and connect it to my sprinkler when I water my garden.

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