Am i wasting my time?

[Chris r]

I am doing something similar to fish hydrolysis, but the process seems to be faster. I have a 35gal barrel. I add fish, molasses, sawdust, and fresh vegetable scraps. Barrel is filled with water and is vigorously aerated with a good aquarium pump. I have the barrel insulated to prevent overheating due to texas weather. This process breaks everything down in under 2 weeks. I have been using it on plants weekly for about a month now and they seem to like it. I have no way of testing the finished product. My question is, am i actually adding the “good stuff” to my soil or am i killing off or weakening the good bacteria and fungi with the aeration? Thanks

 

[Meadowlark]

Interesting.

Sounds to me like a good recipe...especially if you are using rain water and NOT city water. The aeration should help break it down and maybe? reduce odors.

To determine the effectiveness of the method, for certain, you could run a soil test of soil before adding the amendment and then another test after adding the amendment. Heck, you could even get very precise by running with and without aeration...but I personally don't believe that would make a significant difference in the results.

If you do run tests, I would appreciate an e-mail with the results, if you would be so kind.

 

[Jesse Glessner]

This sounds very similar to "Dave's Tea" which I received from a friend. See below. The only thing I would be sure of with sawdust is to make sure there is NO WALNUT sawdust in there. Or use the alfalfa pellets in place of your sawdust. I did this one year and the plants just exploded in growth. Since, I'm trying ElectroGardening!

Alfalfa Tea
Need:
Trash can with lid or barrel with lid
Alfalfa pellets or alfalfa meal (4 cups to every 5 gal. of water)
¼ to ½ cup Epsom salts per each 5 gal water
¼ cup fish emulsion per 5 gal water
¼ cup molasses per 5 gal water
½ to 1 T Iron Chelate per 5 gal water

Position garbage bin or barrel in an out of the way spot. Add all ingredients to the trash can. Fill can almost to top with water. Stir well. Cover tight. Let set 5 days, stirring once a day.

Alternate speedier method: Put a fish tank aerator hose weighted down in the container and let “cook” about 24 to 48 hours.

Let sludge settle to the bottom and then put about 2 cups of the liquid on each plant every 2 weeks till fall. Once you have used most of the liquid down to the sludge, you can add water to fill it to the top again, Add the full dose of Epsom salts again, and let it set another 5 days. After that use the top liquid and then use the bottom sludge as a top dressing, or put in your compost pile.

 

[Mystic Moon Tree]

In general pathogenic bacteria is anaerobic & probiotic bacteria is aerobic, so aeration is gerally desireable for producing a good plant food. This is why we keep healthy aquaponic systems circulating, we encourage positive fauna in the soil that burrows & brings air to non waterlogged roots & we turn compost piles to introduce air at specific times. The ingredients you use will make a specialized product that will be good for some plants and not for others. It has a connifer base which will be high in tanic acids & turpenoids, sugars & rich organic matter. It may be too hot, rich & acidic for some plants but perfect & lush for others.

 

[Chris r]

Thank you all for the great replies. Each one gives me better insight into what to expect and what I need to change. Appreciate the help.