Compost Tea!

[tfb4me]

I have been brewing compost tea for quite some time. I have a particular recipe I have been using with varying ingredients depending on what im using it for..Would some of you be willing to share your recipes? Here is one of my recipes to start this thread off right!..

I start with a 7 gal pail 3/4 full of rain water from my rain barrel.
I use the wifes knee high stockings and add the following into each one
In one I add a healthy handful of composted kitchen scraps
in the other I add a healthy handful of organically raised fresh rabbit manure
Then in the pail I add the following
1/4 cup of bat guano (depending on veg or flowering times)
1/4 cup of insect frass (always)
1/4 cup of home raised worm castings
half handful of sea kelp (always as it promotes a healthy foam)
1/4 cup of fish emulsion
And of course natural molasses usually 3/4 of a cup..
I then add our high volume air pump for approx 18 to 24 hours.What we get is almost a perfect resemblance to a nicely poured beer in a clear glass..I mix the solution 2 to 1 using 1 part tea to 2 parts rain water and water it in.Then in the spring and mid summer on non flowering plants I filter it out and folar spray.

I would love it if you all would share your recipes! Ill post up some pics of how well this stuff works..Our Zucchini plants are almost 4 feet tall this year and producing a new vegetable almost every day right now..Our strawberries look like they are on steroids and standing a healthy 7 to 8 inches tall!

 

[Chuck]

Once cup pelleted chicken manure
1/4 cup worm castings
1/2 cup whole ground corn meal
2 cups homemade compost
2 oz molasses
1 oz fish emulsion
2 oz liquid seaweed
2 oz liquid humate
1/4 teaspoon mycorrhizae
All into a 5 gallon bucket and aerated 48-72 hours depending on temperature. I will put the dry ingredients into a piece of panty hose if I plan to use it as a foliar spray, otherwise I just dump it all into the bucket when I use it to water with. Sometimes when I think the plants needs a little extra shot of nitrogen I will add a cup of bat guano to the mix. I give each plant 1 full quart about every 7 - 10 days. I do not dilute. I normally have 40 gallons brewing at all times

 

[tfb4me]

Once cup pelleted chicken manure
1/4 cup worm castings
1/2 cup whole ground corn meal
2 cups homemade compost
2 oz molasses
1 oz fish emulsion
2 oz liquid seaweed
2 oz liquid humate
1/4 teaspoon mycorrhizae
All into a 5 gallon bucket and aerated 48-72 hours depending on temperature. I will put the dry ingredients into a piece of panty hose if I plan to use it as a foliar spray, otherwise I just dump it all into the bucket when I use it to water with. Sometimes when I think the plants needs a little extra shot of nitrogen I will add a cup of bat guano to the mix. I give each plant 1 full quart about every 7 - 10 days. I do not dilute. I normally have 40 gallons brewing at all times

Ok a couple questions...What is mycorrhizae and what does it do? Also where you get it and liquid humate? I can only find Humate as an ingredient in organic hydroponic fertilizers and im not paying that much for this stuff..

 

[Chuck]

Mycorrhizae fungi is a soil born fungus that attaches and grows on most plants root systems. It tremendously increases the actual area and physical size of the roots thus enabling the plants to uptake more nutrients. In other words it increases the size of a plants entire root system making for increased productivity. I get it at my local hardware store . It is rather expensive, about $20 but one container goes a long way. One lasts me a complete year. You can get it online too

Liquid humate/humus is sold under many brand names. I purchase the Medina brand at my local hardware store which has a large organic gardening section. I think it costs about $7 per quart. Any real nursery will carry it or can get it

 

[Beth_B]

I've never made my own compost tea, but for the past few years I've been buying "Dr Earth" brand fertilizers such as this one, and making compost tea from that. I'm going to assume that home made is better but I have a question - Chuck, you tout molasses (I'm going to get this tomorrow) but doesn't the potassium sulfate in the product I linked to already provide whatever molasses would add to the soil, or not?

 

[Chuck]

I've never made my own compost tea, but for the past few years I've been buying "Dr Earth" brand fertilizers such as this one, and making compost tea from that. I'm going to assume that home made is better but I have a question - Chuck, you tout molasses (I'm going to get this tomorrow) but doesn't the potassium sulfate in the product I linked to already provide whatever molasses would add to the soil, or not?

Molasses has nothing to do with potassium sulfate or potash and vice versa. Molasses does have a small amount of nitrogen and is full of minerals. The purpose of using molasses has nothing to do with the fertilization or feeding of a plant. In fact molasses does nothing for the plant directly. What molasses does is stimulate the growth of and feed the microbes in the soil. These microbes are made of fungi and bacteria and these fungi and bacteria are what break down the organic materials in your Dr Earth and in your soil into the micro-nutrients of which your plants must uptake in order to grow. By using molasses in your compost tea made from your Dr. Earth you are making it many times more effective.

 

[Corzhens]

I know of compost because we have a compost bin here but I have not heard of compost tea. Maybe I would just rely on our compost that also serves as soil conditioner and additive particularly for the plants in the pots which need fertilizers regularly. Our compost bin is where we throw the leftover vegetables and fruits. It is very potent because of the ingredients that the earthworms eat to convert into compost.

 

[InvasiveCreeper]

For the past few years I've been buying "Dr Earth" brand fertilizers ...

I don't trust the Dr. Earth products, they splash the word "organic" all over their labels but do not have an OMRI listing. It seems deceptive, so I stay far away from their products. It also raises strong questions about what is really in their products.

 

[Mint]

I have not heard of compost tea either. Can someone enighten me about this perhaps? Seems several people in here know something about it.