From lflondon@mindspring.com Wed Jun 21 23:43:05 2000 Date: Wed, 21 Jun 2000 23:10:32 -0400 From: "Lawrence F. London, Jr." To: london@metalab.unc.edu, lflondon@mindspring.com Subject: (fwd) Compost Tea On Thu, 15 Jun 2000 23:59:24 -0700, in alt.sustainable.agriculture jko@xprt.net (Jeff Owens) wrote: Compost Tea FAQ --------------- This FAQ still needs work so comments are welcome. I would like to see the Biodynamics information expanded and better information on how different tea's perform. Anyone having ideas email jeff at jko@xprt.net. What is compost tea? A wide variety of organic slurries are called compost tea. Generally, the tea contains living organisms which provide useful functions. Since it is made from organic materials it can also function as a fertilizer. Is compost tea based on science or folklore? Compost tea has a long history of use and does contain much folklore. The preparations used by BioDynamic farmers could be considered compost teas. In the last few years some of the claims for compost tea have been validated and new ideas introduced. All indicator suggest compost tea has a significant future in agriculture. Why do we need compost tea? The uses for compost tea are still emerging but here is a partial list: 1. foliar feeding 2. soil pest control 3. disease control 4. soil revitalization Orchard magazines are talking about controlling soil life using tea's along with apple scab and fungus. Garden magazines describe booster sprays for mid season. The list of uses are long as are the types of compost tea. How does compost tea work? It is believed that compost tea works in many ways. Since it is a soup of diverse organisms the result can also be very diverse. If the tea finds a niche it can fill then it will. In nature everything eats a neighbor and adding new neighbors can change the ecology quickly. Anyway, that is one view. The scientific view might focus on beneficial nematodes and how they attack cutworms, root weevils, and other soil pests. If tea is that great why isn't everyone using it? The use of compost tea is growing and new companies selling specialized products appear each day. Many garden catalogs are now carrying various teas. The problem is that each site is different and the variety of possible tea's is almost infinite. We have begun to open up the old efficient farming issue again. Do you make teas for a specific function and manipulate the ecology or do you build a diverse healthy garden an let it regulate itself. The later view would be more sustainable and less interested in a large array of specialized products. The efficient farming approach would want tea's to address specific problems and simple rules for using tea's with various crops. What approach fits sustainable gardening and agriculture? The use of compost tea is ideal for sustainable farming and gardening. It trades local labor for imported products to fight pests or increase fertility. It also connects a farmer with the soil and rewards careful observation. The gardener spends time brewing tea, thinking about soil and plants, identifying optimum spraying times, and developing a local art. Compost tea can be part of local recycling and use of compost piles. Are there easy methods to make compost tea? The process of making tea can use complex fermentation equipment or be the byproduct of other organic activity. Some people use the liquid from worm bins or the liquid from composting toilets, but most small scale tea production is from fermenting finished compost in water. Another easy approach is to ferment organic materials in a large tub of water. This process can utilize summer temperatures to speed the fermentation and dark containers to increase solar heating. For most sites an easy method of making tea can be found which utilizes existing materials and fits the climate. What ingredients can be used? Most organic materials can be used to make tea. Teas made from animal manures are preferred for some applications but other teas also work. We still have a lot to learn about ways to brew tea. Some of the materials mentioned often are: animal manure fish emulsion kitchen scraps molasses citrus rinds grass clippings kelp comfry leaves weeds compost mushroom compost nettles seaweed worm castings urine cider vinegar straw animal bedding How is compost tea made? Quick tea can be made by mixing one gallon of finished compost with 5 gallons of water and letting sit for 10 to 14 days. The ideal temperature for this is somewhere over 50 degrees. Probably temperatures of 80 degrees would reduce the time and increase the fermentation. Commercial tea production usually requires a tank with attached bubbler and enough heat to keep the mixture at around 70 degrees. This method requires 2-3 days. Home brew systems can be much simpler. Any tank can be filled with water and a started mixture added along with organic matter. In some cases it is enough to just dump in organic matter and let nature takes its course. This can take months. A very simple biodigester can be made from two garbage cans and works well for small urban sites. It provides both compost and tea. This is described at the Cornell composting site (see references). What are some common recipes? Simple Tea: 1. place aged compost in cloth bag and soak in tub with 5 parts water. After 2 or more weeks remove the bag. 2. Mix 2 tbls molasses, 2 tbls seaweed extract, 1 tbls apple cider, 1 gallon of water. Ferment for awhile. 3. In late spring fill a barrel with comfry or nettles, or other greens. Place barrel in warm spot and wait till well aged and stinks. Strain and use liquid. 4. Fill tub with 5 parts water to one part urine. let it age for two weeks in warm spot or use immediately. Complex tea: 1. Obtain a fish tank bubbler and method to keep tea container at around 70 degrees. Mix 5 parts water with 1 part compost, 4 oz of molasses, and kelp extract. Ferment and bubble for about 2 days. Strain and spray on trees and plants. Where can more information be found? http://www.comost.org/ICAW99compostteaPR.html Compost Council of Canada http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/comptea.html Good article on state of art compost tea http://www.life.ca/nl/compost.html Simple compost tea recipe http://www.cfe.cornell.edu/compost/Composting_Homepage.html Cornell compost home page http://www.icangarden.com/home.htm garden ideas including compost tea. -------- This FAQ is maintained by jeff owens. Please send FAQ comments and additions to: jko@xprt.net, http://www.xprt.net/~jko or to the ecopath discusson list at ecopath@csf.colorado.edu Lawrence F. London, Jr. Venaura Farm ICQ#27930345 lflondon@mindspring.com london@metalab.unc.edu metalab.unc.edu/intergarden InterGarden metalab.unc.edu/permaculture PermaSphere metalab.unc.edu/intergarden/orgfarm AGINFO