The article in Taunton's is not obsolete.
It is a great system for the person new to the idea of making compost tea.
Sure you could use a bigger pump. And sure you could be concerned with the
size of the bubbles. And then you could buy a DO meter, and a fine temp
gauge, and a Brix tester, and on and on. But for the person just getting
into aerobically active compost tea making, the simple set up described
by Dr. Elaine is just fine!
Use a little bigger pump, play with inexpensive
air stones, but let's not lose the play involved here. From what I've been
told by Dr. Larry Zibilski at the USDA Weslaco Research Station (the only
USDA approved organic research station), scientists have identified less
than 5% of the total life in the soil.
Do not scare people away by all the science!
It is good, it is needed, but let's not get carried away by all the data.
Nature knows no data. And we are nowhere
close to unraveling the "DNA" of the soil........
Tell your sister to go with it and have
fun...it is truly a learning process...
Steve Bridges
Kimas Tejas Nursery
-----
Original Message -----
Sent:
Saturday, April 26, 2003 11:44 AM
Subject:
Re: [compost_tea] Simple CT maker
Hi Jeff
I encouraged my sister in New Zealand to make a small CT brewer using
the Taunton's article as a model. She bought the parts then the day she
was ready to assemble you come out with this "obsolete" comment <groan!>
Now remember what your mother must have taught you, criticism alone is
negative. To be constructive, you must also show the person how to do
it better! <grin> So how would you suggest a 5 gallon brewer
be made?
Jason
Jeff Lowenfels wrote:
Re the article from Taunton's: I
think since that article was published that there has been a lot of
research that make it "obsolete." I started with "that" machine and
several of my first ones were constructed using air stones and small
pumps.
The problem is the size of the bubbles....may
be too small and the inadequate air supply. It is a good place to
start, but not to remain very long, IMHO!
Cheers,
Jeff L
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