Dan,
Since I am using Alaska Humus I really don't worry
about pathogens much. As long as my teas are well aerated, I know they
will turn out full of beneficals.
On the compost itself, the fungi I see look an
awful lot like "white rot" which I see outdoors in my leaf mulch.....And, it
smells "good" but you are absolutely correct: These things need to be identified
as friendly. I did try and starve a few of my test samples of air. The V-8 juice
and Tomato paste really stank after a few days. Stay away from these. In fact,
soy meal, oatmeal, alfalfa and malt all work well enough that I am not sure we
need to look much further for cheap, organic substances to feed fungi in
compost before making teas.
You asked: If we
have an SFI test on our compost that shows good fungal
numbers and good diversity and we feed those fungi do we assume that the beneficials are going to out compete the phytophthora, fusarium, rhizoctonia, pythium and the like that may be present. The answer is YES no matter what kind of compost
you use, as long as it has good tests as you outline and your teas are
well aerated. In the case of AH, the answer is yes AND it has been tested
it on potatoes, grapes, strawberries, lilacs, palms etc by others who have been
able to control the baddies you list.
As for making teas with compost you did not
make yourself, I think it is clear that getting some tests from the manufacturer
before you buy is pretty damn important. No tests? No sale. At the very
least, I would test the first few batches of teas before using such
stuff.
With all of the government
labeling requirements, you would think the compost industry would try
and self regulate. In fact, I think they are trying through the Mulch
and Soil Council, but it is all voluntary....
If it was Sunday, I would ask you if you are ready
to try a small box of AH!!!
Cheers,
Jeff
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