Ok, here are some of the questions I’ve
been brewing in terms of home-stacked compost for tea. I just spent an hour outside turning my
pile – it seems so rich, crumbly, smells so earthy and chock full of earth
worms, I can’t imagine that its not good for tea. But anyway, here goes the questions. I’m curious what you think: Q: My piles are primarily composed of: Brown matter: Chaff timothy/alfalfa/grass mix hay (I grow
myself – no pesticides or chem. Fertilizers) + dry plant prunings + fall leaves
+ pine needles (regardless what people tell me, they break down quickly, the
worms love them and I really think it helps my highly alkaline soils) + shredded
newspaper (no color ink) Green matter: Horse manure (low to no
chems fed to my horses, worming is done at a minimum and only as necessary
(rare)) + grass clippings + kitchen
scraps + chicken manure (I only have 3 chickens so not much of that). Piles get roughly
3:1 brown to green materials I turn my
piles about once every 1 to 3 weeks.
Try to
keep them moist, but wicking from the hay does tend to dry it out on occasion. Also, at
times there are mucky wet centers if not turned w/in 2 weeks. Without
testing, are these materials okay for use in teas? Q: Worms -- sign of good compost for tea? My compost
is always full of red earthworms, lots of them. After unloading many of them to my garden, they seem to
multiply to their high level in no time.
I just hate the thought of drowning the little buggers if I were to be
making tea out of it. Q: Mushrooms -- Sign of good compost for
tea? In the shady
recesses of my compost area, that I tend to neglect turning, mushrooms are showing
themselves. Would this imply good
fungal growth? Good compost? The bulk of my compost, that is turned often,
doesn’t tend to get, or stay, wet enough for mushrooms to grow. But they do so in the shady corners –
and I live in an arid region of WA state. Q: Moist, Crumbly, Earthy Smell – Sign of
good compost for tea? As
mentioned before, my piles when turning, smell earthy and sweet. With all the horse manure we go
through, I must be adding enough brown goods because the piles always smell
earthy and crumble in my hands. Just some
of the questions I’ve been pondering – I’m looking to make some teas on my own,
with my own self made brewer – but also am looking into the option of purchasing
one too. I’d just really like to
use my own composts. Thanks!! Mike
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