Yo
Using 60 mesh kelp flour. Thinking 50 mesh will work also?
Put into tea as a surface for organisms to attach to and to provide food resource during brew. What is not assimilated by organisms during tea brew:
1 maybe we used too much!
2 will go out with tea application and be available to microbes as food resource in the field. This could potentially be used by "bad guys" also? I guess. I use fish hydrolysate in conjunction with tea applications in order to provide food resource for applied organisms. So I am putting food out regardless. It is imperitive to get food out there for the microbes at least initially until the plant responds and does this.
In a system where harvesting or otherwise removal of plant material is taking place, it seems we will always need to have a fertility program in place to account for, replenish and feed what has been taken away. If we have a system in which all plant materials remain in place, then it would seem that in time, our intervention will be completed, the system brought back into health will reach a state of natural, sustainable homeostasis. Further intervention would be necessary in the event of disturbance.
As for results, we were using a recipe which included soluble kelp. All other inputs left the same and only replacing the soluble kelp with kelp flour yielded comparible SFI test results. We now use kelp flour.
This transition has taken place over the winter and application of the tea to the field is not being measured, so no field results to report; only bioassay.
I suspect that much of our fungal counts are coming from the compost. Using Activated Alaska Humus, there is a lot of fresh grown hyphae in the AAH when we put it in the brewer. To what extent the nutrients are contributing to the continued growth of this hyphae during the tea brew? I am uncertain how to distinguish what we started with from what continued to grow in the tea, from what continued to grow in the tea due to the presence of kelp and/or humic acids.
The next experiment to run, which for whatever reason we did not do all along, is to send a sample of the starting material (in my case AAH) along with two tea samples. Make two teas - same water, same brewing system, same type and amount compost. Put ration of tea nutrients in one brewer and none in the other. Compare final analysis.
Since I have absolutely no qualms with being wrong, I am venturing to say that from my limited experience, I suspect that the results I am getting using AAH and a BobO, a high % of the fungal numbers achieved in the tea are attributed to stimulating the growth of fungal hyphae in the Alaska Humus three days prior to brewing. I suspect that adding kelp and humic acid to the tea, and letting the tea brew for 18-24 hrs, while these additions may contribute to the continued growth of the fungi, the tea with no nutrient addition may be comparible in the final analysis.
Time will tell. Hopefully will get to do this experiment soon.
North American Kelp has been cool with us. Talk to Foster. 1 888 662 5357. If you are not in the market for large quantity, call us and we'll pass some on to you to try.
Peace~ Kev
On Fri, 19 Mar 2004 09:44:12 -0800 Jason Austin <jason.austin_at_shaw.ca> wrote:
Hi Kev & Bob
Could you elaborate more on your use of the kelp flour please.
Do you use it as a food for the tea, or to add nutrients to the tea so
the end product is both tea and nutrients.
What results are you finding from using this?
Jason
kevin john richardon wrote:
> Hey kids, cats outta the bag? I don't like keeping secrets...
>
> We use kelp flour. Anybody else onto this? SFI Tea Tests we
> performed, indicate results are just as good using kelp flour as
> compared to using soluble kelp ($oluble is wicked expensive).
>
> Buy the stuff in bulk. Volume cuts down on cost. We DO LIKE
> providing materials to end users, cheap. Although the biological
> approach is rad and speaks for itself, the surest way to speak loudly
> is through economics. Biological Programs are economical. Would be
> happy to pass materials on to you.
>
> Peace~
> Kev and Bob
> Holiday Inn Express, Corvallis, OR
>
> On Wed, 17 Mar 2004 14:31:22 -0000 fortyhillsms
> <fortyhillsms_at_yahoo.com> wrote:
> I am looking for information regarding the best sources for kelp to
> add to vermicompost tea. Can someone help me out? Thanks
>
>
>
>
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Kevin John Richardson
> Local Solutions
> (781) 834-0474
>
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Received on Sat Mar 20 2004 - 12:34:56 EST