Comfrey tea: what about it?

peppero · February 18, 2014

Would anyone please share their experiences with comfrey tea?

jon

habitat_gardener · February 18, 2014

Gets stinky in about a week. I pack a 5-gallon bucket with chopped stems and leaves, add water, and cover. (Same with nettles.) I dilute it before use.

I've used it on and off for several years, but no miracles to report. However, I don't use any other fertilizers (aside from alfalfa pellets in the hole when planting a tomato, and the occasional load of horse manure at a couple gardens). Oh, and I make lots of compost from garden cuttings and kitchen scraps.

peppero · February 18, 2014

Thanks for the reply. I have some Imade and am now using it for some plants I carried over the winter.

jon

bower · February 20, 2014

I have read that comfrey tea is very rich in potassium and that tomatoes love it. Of course, I read that several years after doing the big dig to get rid of comfrey that was taking up space in my garden to no purpose.

So alas, no personal experience to report.

Labradors2 · February 20, 2014

What a pity that you dug it up

.

Interesting that it's high in potassium! I bought some at a garden club plant sale because the flowers are pretty and I was told that it's great for the composter, speeding up the process! Not that I'm in that much of a hurry, but I planted it in an out-of-the-way place beside my composter and snip off the older leaves as they yellow, and toss them in.

Now I will try making some Comfrey tea for my tomatoes!

I have to add that I thought the original poster was asking about Comfrey tea to drink. It has healing properties when applied to the skin, but it can be toxic when taken internally.

Linda

Quote:

Originally Posted by bower

I have read that comfrey tea is very rich in potassium and that tomatoes love it. Of course, I read that several years after doing the big dig to get rid of comfrey that was taking up space in my garden to no purpose.

So alas, no personal experience to report.

habitat_gardener · February 21, 2014

Comfrey has deep roots that bring minerals from deeper levels of the soil. When you make tea or add it to your compost pile, those minerals then become available to plants.

Comfrey is so efficient at healing skin that you need to make sure the wound is not deep, otherwise the skin will heal over before the deeper wound is resolved.

I've also made herbal salves using comfrey (also larrea, calendula, plantain, etc., in a base of olive oil and beeswax). I have seen dramatic results with the salves. Once I caught my thumb in my folding bicycle. PAIN! A dark spot on my thumbnail. Applied lots of salve to the thumb. Pain went away in 15-30 minutes and the dark spot on the nail never got worse.

Some herbalists are now claiming that the pyrollizidine alkaloids in comfrey and borage are so toxic to the liver that they should neither be taken internally nor applied to the skin. (Other herbalists say comfrey has been used for centuries.)

kath · February 21, 2014

After reading this thread, I think I'm going to try to get some started this season. Supposedly the fuzz on the leaves will deter the deer since I definitely want to try it outside the fenced garden. Lots about it here, although the article is old:

http://www.motherearthnews.com/organ...maz74zhol.aspx

Glad you posted this, jon!

kath

February 18, 2014	#1
peppero Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: selmer, tn Posts: 2,944	Comfrey tea: what about it? Would anyone please share their experiences with comfrey tea? jon

February 18, 2014	#2
habitat_gardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: California Central Valley Posts: 2,543	Gets stinky in about a week. I pack a 5-gallon bucket with chopped stems and leaves, add water, and cover. (Same with nettles.) I dilute it before use. I've used it on and off for several years, but no miracles to report. However, I don't use any other fertilizers (aside from alfalfa pellets in the hole when planting a tomato, and the occasional load of horse manure at a couple gardens). Oh, and I make lots of compost from garden cuttings and kitchen scraps.

February 20, 2014	#4
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,794	I have read that comfrey tea is very rich in potassium and that tomatoes love it. Of course, I read that several years after doing the big dig to get rid of comfrey that was taking up space in my garden to no purpose. So alas, no personal experience to report.

February 21, 2014	#6
habitat_gardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: California Central Valley Posts: 2,543	Comfrey has deep roots that bring minerals from deeper levels of the soil. When you make tea or add it to your compost pile, those minerals then become available to plants. Comfrey is so efficient at healing skin that you need to make sure the wound is not deep, otherwise the skin will heal over before the deeper wound is resolved. I've also made herbal salves using comfrey (also larrea, calendula, plantain, etc., in a base of olive oil and beeswax). I have seen dramatic results with the salves. Once I caught my thumb in my folding bicycle. PAIN! A dark spot on my thumbnail. Applied lots of salve to the thumb. Pain went away in 15-30 minutes and the dark spot on the nail never got worse. Some herbalists are now claiming that the pyrollizidine alkaloids in comfrey and borage are so toxic to the liver that they should neither be taken internally nor applied to the skin. (Other herbalists say comfrey has been used for centuries.)

February 21, 2014	#7
kath Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: zone 6b, PA Posts: 5,664	After reading this thread, I think I'm going to try to get some started this season. Supposedly the fuzz on the leaves will deter the deer since I definitely want to try it outside the fenced garden. Lots about it here, although the article is old: http://www.motherearthnews.com/organ...maz74zhol.aspx Glad you posted this, jon! kath