Compost Tea

[Isabelle]

Have you had success with it?

We recently brewed a batch for the first time, and now we are unsure of how much to give the plants.

Anyone have any experience with it?

[Jonnyhat]

i use an aerated tea, start with about 4.5 gallons of water and my mix, brew for 42 to 78 hours and then I foliar feed till the leaves are dripping wet about every 2 to 3 weeks in the evening. If I have any left over I water the root zones of my heavy feeders with it.

[Keiththibodeaux]

I have, but I cheat. In addition to the conventional ingredients, I add http://www.horticulturalalliance.com...ulant-compound. Cost is about $7 per 25 gallon brew. I only apply once at planting.

[Lindalana]

Depends. Compost tea can be applied at root zone, if you did not add anything else , no restrictions. Aerated compost tea usually brewed for foliar applications, again you can go full strength or dilute it with non chlorinated water.

[Gerardo]

Once to twice a week is what I've been doing lately, drench at 1/2 to full strength. Plants have been able to handle disease burden + climate inconsistencies much better since I began this regimen.
Veg Compost/worm castings +/-alfalfa is the winning combo for me, 48-72 hrs.

[Gardeneer]

What is in compost that its tea make a difference ?
How do you figure it out how much water to add to how much compost ?
Then there are many kinds of compost. It depends on what the original matter was. Some can be real poor in the way of nutrients. I think probably aerating is what make the difference.
I have made tea from manures and birds droppings for root drench only and I saw good results.

Gardeneer

[Cole_Robbie]

I use about two cups of material in a five gallon bucket, which is not quite full of water, to allow some room for bubbling, and add about a tablespoon of molasses.

I use material dug out of a cow field, collected in winter after freezing weather has killed off the weeds. My first batch of 2017 is bubbling away in my kitchen right now. It's only been going for a couple hours:

[Gardeneer]

Unless one really fine mists a given foliar spray, most of it (when drenched ) lands at the ground and eventually gets to the roots system. So how can one be sure where the most benefit comes from, foliage or the roots ??
JMO

[Cole_Robbie]

Good question. I use it mostly as a soil drench for container plants, especially young ones.

[Jimbotomateo]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

Good question. I use it mostly as a soil drench for container plants, especially young ones.

Cole I'd like to try that but would be concerned about pesticides.

[Cole_Robbie]

Brewing goes slower in winter, because my kitchen is colder.

This is about 40 hours later. Note the increased foam. It smells nice, like a hay loft in the summertime.

[gorbelly]

If you look at reviews of scientific literature, compost tea is so much of a mixed bag that it's unlikely that it has any strong effect, IMO. Some studies show plants doing a bit better, others a bit worse, others no effect. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ So I just choose not to go through the hassle of making the tea. I just apply compost itself as dressing, in planting holes, and mulch with it. I do mix my vermicompost with water and water it in because that just works better with the texture of vermicompost and helps me strain out baby worms and cocoons. But I don't brew it--just mix and apply.

[Cole_Robbie]

As an initial soil drench in side-by-side tests with untreated pro mix, I have seen a dramatic difference in germination speed and growth in early seedlings. I was doing the experiment in the fall, so I did not grow out the plants very long. The material I use for the tea is the same as what I grow my plants in and get great results without fertilizer. I haven't been trying to look at samples under a microscope, and plus my material is I'm sure a little different each time I collect it, so it could just be the humates that make it work so well. It's the same substance that makes worm castings so effective. You can see in the pic below, the material is very dark and looks almost identical to worm castings.

Myco products range from $5-20 per ounce of powdered spores. I just ordered a few different ones. I'm hoping to play around with culturing a tiny amount to make a little bit go a long way.

[adewilliams]

I know this isn't the same, but has anyone tried manure tea? I've used Haven brand in the past and I know at least my roses enjoy it!

Also, that's one pretty pup in that photo!

[gorbelly]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

As an initial soil drench in side-by-side tests with untreated pro mix, I have seen a dramatic difference in germination speed and growth in early seedlings.

What did you use in the control seedlings?