It's Tea Time!

Hey Everyone,

One of the best ways to enhance the growth of your plants while fostering long-term soil fertility is with the use of compost teas.  For organic gardeners, these teas are excellent tools for providing the bacterial nutrition that vegetables seem to love.  The beneficial microbes and organisms found in these teas also work hard as a first line of defense against many of the pathogens that can cause disease.  In addition, they work extremely well at keeping many pesky insects at bay.

There are several applications where compost and/or worm teas can be effective:

Both effective and inexpensive!

• A seed treatment - Soaking seeds in a solution of compost tea prior to planting inoculates your seeds against harmful fungi and speeds the germination process. 
• Transplant time - When the time comes to move plants up in pot size or transplant directly into the garden, this is a wonderful opportunity to use a compost tea solution.  The tea's not only provide a healthy dose of nutritious food but go a long way in preventing transplant shock as well as disease resistance, getting your plants off to a fast and healthy start.
• Foliar applications - Whenever you need nutrition to plants in a hurry, a foliar application of tea gets the nutrition there immediately.  Foliar applications are also an excellent method for awakening your plants defense mechanisms early.
• Root and/or soil drenches - Using compost teas as a root and/or soil drench promotes healthy plant development and growth as well as long-term soil fertility.  
• Standard fertilization - Compost teas are wonderful as part of a standard fertilization practice. Routine applications not only keep plants healthy and happy but are also known to increase both flower and fruit production.  

For the home gardener, there are two simple methods for brewing compost tea with an aerated system providing the best quality brew.  For those who may be interested a link is below to a previous post with instructions on how to make the tea using both methods.  I also included a link to One Yard Revolution that has an informative video on making the tea with worm castings and using it appropriately.

My Favorite Recipes for Simple 5-Gallon Bucket Brew's

Worm Based -

• 5 gallons de-chlorinated or rain water
• 2 1/2 - 3 cups quality worm castings
• 1 - 2 oz. Grandma's Original All Natural Unsulphured Molasses

Compost Based -

• 5 gallons de-chlorinated or rain water
• Good quality compost - Biodynamic Blends such as Malibu Compost or Farmer D Compost are incredible for the garden and provide increased production.  Biodynamic blends also provide some systemic insect resistance due to their ingredients.  It is also possible to use things as simple as Black Kow Composted Cow Manure and make additions depending on your specific needs.
• 1 - 2 oz. Grandma's Original All Natural Unsulphured Molasses
• Extra additions of worm castings, liquid fish, seaweed, or kelp depending on application and foliar manipulation desired.

Green Meadows Healthy Garden Tip:

For compost teas to be effective, it is important to cover at least 70% of all plant surfaces. The pores or tiny openings on the leaves (mainly the underside) and stems called stomata act as a catalyst for the uptake of nutrients as well as aid in photosynthesis and transpiration.  When the temperatures reach 80 degrees, the stomata start to close and at temperatures above 85 degrees, they close completely as part of a defense mechanism to prevent moisture loss within the plant.  Therefore, by using teas in either the morning or early evening and making sure to coat the undersides of all vegetation, your plants will get the most value from the application.   Please keep in mind that compost and/or worm teas are not a substitute for good soil fertility practices but rather a partner in the process of keeping your vegetables healthy and productive.

Yummy!

For those who enjoy additional reading, the book "Teaming with Microbes" by Jeff Lowenfels & Wayne Lewis has excellent information on compost teas and their use.  The National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service also has some reading that is interesting on teas at the agricultural level.  This information is easily applicable to home garden practices. Their links are excellent and also below for your convenience.

Links:

http://greenmeadowscommunitygarden.blogspot.com/2013/04/making-worm-tea.html - link to previous post on making worm tea

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4VKLtDuzD8 - link to One Yard Revolution's video on making worm tea and using it appropriately 

https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/viewhtml.php?id=125 - link to "Notes on Compost Teas" from the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service

https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/viewhtml.php?id=286 - link to "Foliar Fertilization" from the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service

Happy Gardening,

Denise, Beds 25 & 29

Making Worm Tea!

Tea Time, Garden Style

Hey Everyone,

I received an email from a fellow gardener regarding the recent post on worm castings.  They were checking to see if I have a specific recipe for making the tea.  Since worm tea is so beneficial to the plants, while acting as an exceptional pest repellent, I thought it would make a wonderful follow-up post for all.

This recipe gives you the option to use aquarium materials for ease and speed, or not.  Based on experience, using the aquarium equipment will produce a higher yield or better quality tea, however, it can be done as long as you are diligent in your aerating efforts without the additional materials.  Worm tea will not burn the plants in any way; however, you should avoid spraying in the heat of the day.

Ingredients:

5-gallon bucket
Tap water
Aquarium pump, air-line tubing, and air stone (optional equipment and runs about $20.00)
1 oz. of corn syrup or molasses (Make sure molasses does not contain sulfur)
2 1/2 - 3 cups worm castings
1 piece of fine mesh like pantyhose for filtering

Home Depot 5 Gallon Bucket
With Aquarium Equipment Attached!

Directions Non-Aquarium Equipment:

Fill the bucket with tap water 3/4 of the way full.  See photo to the right.  Let the water stand for 24 - 48 hours in order for the chlorine to evaporate out.  This step is imperative, as chlorine will kill the beneficial micro-organisms rendering the tea useless.  If you are using rainwater, eliminate the standing process.

Remove about one cup of the chlorine free water.  Blend the corn syrup or the molasses into it.  The micro-organisms utilize the corn syrup or molasses for food while your tea is brewing.  Thinning it makes the food more readily available for them.

Add the corn syrup or molasses mixture back to the bucket. Stir until well blended.  Dump in the 2 1/2 - 3 cups of worm castings.  It does not have to be exact.  Mix well, but gently. You don't want to harm all those cute little microbes in there.

Some people will put the castings in pantyhose or a fine mesh teabag like material.  In trying different methods over the years, I have found this does not allow the microbes to move freely in the water and slows their growth tremendously.  This method is only wise if you are using an air stone or bubbler.

Let the worm tea stand for 3 days stirring occasionally to aerate.  Before utilizing aquarium equipment, I would stir four to six times per day.  Once again, do so gently.

Presto, you have just made your first batch of worm tea!  If you are using a watering can for soil application, there is no need to filter your finished product.  However, if you will be applying with a sprayer for foliage feeding, you must strain to remove the particles that will clog the nozzle.  Pantyhose or anything with a 400 micron filtration work exceptionally well for this step.

Use finished tea within 36 - 48 hours while the microbes are the most biologically active.  If any unpleasant odors develop after the initial brewing, do not use the tea, as this signals the death of the beneficial microbes and the mixture should be dumped.  It can go into the compost pile, just don't use it on your vegetation.

Caution:  This tea is not for human consumption.  Just thought I would throw that out there since most gardeners will try anything once!

Additional Directions for an Air Stone or Bubbler System:

Got Tea?

The recipe for aquarium equipment is the same as above aside from these few details.

After filling the bucket 3/4 of the way full, assemble the aquarium equipment.  Place the air stone in the bottom of the bucket and aerate the water using your pump for 3 to 4 hours to remove all chlorine.

Blend the corn syrup or molasses with two cups of chlorine free water to avoid clogging the air-stone.  Trust me on this one!

Add the corn syrup or molasses mixture back to the bucket.  Dump in the castings and let your pump do the rest.  Aerate for 24 hours, filter the finished product and your tea is ready to go.

The thing I like the best about using the aquarium equipment is the speed at which a higher quality tea can be made.  Spraying on a routine basis adds the beneficial microbes and nutrients to the soil and the plants, thus, providing the proper balance they need to help repel insects and fight off disease.  In addition, if you notice your plants are not taking off or they seem to be a little sluggish, this is a wonderful recipe to perk them right up.  Many references on the topic also state that the use of worm or compost tea not only provides the beneficial microbes and nutrients, but also increases the overall fruit and flowering production of the plant.  For those making compost, you can also brew compost tea in much the same fashion.  This is a wonderful link for additional compost tea recipes.

http://www.compostjunkie.com/compost-tea-recipe.html

Happy Brewing!

Denise, Beds 25 & 29