Compost Tea

Right from the outbreak of dawn until the onset of dusk, the one thing that many people need is TEA! Read more to learn about this.

Compost Tea

Plants and soils too, share similar urges to us when it comes to tea. Their tea is, however, not meant to be laden with milk and sugar. Read on to enlighten yourself about their kind of tea with this article.compost tea

What is Compost Tea?

Compost tea is an aerobic water solution that extracts the beneficial microbes and the nutrients from the compost. It is a concentrated liquid which helps to increase the quality of the soil and hence, helps in plant care and growth. Leaching of soluble nutrients and extraction of bacteria, fungi, protozoa etc from the compost is how compost tea is made.

Benefits of Compost Tea

– Protects plant surfaces and prevents the attack of disease causing organisms.

– Improves nutrient retention in the soil and lessens the need of fertilizers.

– Increases nutrient availability in the root system.compost tea

– It helps in the reduction of chemical based pesticides on useful microbes of the ecosystem.

– The beneficial microbes increase the time of the opening of stomata and hence, improves the uptake of nutrients.

– It also reduces evaporative loss from the leaf surface.

– It helps in the reduction of water loss and also improves water holding capacity of the soil.

– It lessens the tilling of soil by building a better soil structure.

How to make Compost Tea

Rotting Greens:

Gather greens such as nettles, comfrey or seaweed and put it all in a bucket of water and let it rot. Once it’s done, pour the mixture at the base of your plants.

Compost Spray:

This spray can be used for disease control. For this you need to mix compost in a bucket of water and stir it really well for 15-20 minutes. Put the above made concoction into a spray bottle and spray it all over the plants.

Aerated Compost Extract:compost tea

The compost should be aerated prior to use. The compost should contain rich carbon sources such as clean cardboard, saw dust, leaves. Fully mature and sweet smelling compost should be used always. Fill 5-10 litres of this compost in a bucket and fill the rest of the space left in the container with water. Also, add 250 ml of un-sulphured molasses to it and add more if the climate is cool. Leave it to steep for a few days and keep stirring it every now and then with a wooden stick. By now, the tea should have a sweet and musty smell. If, by any chance, it smells sour or alcoholic, leave it for a few more days and add an aquarium pump or more molasses. When it’s ready to use, put it in a spray bottle.

Critical Determinants of Compost Tea

– The temperature of brewing.

– The kinds of food added to the brew. For bacterial tea, add simple sugars and carbohydrates.

– Oxygen concentration in the brewer during the time of preparation.

– The time frame or the length of time the tea has been brewed for.

– For storage, aerate it for a longer period.

So fetch all the materials and get brewing! Share your experiences with us and don’t forget to spread the word!

Happy Gardening

srikanthkumar.lingala@gmail.com'
December 8, 2016

Hi,
I am a fresher in gardening. I started growing herbs like coriander, AMARANTHUS …etc. I bought seeds from grrenmylife.in and planted. Initially those plants were come up well. After growing leaves are infected with pests. As herbs to be eaten directly, what kind of pesticides we need to use. Please advice.

Regards,
Srikanth.

December 13, 2016

Dear Srikanth,

Thanks for writing to us. Please use Clotol H for such infections.
URL for same is as below.
https://www.greenmylife.in/shop/planting-supplies/clotol-h

Happy Gardening!

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