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Compost tea

W

wordwiz

What exactly is this? A neighbor uses a small air pump to bubble the water that drains through his composter.

I have a bucket of dead leaves along with some pieces of potting soil that were too big to keep in it for use with seedlings. I added water to it a month or two ago and it has maybe a quart or two of this liquid. Can I drain it off and add it to water I use on seedlings? If so, should I dilute it? Or should I drain and find a way to aerate it?

Mike
 
I've only used compost tea when it was a manure compost, and I made the "tea" by putting the compost in a net and letting it sit in a bucket of water. Never done it the way you described it.

Is he bubbling the water *before* it goes into the compost or after it has been strained through the compost?
 
Pam,

After.

I've seen some composters that advertise they have a drain hole at the bottom to allow 'tea' to drain out.

My concern is this stuff may be too strong to add directly to plants unless I dilute it. But if it isn't strong and I dilute it, I'm wsting my time.

Mike
 
Does he say why he's bubbling it after? I could sorta see the line of thinking of doing it before, getting more oxygen into the center of the compost pile might speed the whole composting process.

I would have to be over there asking *so* many questions.
 
Pam,

I intend to! This guy is a Master Gardener and has a garden (all flowers!) to kill for. See this page!

He's aerating the water that comes from the compost, not the pile itself, if that helps. But it may have some uncompletely composted material in it.

Mike
 
Yeah i oxygenate my water in this way. I use a small fish tank pump and and let it go at least 24 hours with manure and worm poop. It helps the roots to get more air,but you still have to have a dry cycle as this may give some air to roots but not all the air needed. Hope this helps.
 
Composting causes oxidation.....primary byproducts of oxidation are H2O and carbon dioxide.

If you drain from the bottom of your compost container, you will have compost tea. I use hydrogen peroxide to kill the pathogens, but air bubblers will do it as well.
 
Williard,

That sounds exactly like what the guy is doing.

Should I presume this tea is rather high in nutrients which would mean to dilute it before applying?

Mike
 
willard3 said:
Composting causes oxidation.....primary byproducts of oxidation are H2O and carbon dioxide.

If you drain from the bottom of your compost container, you will have compost tea. I use hydrogen peroxide to kill the pathogens, but air bubblers will do it as well.
Click to expand...


What pathogens?
 
There are going to be plant pathogens in rotting material open to atmosphere.

Nutrient level will depend upon the composition of the compost. My worm-farm produced tea in the range of 3:1:1 to 1:1:1 on household scraps.
 
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