AJH wrote:

"dstvns" wrote in message
...
On 9 Jul 2003 19:48:58 -0700, (Jay Chan) wrote:

I would like to ask a couple questions on making and using compost
tea:

- Does it really work? Do I expect to see larger crop, bigger
flowers, ...etc? Can someone tell me some "before and after" stories?

Yes it works. I give one dose a week to potted dwarf citrus and they
explode in leaves and blooms.


I've used compost tea on citrus, various herbs and potted flowers with no
significant difference in growth or blooms. As well, I used compost tea as
an experiment on a percentage of Coffee Arabica plants (-vs- plants with
chemical fertilizer, liquid seaweed, no fertilizer, etc.) and they actually
performed among the worst, with a high mortality rate.

While compost tea may be a good addition to many plant "diets", it is
certainly no miracle fertilizer. In fact, I have blooms and fruit galore on
about 30 different citrus varieties without the use of any fertilizer in
months. By the way, I operate a plant nursery and we are constantly looking
for ways to improve plant performance and overall viability (keeping the
health of our customers in mind).

If you really want a "natural" means of more blooms, greener leaves and
higher fruit yield, buy a box of Epsom Salt. It really works and is the one
additive that we always keep on hand.

The prime advantage to using compost tea is not for its nutrient benefits,
although they can be considerable, but for its disease supressing capacities.
This refers specifically to properly brewed aerobic compost tea, not the simple
dunked-compost-in-a-bag process. The compost dunk type of tea is nothing more
than a weak foliar fertilizer or soil drench - no better or no worse than
something similarly organic in origin, like fish emulsion. The advantages of
a proper aerobic compost tea derive from the extremely high populations of
beneficial soil organisms that are encouraged by the aerobic brewing process,
which are the natural workhorses of disease supression in any good garden soil,
but not in the extraordinary numbers and concentrations that occur with compost
tea.

To achieve proper results and encourage the development of these organisms in
sufficient quantities and composition, the tea making process should be
strictly monitored and adhered to - this includes the source and quality of the
compost used intitially to start the process (worm castings are the preferred
source), as well as the nutrients used to feed these populations (neither sugar
OR molasses are recommended by the pros).

There is a huge repository of information about this on the web - suggest you
do some research into some of the better resources. Here are a few prime sites
to get you started:

http://www.composttea.org/marketplace.html
http://www.soilfoodweb.com/

The first is a link to several sources of brewers for commercial and
residential production as well as individuals and organizations that are
conducting research and scientific trials on the efficacy of this product.
Suggest you pay close attention Sound Horticulture's website. Ali is rapidly
becoming a spokeperson for the compost tea industry and has a huge amount of
data and information to share. The second URL will explain the dynamics of the
soil food web - understanding that and its significance is essential to the
proper use of compost tea.

And yes, it can be used to rejuvenate lawns, remediate damaged soil, enrich
regular garden soil as well as help control a legion of fungal problems,
including phytophthora, verticillium wilt, powdery mildew, fungal leaf spot and
rose black spot. And no, it doesn't smell anymore than any other organic
fertilizer/treatment.

pam - gardengal