freshly brewed compost tea @ the hydro source - robust roots (cov

12 years ago

Has anyone used Freshly Brewed COMPOST TEA @ The Hydro Source - Robust Roots (Covina, CA). They are selling 1 gal for $10 and say it needs to be used with 4 hours of brew and it can be diluted to 50 galons of filtered non-chlorine water.

I was thinking about going with dilution rate of 20 or even 10 gallons.

Any thoughts before I get it? $10 seems like a great deal, again it goes without saying that you get what you pay for. They call it organic.

Also, is it ok if I use it whether I have plants in ground or not? I do have tomato, pepper, and eggplants in my garden and may be coming close to end of their season. wondering if its worth to do it now OR wait for spring to hit.

Thoughts?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (7)

beeman_gardener
12 years ago
Go for it. Even late in the year it will still add the beneficial bacteria to the soil ready for next year.
Kimmsr
12 years ago
Compost tea can add bacteria to your soil, but if you do not have enough organic matter in that soil they will not live very long, no food. If you have adequate amounts of organic matter in your soil spraying the compost tea around might not be of any benefit.
behlgarden
Original Author
12 years ago
ok, here is the deal. My veggie garden before I planted had mixed clay/sand mix. I uprooted some roses. added 4" of composted manure and 4" of kellong organic garden soil. then I planted tomatoes, peppers, eggplants that all did quite well. I even added some grass clippings that has decomposed (almost).

My plan was to pour 1 gal of diluted tea into the roots of each of the plants. tree roots do act as organic matter no?

regardless, with what I have added to soil over 3 months ago, do you think it has enough organic matter for tea to work? I plan on picking it up tomorrow. plan to to get 2 gallons of fresh concentrated and dilute 50% of what manufacturer says and its safe to do that. I also want to use it for my roses. Thoughts?
Kimmsr
12 years ago
It may be that soils that have had adequate levels of organic matter added a short time ago might benefit from the addition of Compost Teas because the Soil Food Web has not had a chance to fully develop yet, or it might be a waste of money. Dr. Ingham is pretty adament that compost teas will increase the level of bacterial activity in soils and I don't doubt that in the short term that will happen. I do question the necessity of spending money doing that, especially since the Soil Food Web will grow, as long as they have a food source, organic matter in the soil.
beeman_gardener
12 years ago
I have to think that 'kimmsr' is a skeptic, as I have noticed a number of posts from him on Compost tea, and each one comes across as a waste of time and money.
I should remind him...'skepticism stifles innovation'.
Unless you've tried it, don't knock it.
dicot
12 years ago
Why does it have to be expensive? I generally set 1/4 of my finished compost aside to brew tea with. Sometimes I activate it with molasses, sometimes I add seaweed meal to flesh out the micronutrients. Then I use the de-natured compost as a top mulch on the perennials.

Don't the humates steeping out of the composted OM provide sufficient bacterial food for awhile? The tea is just a boost, not a substitute for having available N or digestible OM in your soils.
Kimmsr
12 years ago
beeman, where ever did you get the idea that I might be a skeptic? Any time I see something promoted as a "magic elixar", this will solve all your problems, I do have doubts.
If someone does not have sufficient amounts of organic matter in their soils how will spraying compost tea help?
If someone does have sufficient amounts of organic matter in their soils and a good active Soil Food Web, why spend money on a product to increase what is already there?
How much organic matter is going to be in the liquid you spray? I'd venture not much because then it would not go through that tiny nozzle opening.