how long does alfalfa tea last once brewed?
aprilscott12
16 years ago
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jerijen
16 years agoaprilscott12
16 years agoRelated Discussions
My first stinkin' experience with alfalfa/compost tea
Comments (22)I decided to have a look at this forum because I have one little rose I haven't been able to help. Name is Gismo. It leafed out white this spring, I have tried several things, including the tea. Got BS and lost all white leaves, now is leafed out again and blooming with more white leaves. Anyway, here is my alfalfa tea story.I mixed up 4 cups of pellets and some epsom salts in a 5 gal container. Unknown to me the container had a small slit in it. All 5 gal of it leaked out onto 2 daylilies. They grew like mad, and are blooming for the 3rd time. Poor Gismo is still white, yes I made more of the magic brew and Gismo got some. I love that little rose, but hate white leaves. He has always had green ones before....See MoreHow much alfalfa pellets per gallon of water for tea?
Comments (16)Artemis, The liquid alfalfa brew is immediately available in the soil, whereas the pellets take time to disintegrate into the beneficial compounds that feed the plant. There are plenty of gardeners, however, who choose not to bother with the stench and the stirring of the tea, opting instead for the scratch-in/water-in technique. Personally, I think it's a good idea to water the plants well each day for 3 or 4 successive days after scratching the pellets into the top layer of soil. Frequent watering speeds the pellets' disintegration, and prevents them from drying out and forming a crusty layer that can cause problems at watering time. One word of caution about the pellets: I strongly suggest that they NOT be used on small plants like bands. Also, at planting time, I'd hesitate to incorporate pellets into the soil around the roots -- regardless of the size of the plants. I know from experience that the disintegrating pellets can burn developing roots and new growth....See MoreReusing alfalfa for second batch of tea
Comments (1)Well, I have gone by the local rose society recommendation which is to (after using most of the liquid out of the first batch of tea) simply refill the container with water and let steep for another day or so. I don't add more alfalfa but I do usually add more epsom or whatever supplement I am adding to the tea ALTHOUGH I don't add as much of the supplements the second time around since I feel that there is still some residue within the remaining alfalfa mush. Happy tea brewing! Lynn...See MoreMore questions on Alfalfa Tea
Comments (33)Braverichard, I think when people talk about hay or things like grass clippings or coffee grounds matting down and starving the soil, they're talking about much larger amounts of those substances. You wouldn't use alfalfa hay or any of the above substances as mulch alone, for instance, since 2-3" of those substances does indeed clump up and create a barrier. For me, I sprinkle the hay around the base of the root zone on top of the existing mulch like oak leaves or bark mulch, so that the existing air pockets that naturally occur in the mulch keep the hay from clumping up. It also disappears pretty quickly into the mass of the mulch with natural gardening activity, so I don't scratch it in or anything. If I'm really organized (ha! translation - I did this one year), then I put my alfalfa hay and a little fertilizer and/or Ironite down on top of the mostly bare soil at the end of winter before I spread around the bags of leaves I use to protect those roses. And flowersaremusic - that is a good example of how I handle that many roses without a staff (as if - my teenage son and daughter wander out for a half hour now and then if they're really bored, but that's it). I. Do. Not. Fuss. Life's too short, so I don't do things that aren't either fun or really really necessary. Spraying in my world is neither so I don't do it. Deadheading is fun, though not technically necessary, because it allows me to get up close and personal with the roses. Even in a good year I can deadhead most of the yard in a couple of hours on one weekend day, extending maybe into a second weekend day if I'm having a good season. Most of July through October this year I sadly deadheaded in under an hour, including pruning, photos and miscellaneous tasks, hence my complaints about the stinky-poo gardening year for roses. Speaking of stinky-poo, I'm glad that alfalfa tea isn't supposed to smell, so I'm obviously doing it wrong and it's not a good fit for me. And don't get me started on Milorganite - I bought it thinking it would be the same as Ironite effectively, but there are few garden substances that smell worse to me. I couldn't even stand being in the same room as my shoes that had stepped in it, and I have a very poor nose for detecting most smells, at least the good ones. Dogs have very odd ideas of what smells good, and tasting it - bleeggggh! My technique for fertilizing my roses is literally once a year, wheeling a cart with my bale of alfalfa and bag of fertilizer next to a rose bed and a) reach for a fistful of hay (two fists for large roses), b) flick hay around base of rose, c) dip a cup or less of fertilizer and spread around drip line, d) move on. Maybe 15 seconds a rose if I don't get distracted, but heavens - part of the point of gardening is to get distracted. I distribute the big post-winter pruning over 4 or 5 relatively sane weekends of a couple hours each day, starting some time in March when the hardiest roses start budding up a bit (but yes, I wait for the forsythia with the fussy pants roses). The only truly brutal period is planting season from late April to the end of May where I am spending most of my weekend daylight hours planting way too many additional roses, many of whom replace dead ones. Fortunately I have pretty good soil and can plant a rose in 15 minutes (or less for band roses). Back to Adrian's original point - rose gardening is about observation and figuring out what works or doesn't work for you. If you like it and your roses like it, do it even if it's supposed to be "wrong" (like ahem, planting them too close together). If it causes problems, like alfalfa pellets burning, figure out what wasn't working and change it. If you don't like it, don't do it, and be prepared for consequences (like ignoring blackspot or having fewer roses). It's gotta be fun or what's the point! Cynthia...See More
Jean Marion (z6a Idaho)
16 years ago
jerseywendy
16 years agobuford
16 years agojerijen
16 years agojerseywendy
16 years agoaprilscott12
16 years agosunnishine
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16 years agobarbarag_happy
16 years agogbebeh
16 years agojean_ar
16 years agoaprilscott12
16 years ago
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16 years agogbebeh
16 years agoaprilscott12
16 years ago
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