I would agree with your friend. Here are my reasons why... Generally unless you really let your compost age 6+ months most compost to me is fresh. (I go through the stuff so quick I can't build up a stock pile. :-)) Since it is fresh, I add 1" of so after plants are established and keep it at least 1" from the stems. I try to make a well out of the side so any water is directed towards the stem. I like the idea of mixing it in with current soil if you have at least 60 days before planting. Also, I have purposefully built piles in the fall on my garden beds to protect the current topsoil and just to make my life easier. Then in the spring I can just knock over the pile and "bam!" I am ready to go. Best of luck.... John

What I have seen happen, around here, with new developments is someone comes in and strips the "topsoil" to go to some other development and then after the houses are built they haul in more "topsoil" and spread a thin layer and either lay sod or seed that. Then people try to keep that lawn growing by pouring a lot of "fertilizer" on it which can make for a lush green, but sick lawn with numerous problems that then need pesticides to control. Short of tilling in what yuu have and starting over spreading compost is a good idea, mulch mow the grass to recycle in place those grass clippings which will help add more organic matter to the soil. If you have deciduous trees those leaves that fall from them every year can be mulch mowed in to provide evenmore organic matter. What organic matter will do in sandy soils is help keep moisture and nutrients in the root zone so the grass plants can be fed by the soil bacteia that digest that organic matter. In clay soils the OM seperates the soil particles so the plants roots can move about more freely and makes moisture and nutrients more readily available. Compost tea can provide some bacteria, and nutrients, tht would then feed on the organic matter in the soil. However, soils lacking sufficient levels of OM won't have much of anything for those bacteria to feed on so spraying the compost tea would be, largely, a waste of time, energy, and maybe money. Molasses can provide a food source for soil bacteria, if they are present because of adequate levels of organic matter. Spraying molasses onto soils lacking sufficient amounts of organic matter will not do much except waste your time, energy, and money.

A broadcast spreader is what I use--a Scott's Standard. I've been known to hand-cast if I don't feel like pulling out the spreader and do feel like taking a walk and exercising a bit. Mine, anyway, is ground to small pellet size (um, about the size of a very small pebble--the annoying kind you get in your shoe every now and again). I'm not sure how it would go through a drop spreader, but I think it would gum up a bit. The broadcast works great. Since you don't need to worry about getting it on the gardens and can sweep it off the driveway/sidewalk easily, the process goes pretty fast.

subywu I felt compelled to respond to your comments, Below is a link on making ACT, on page 3 Ingham mentions nylon stockings (isn't that the same as panty hose?) as a tea bag material. She would know better than anyone else I could think of. Bruce Deuley originally recommended a nylon paint strainer, I never found one, it might be a Texas thing. Bacteria is reaaally small, fungi are larger, but to be fair, in this rather old article she seemed to be bent on producing bacterially dominated tea. I did not get the impression that the OP was using the ACT method, in that case it might be best to go back in time to revisit manure tea where burlap was preferred. With the siphon system the micro critters are in the city water for only a second then propelled out the hose, I would like to think that isn't long enough to do serious damage. I am not sure about the Miracle sprayer, it might mix the tea with increasing amounts of city water in the plastic bottle until it is clear, in that case exposure is definitely longer. I admit I have thought about all this before, but I have no affordable way of determining an answer (no microscope nor the education to use one!), therefore every other ACT tea I use watering cans, being careful to dilute with rain water (which may be no bargain either). I admit I am lazy, the siphon is easier. I have had pump sprayers, but they never seem to last, who knows what damage they do to the micro critters? In any case, if your garden isn't healthy, then change your ways; if it is, well then, no reason to change is there? I know that sounds simplistic, but there seems to be some amount of truth to it. Here is a link that might be useful: compost tea