Welll, it all depends on the size of the garden you have, the weather, etc. I can tell you how I do it. Not saying its the ideal - I don't do all the fancy aeration/additives stuff - but it works for me. I have a 55 gal plastic barrel with a removable top. It sits in the shade by the garden shed. I fill it with water about the time I do the spring tilling. I fill all the old cotton tube socks that have gone to the darning pile over the winter (I have read that some use pantyhose) with finished or almost finished compost, tie off the tops (usually about 10 of them) and toss them in the barrel. Put the top on and let it sit. As needed I dip out a bucket full, dilute it as needed (usually at least 2:1 or 3:1) and water with it or spray for foliar feeding. About mid-summer I refill the barrel and add some fresh socks. ;) Hope this helps.

Hi Kristi! I think you are referring to compost leachate. There are mixed reports on whether to use it or not, but I think the guidelines are if it's brown and doesn't smell, it's ok to use. I've used it a number of times, diluted in a bucket and never had a problem with it but didn't notice much effect. Don't know. Some leachates are smelly and that indicates anaerobic bacteria which aren't good for plants. Mine is usually brown and smells fresh, like the compost. Compost tea doesn't require a lot to make. You need a large container (5gal bucket is ok, but if you have larger you'll get more), a porous sock-like thing to hold the compost which will be dipped in the water, a couple of aquarium aerators with a rock attached to them to make them sink to the bottom of the bucket. I usually do add a little molasses because it feeds the bacteria and organisms and makes them grow faster. In about 36-48 hours (in hot weather), I get a nice froth at the top and that's how I know it's ready. Then I dilute and use it on everything. I don't take the time to do it very often, but I'm always glad when I do. There are a million ways to make aerated compost tea but all you really need is finished compost and water. Anna Here is a link that might be useful: compost leachate

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.

Probably better to just use the results of your previous composting to amend the soil. Not really all that important to make compost tea except if you have a specific use, like a weak diluted fertilizer for well established seedlings or something else - I've made lots of compost for years and never needed a compost tea. I've used some barrel-type composters, but personally I prefer my method of cutting 10-foot lengths of a cheap 2"X4"X4' welded wire fencing to form free-standing rings. I cut halfway between the vertical wires to leave tabs, bend 3 or 4 into hooks to hold the ring together, A 50' roll makes five bins. I typically have three bins working at different stages, and several more filled with ground up leaves(brown dry materials) that I use as cover when I bring out my compost bucket or have other "greens." I build my current pile in layers whenever I have greens, layering it with browns. Once I get to the top of a bin, I can start another - layer of browns, then greens, etc. The one that filled up, I can remove the fence ring, set it next to the pile, then turn the pile back into the ring, adding water to moisten as necessary. I usually have one pile finished, or about finished, when I need it, one pile turned and working, and another pile being built over several months while using greens from the kitchen. If I get a bounty of grass clippings(I don't pick them up in my yard) or other greens, I may generate a pile a little quicker. The pile that's working can be made to process quicker by turning and moistening a few extra times, but I'm not usually that impatient. Technically, compost happens all on its own given enough time!