Hi, I am somewhat dissapointed today,,,,, I got my compost delivered and generally the quality seems fine. Inside of the 10 tons pile its really warm. When I showel it into my wheelbarrow it´s steaming. It smells as well "good". BUT,,,,,,, I have a problem with bringig it to my lawn,,,,,, there is pieces of roots, wood, bark in the compost which are apparentely still worked by bacteria and fungi. Those pieces are warm as well and feel soft. But if I bring this on my lawn , the wood-pieces will stay on top of the turf and only smallest pieces sink onto the soil. Even if I brush it in different directions, back and forward..... What can I do? Leave the compost on a pile until the wood decomposes further ? Or "filter" the bigger pieces from the smaller ones (lots of work probably). My father in law opts for anyhow throwing the compost to the lawn,,,,,,,,, but its not him that is going to ruin his new lawn-mower cutting bark, wood and roots with the next lawnmowing.... Any info welcome,,,, Thanks & a nice weekend,,,,,

"Then I googled "compost tea scientific studies" hoping to find the perfect recipe, what I found was that all the data suggests little to no evidence of any beneficial reason to use any kind of compost tea." Keep in mind that a lot of this research is for large field plantings, not the home garden. To the commercial grower...every time you prepare something, buy something, run a piece of equipment through a field, labor, etc...that's a money input into a crop. If an additional input doesn't produce a profit output, it's useless to them...especially if it's not crop crucial. Compost teas don't add to or organic matter...most farmers don't need the benefit of extra microbial populations...and overall if you're going to bother to spread anything on a large field you're better off with compost alone or other organic matter additions which add to the soil structure as well provide the other compost benefits. To the home gardener...a compost tea can supply concentrated additional nutrients, boost microbial activity, and there's very little cost/labor loss for managing a small plot. The home gardener can do just fine without using a compost tea...but there's very little disadvantage to making/using one except over-doing it. Btw, if you're even going to bother with a compost tea...you might as well make one that's more that just compost for best effect. Seaweed, or another nutrient dense addition, makes the whole thing worthwhile over simply trying to make a concentrate out of pure compost. Also, apply to soil...not the leaves...it's such a waste to go through the trouble of making up a batch of tea only to apply it to leaves. This post was edited by nc-crn on Sun, Aug 25, 13 at 18:18

Dear Marianne, There are many different types of compost teas out there. Some are going to be much more beneficial than others, and some have the potential to even do damage to your plants and garden, based on the types of organisms you are selecting for. This is why oxygen plays an important role in making compost tea. Most beneficial organisms prefer aerobic conditions, while most harmful organisms (think of salmonella, e. coli., etc...) prefer anaerobic or low oxygen conditions. Have you ever reached into compacted soil and noticed it had a horrible smell? This is from the anaerobic organisms that are thriving. It's the same way with compost tea. One of the first rules, if you're not going to do testing in a lab, is to make sure that your final tea smells earthy or has no smell at all. If it stinks....don't use it! As for the recommendations I've seen on this thread. Some of the teas, for example the alfalfa tea, select primarily for protozoa. You will get bacteria and protozoa, but you won't get the fungi. Fungi is particularly important because it provides much of the disease suppressive qualities. There's a lot to learn on compost tea, feel free to email me with questions, but the best starting points I believe are "Teaming with Microbes" by Jeff Lowenfels, and Soilfoodweb.com, I'll include the link to the appropriate spot on their website below. Good luck!!! Here is a link that might be useful: All about the Soil Food Web

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!