Tea Article

[Microbeman]

I dunno.

 

[jaykush]

Question about mushrooms. I've been mushroom hunting a lot this year. Sometimes the mushrooms I thought were shrimp mushroom are actually poisonous, just an example from this past week. Are those poisonous mushrooms okay for the compost bin?

do you plan on eating them at some point? the composting process wont make them eatable but poisonous mushrooms are still part of the soil nutrient cycle, if you have kids that don't know better and would like to try some of those cool looking plants under daddys plants i wouldn't. i always add any mushroom i find to my bins( mostly the fungal compost pit). a lot of them have host materials(leaves from a specific tree they like for example) so not all will flourish but some will take and decompose some goodness for you.

 

[mad librettist]

you wouldn't worry about composting rhododendron clippings from your yard, would you?

it's poisonous!

 

[Thomkal Vwalaa]

you wouldn't worry about composting rhododendron clippings from your yard, would you?

it's poisonous!

My compost pile, the smaller one intended for my indoor garden (for patients), I do not use rhododendron clippings, I wouldn't use poison oak (or any of the Toxicodendron spp.) either just because. Guess that makes me weird.

 

[mad librettist]

My compost pile, the smaller one intended for my indoor garden (for patients), I do not use rhododendron clippings, I wouldn't use poison oak (or any of the Toxicodendron spp.) either just because. Guess that makes me weird.

Not weird. Picky, yes. But weird? Around here you have to do more than avoid rhododendrons in your compost to qualify as weird. Like maybe start a thread on humanure.

Curious why you would associate that with poison oak, which unlike rhododendron isn't actually poisonous (it's an allergic reaction), but for the vast majority of the population is a bitch to handle. The allergen is called urishol, and it hangs around a lot longer than anything in the rhododendron would.

If it looks like dirt, and it started as a rhododendron, it isn't toxic, any more than potato or tomato or eggplant leaves would be. Everything in that last sentence would give you a very bad day if ingested fresh but is safe to compost. But urishol would be on your tools, clothing, pets, etc... for a year or more and still cause much mischief.

 

[someotherguy]

I agree! Great job!

Just to clarify though, you're not putting in 4 cups of EWC in the 5 gal. brewer.

thanks man, and no, lol, i'm actually using 2 cups per 5 gallon brew, i haven't gotten any foods yet really other than blackstrap molasses and that FoxFarms all-purpose 5-5-5 so i may have over did it with the EWC.

i've also been brewing my teas for approx. 48 hours at about 68degrees and, because i haven't got a microscope yet, i'm mostly trusting my nose to tell me if a brew is good or bad and so far at least (i've only brewed 3 times) they have all smelled of good earth, not in the least offensive.

anyway, my thanks to you too man, you guys help a lot of people here and i know it isn't so you guys can promote your websites, i can feel it as it were that you are all simply sharing the love and for that you all deserve kudos!

peace, SOG

btw, thanks to you both for the words of encouragement as well, lol, it's nice to hear i'm on the right track.

 

[Thomkal Vwalaa]

Not weird. Picky, yes. But weird? Around here you have to do more than avoid rhododendrons in your compost to qualify as weird. Like maybe start a thread on humanure.

My buddies pulled a giant crop with some of that this summer, lol, gross.

Curious why you would associate that with poison oak, which unlike rhododendron isn't actually poisonous (it's an allergic reaction), but for the vast majority of the population is a bitch to handle. The allergen is called urishol, and it hangs around a lot longer than anything in the rhododendron would.

Just pointing out that some plants are not great for compost intended to be used by sick people. You said toxic, my brain goes latin, and bam, poison ivy and oak.

If it looks like dirt, and it started as a rhododendron, it isn't toxic, any more than potato or tomato or eggplant leaves would be. Everything in that last sentence would give you a very bad day if ingested fresh but is safe to compost. But urishol would be on your tools, clothing, pets, etc... for a year or more and still cause much mischief.

Urisol, from what I could gather quickly is a polyphenol, a group of chemicals that I am not too familiar with. The water insoluble and long lasting properties would equal bad news.

Are there other common plants to specifically not use?... due to chemical irritations (as physical is just a matter of covering up when gathering).

2010 was the year of humanure

 

[mad librettist]

Just pointing out that some plants are not great for compost intended to be used by sick people. You said toxic, my brain goes latin, and bam, poison ivy and oak.

That's the thing. Poison ivy and oak and sumac are not in the least bit toxic. It's your own body doing the damage. Urishol is an organic compound that is a near-universal allergen in humans. But dogs, for instance have no reaction, and deer just love poison ivy. It is readily broken down by detergents. The best one out there for skin and clothing is called Tecnu. For tools I would use dawn dish soap.

Rhododendron is actually toxic, but the toxins won't persist beyond decomp. You can add it to compost without any fears for your med patients, and the tea made from that compost is 100% safe as a foliar spray.

 

[quadracer]

Question about mushrooms. I've been mushroom hunting a lot this year. Sometimes the mushrooms I thought were shrimp mushroom are actually poisonous, just an example from this past week. Are those poisonous mushrooms okay for the compost bin?

Yes! Compost them all! I take home all the mushrooms from the local fungus fair and throw them all in the compost pile.

Ideally you would leave any mushroom where you found it and let them do their thing, or at least try to replicate the environment.

Lately though I've been doing some experiments with Blewits and some edible Agaricus sp and use the stem butts to create mycelium spawn. It's amazing how quickly the mycelium will take off in some pasteurized compost and decayed oak leaves. I'm real interested in seeing how they will help or hinder some potted plants.

 

[Thomkal Vwalaa]

Yes! Compost them all! I take home all the mushrooms from the local fungus fair and throw them all in the compost pile.

Ideally you would leave any mushroom where you found it and let them do their thing, or at least try to replicate the environment.

Lately though I've been doing some experiments with Blewits and some edible Agaricus sp and use the stem butts to create mycelium spawn. It's amazing how quickly the mycelium will take off in some pasteurized compost and decayed oak leaves. I'm real interested in seeing how they will help or hinder some potted plants.

Thanks! I harvested 30 lbs of oysters today (for everyone), lol, tree climbing with baskets is always fun. Those oysters shine in the sun, simply beautiful.

 

[Microbeman]

Yes! Compost them all! I take home all the mushrooms from the local fungus fair and throw them all in the compost pile.

Ideally you would leave any mushroom where you found it and let them do their thing, or at least try to replicate the environment.

Lately though I've been doing some experiments with Blewits and some edible Agaricus sp and use the stem butts to create mycelium spawn. It's amazing how quickly the mycelium will take off in some pasteurized compost and decayed oak leaves. I'm real interested in seeing how they will help or hinder some potted plants.

I assumed he was talking about feeding them to worms. Perhaps I am mistaken.

 

[Thomkal Vwalaa]

I assumed he was talking about feeding them to worms. Perhaps I am mistaken.

I have a worm bin, one of those spinner compost makers, and a couple compost piles. Pretty good for my 1/16 of an acre . Just trying to figure out where the mushrooms should go. Thanks for the help everyone.


And the spinner is not my favorite at all. What a rip off!

 

[Microbeman]

I have a worm bin, one of those spinner compost makers, and a couple compost piles. Pretty good for my 1/16 of an acre . Just trying to figure out where the mushrooms should go. Thanks for the help everyone.


And the spinner is not my favorite at all. What a rip off!

Is a spinner one of those composters you rotate?

 

[quadracer]

Yeah the worm bin is fine. I just get excited when people talk about mushrooms and can sometimes go off topic.

 

[Thomkal Vwalaa]

Is a spinner one of those composters you rotate?

yes. rotate.

a spinner is also when your girl is small enough to... nevermind wrong sub-forum.

 

[heady blunts]

is there any limit to how long you can brew for? i know the suggested time is 24-48 hours, but say that you only used half a brew on day two, can you keep the leftovers bubbling and use them on day three or four?

 

[CT Guy]

is there any limit to how long you can brew for? i know the suggested time is 24-48 hours, but say that you only used half a brew on day two, can you keep the leftovers bubbling and use them on day three or four?

Use it all at once. The quality of your tea will deteriorate over time (you'll find that you lose diversity over time).

With a microscope and additional foods it is possible to extend a brew, but for most people you're best using it within the 24-36 hour window.

 

[jaykush]

Just pointing out that some plants are not great for compost intended to be used by sick people. You said toxic, my brain goes latin, and bam, poison ivy and oak.

funny because i was told by someone who really knows what they are doing that when he was younger the old timers used poison oak as a flowering fert. said they grew the best of the best. if i personally touch it im screwed so its the only plant i wont use as material.

also funny the world record for the most honey one hive produced was all from poison oak.

 

[Thomkal Vwalaa]

funny because i was told by someone who really knows what they are doing that when he was younger the old timers used poison oak as a flowering fert. said they grew the best of the best. if i personally touch it im screwed so its the only plant i wont use as material.

also funny the world record for the most honey one hive produced was all from poison oak.

that's one powerful plant.

here's the spinner, note the yard waste bin next to it is empty and hiding the spinner because it usually has some cannabis in it. and the "woodchips" on the ground are actually coconot, lol.

 

[420247]

I'm growing more than pot!?!?

I'm growing more than pot!?!?

This is what I get for using store bought compost and store bought soil (Nursery)

Now I just need a microscope to see if my soil is alive

LOL I'm just being a smart ass guys! LOL

I hope ya'll like the pictures

Hah! Yes I did get carried away with the camera!!!