Tea Article

[CT Guy]

been doing a few drops of fish h and the brews look completely different than my previous brews, theres always stuff visibly growing in my tea now, it looks like fungal algae and strands of random things attached to pieces of the compost. It takes about 2 days for the tea for finish from what i put it. i stay around MMs ratios, they work really well.

The plant likes the tea with FH, but on its own the results werent very good. I wouldnt ever use it unless its brewed.

I'm glad to hear you're following MM's ratio's, but 2 days is too long. You're going to have a bunch of monocultures at that point. You might want to re-read the original post in regards to brewing times. Good luck!

 

[mad librettist]

The plant likes the tea with FH, but on its own the results werent very good. I wouldnt ever use it unless its brewed.

thats odd, I get good results with fish hydrolysate applied directly.

 

[catcherintheye]

i got burned from such a minute amount. So im not riskin it again. they burned and stayed green. Buring around the edges and smalls spots on the leaves. The new leaves are fine and have been fine with the fh tea waterings.

Thanks ct i will reread it. What are the monocultures? do you reckon?

 

[heady blunts]

mm's recipe is geared towards a balanced tea with multiple fungi and bacteria. a monoculture would be where one species dominates the brew and excludes the others.

 

[Aeroguerilla]

so i got my tea brewer all set up and ready to go im wondering what is a good mix? and how long should i brew for? its a 45gal rez. thanks guys

 

[CT Guy]

so i got my tea brewer all set up and ready to go im wondering what is a good mix? and how long should i brew for? its a 45gal rez. thanks guys

Check out the original post and then follow Microbe Man's recommendations for ratio's of ingredients. Or feel free to post info. on your brewer and potential recipe for comments.

 

[Aeroguerilla]

im going for manure tea. on hand i have EWC, guano and molasses. rez is 45 gal trashcan. brewer is setup with blower on top with valve to adjust pressure it goes down into the bottom of the rez with a T setup on the end and a very fine mesh to make shitloads of bubbles.


heres the brewer...

 

[catcherintheye]

awesome aero! so thats what youre doing with a metric ton of ewc.

 

[Aeroguerilla]

well heres the tea mix i came up with after doing some research.

Veg mix: per 5 gallons
1/3 cup Peruvian Seabird Guano (PSG)
1/3 cup High N Bat Guano (Mexican)
2 cup Earth Worm Castings (EWC)
5 tsp. Maxicrop 1-0-4 powdered kelp extract
3 tbs. Black Strap Molasses


Flowering nute tea mix:
2/3 cup Peruvian Seabird Guano
2 cup Earth Worm Castings
2/3 cup High P Guano (Indonesian or Jamaican)
5 tsp. Maxicrop 1-0-4 powdered kelp extract
3 tbs. molasses

Let it bubble a day or two before you use it. what do you guys think?

 

[vonforne]

well heres the tea mix i came up with after doing some research.

Veg mix: per 5 gallons
1/3 cup Peruvian Seabird Guano (PSG)
1/3 cup High N Bat Guano (Mexican)
2 cup Earth Worm Castings (EWC)
5 tsp. Maxicrop 1-0-4 powdered kelp extract
3 tbs. Black Strap Molasses


Flowering nute tea mix:
2/3 cup Peruvian Seabird Guano
2 cup Earth Worm Castings
2/3 cup High P Guano (Indonesian or Jamaican)
5 tsp. Maxicrop 1-0-4 powdered kelp extract
3 tbs. molasses

Let it bubble a day or two before you use it. what do you guys think?

change the TBS of molasses to TSP. you do not need that much molasses.

and if your soil is amended i would dilute that mix 5 to 1 for starters and work your way up depending on your plants needs.

V

 

[OPT]

I read the latest Skunk mag article the Rev wrote, and he gave a good tea recommendation, but he states that it's not to feed the plant but it's used to "dump a bunch of nutrient-rich microlife into the containers scene".

The recipe is as follows:

Per gallon of chlorine-free water add:

1/2 to 1 cup EWC or healthy compost
1 heaping teaspoon of kelp meal
1 heaping teaspoon of high N bat or bird quano
1 heaping teaspoon alfalfa meal
1 teaspoon fish fert
1 tablespoon molasses

My question is, even though I know it's not necessarly feeding the plant but the soil, do we not dilute this tea with normal water, or use it straight up?

It seems like quite a bit i'd have to make to soak plants in 3-5 gallon containers, just wondering if they maybe forgot to add it's dilution rates in the article?

I'm not using a soil mix that is quite as "super" as the one Rev uses, but the 2-4 times I use this tea in the plants life cycle, i'd hate to dump this on them and get them all fucked up...any recommendations guys?

OPT

 

[OPT]

I think I may have just figured this question out myself after delving deeper into the searches....

Basically, this wouldn't be too much in the tea because the microbes that are multiplying are actually breaking down all the material in the water at such an extreme rate, that by the time it has bubbled for 24-48 hours, there actually won't be much nutrient value left in the tea, but millions of microbes that will inhabit the container?

Does that sound right, maybe i'm thinking too far into it? bah

OPT

 

[tr1ck_]

I read the latest Skunk mag article the Rev wrote, and he gave a good tea recommendation, but he states that it's not to feed the plant but it's used to "dump a bunch of nutrient-rich microlife into the containers scene".

The recipe is as follows:

Per gallon of chlorine-free water add:

1/2 to 1 cup EWC or healthy compost
1 heaping teaspoon of kelp meal
1 heaping teaspoon of high N bat or bird quano
1 heaping teaspoon alfalfa meal
1 teaspoon fish fert
1 tablespoon molasses

My question is, even though I know it's not necessarly feeding the plant but the soil, do we not dilute this tea with normal water, or use it straight up?

It seems like quite a bit i'd have to make to soak plants in 3-5 gallon containers, just wondering if they maybe forgot to add it's dilution rates in the article?

I'm not using a soil mix that is quite as "super" as the one Rev uses, but the 2-4 times I use this tea in the plants life cycle, i'd hate to dump this on them and get them all fucked up...any recommendations guys?

OPT

Usually with tea's you can dilute them up to 10:1 with water if they are brewed correctly. Outdoor farmers often use 5 gallon tea's to water 5000sq ft. I personally dilute mine 2:1 right now just because I brew in a .75 gallon container and my plants are drinking about 1.5 gallons of water right now.

I once was watching some videos about tea's and the guy said:

"think of the water, not as a dilution, but as a vessel to help spread the microbes out over your soil."

You can check out the videos here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8_PuUon5_Q

 

[OPT]

I think I understand it now, so basically I could just use my 1 gallon bucket, brew the tea, then dilute it down to have enough to water all my plants (say i only have 4-6) and the only difference will be the microbes will just be spread out more then concentrated if I were to use the whole 1 gallon batch on 1 plant.

Are there things you try to look for when trying to figure out how conentrated you do want to water with the tea?

For example, if you use a super rich organic mix, it may be more beneficial to use a more concetrated tea over diluting it to "make it spread"?

OPT

 

[Scrappy4]

OPT, don't over complicate things. If your mix has plenty in it, go light on the teas. If you have some nutrient or mineral deficiency, then treat it appropriately. Keep in mind the organic mantra, "less is more". I would add, keep good notes. Then you have a reference point for future grows with that particular strain. If your wondering if your tea is too harsh, try a little on one plant, or try more than one plant with each getting different dilutions, then go from there.....good luck.......scrappy

 

[Stankie]

I think I understand it now, so basically I could just use my 1 gallon bucket, brew the tea, then dilute it down to have enough to water all my plants (say i only have 4-6) and the only difference will be the microbes will just be spread out more then concentrated if I were to use the whole 1 gallon batch on 1 plant.

Are there things you try to look for when trying to figure out how conentrated you do want to water with the tea?

For example, if you use a super rich organic mix, it may be more beneficial to use a more concetrated tea over diluting it to "make it spread"?

OPT

With regards to a tea brewed specifically for its micro-life, I have never over applied one. I dumped almost a gallon of straight tea on each of my 5 gallon Smart Pots last round. The ladies seemed to love it! The only negative I saw was I ended up 'infecting' the smart pot material with a lot of fungal growth. I thought it was PM at the time, but never saw any signs on my plants. I since think it may have just been a soil fungi sporing out on the material, which I still don't want to breathe in on a consistent basis.

Now I will dilute 1:1, dechlorinated water to tea, and slowly water in the mixture to concentrate the saturation in the center of the pot. ie I don't water so the mix runs down the side of the soil. I will also only use about a quart of diluted mix for 3 plants. Sometimes more, sometimes less. Usually only after a re-pot or a more fungal dominated at the beginning of 12/12.

Even during the summer I will brew tea and soak the soil of everything alive in my yard with straight tea. I saw some rust spots on my peonies and tomatoes where the tea splashed on the leaves, but that was it.



I would recommend the following for a one gallon brew: (follow Microbeman's recommendations, there's science behind them )

1/4 - 1/3 cup quality EWC or compost
1 teaspoon of kelp meal
1 teaspoon alfalfa meal

 

[heady blunts]

change the TBS of molasses to TSP. you do not need that much molasses.

and if your soil is amended i would dilute that mix 5 to 1 for starters and work your way up depending on your plants needs.

V

V-
that's light on the molasses according to the much-posted MM recipe. why do you advise less? isn't it the main food for the culture?

 

[OPT]

Thanks for the replies guys, it makes a lot more sense to me now, and yes, I was over thinking things.

I'm just switching back to organics this run, and I had decent results last time but hope to completely crush that this go...

My mix has plenty of organic goodies in it, so again, I won't have to worry so much about the tea but maybe twice the whole cycle, but I just like to be prepared ahead of time!

What do you guys think about using a tea to wet my mix before I let it sit for 2-4 weeks? Will just straight water with some Molasses and Liquid Karma be sufficient or will I get better breakdown using a tea?

OPT

 

[Clackamas Coot]

What do you guys think about using a tea to wet my mix before I let it sit for 2-4 weeks? Will just straight water with some Molasses and Liquid Karma be sufficient or will I get better breakdown using a tea?

OPT

OPT

Drop the molasses and LK and you're on the right track.

I'm waiting for the 'incoming' on the molasses component - no big deal. I'm wrong - completely and totally wrong!

Damn it!

CC

 

[OPT]

I thought the LK and molasses would give the microbeasties a good start on breaking down the mix?

What do you suggest Clack, just plain water?

OPT