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What are some good ready to use compost teas for organics?

symbiote420

Member
Veteran
I used to make my own teas but nowadays I just don't have the time & space to bubble teas for all the different stages of growth that my plants are in, so I'm wondering what are some good organic bottled nutes or dry mixes that make a quality replacement for a fresh brewed tea?

I've used HTG's Stump Tea and Fox Farms Big Bloom, even VermiT Solutions and Pure Blend Tea which all were pretty good ....what are some of good lazy gardener approved compost teas peeps!
 

habeeb

follow your heart
ICMag Donor
Veteran
I think alot of people don't fully understand teas.. it can multiply microbes, but ask yourself what good is that really... is it really worth the time, energy to make a tea

near same things would be accomplished top dressing, or as you said a liquid organic nutrient.



these are just my experiences.. I've gone full into organic, teas, then I came out trying the other side ( salts ) and realized organic doesn't have to mean more work, nor do I think it should.. I think it defeats the purpose to put more work in, when what were trying to achieve is in essence, simplicity..



my thoughts
 
S

SooperSmurph

Dragonfly Earth Medicine makes some great products, Lush Roots 840 being the best of the bunch, like a hippified Great White with all sorts of extras.

They have a bacteriacentric blend (Fat Flowers) a soil feeding blend (Brilliant Black), and an herbal foilar (Mystic) that includes nettle and other lovelies.

The Lush Roots really does kick ass though.

All these products are in fine easily soluble powders, i'm not a fan of bottled teas, like most people here.
 
I have been pondering the use of "bottled teas" for a while now. I have been using an AACT around the house with great results. However, my outdoor spot is off the grid, and even though I can run an aerator pump with deep cycle batteries, I want to look into an alternative to brewing an aerated tea and still get all the beneficials into my soil.

Does anybody use these "bottle teas" with great success?
and how do they compare economically to brewing your own?
I've 40 150gallon pots to drench....

whats the general consensus? any advice? thanks much!
 
O

OrganicOzarks

Microbes in compost tea start to die off in 6 hours or so. So to purchase a "bottled" compost tea does not seem possible. I do have a friend that owns a $12k compost extractor, and the extracts he makes stay pretty good for about 30 days or so when properly stored.

Just make your own tea. It is super easy, and you plants will thank you. I have gotten my largest yields when testing compost tea twice per week foliar fed, and soil drenched.
 

xmobotx

ecks moe baw teeks
ICMag Donor
Veteran
a good 'alternative' to AACT is to top-dress w/ EWC ~or even vermicompost

AACT is nice to inoculate a new soil mix and likely to help as an occasional bump in an existing container

BUT; confusing a compost 'tea' w/ nutrient teas is a mistake/attempting to double up and feed w/ your AACT results in thinning the micro-herd and; ultimately 'feeding' your plants w/ 'nutes' in your compost tea indicates a failure to understand living soil & the general idea of making a compost tea
 
a good 'alternative' to AACT is to top-dress w/ EWC ~or even vermicompost

AACT is nice to inoculate a new soil mix and likely to help as an occasional bump in an existing container

BUT; confusing a compost 'tea' w/ nutrient teas is a mistake/attempting to double up and feed w/ your AACT results in thinning the micro-herd and; ultimately 'feeding' your plants w/ 'nutes' in your compost tea indicates a failure to understand living soil & the general idea of making a compost tea


thanks for clarifying, X... I have been currently top dressing with a product called Mr. B's Green Trees

from their label:



Total Nitrogen (N) 7 %

0.67 % Ammoniacal Nitrogen

0.19 % Urea Nitrogen

0.94 % Other Water Soluble Nitrogen

5.2 % Water Insoluble Nitrogen


Available Phosphate (P2O5) 4 %
Soluble Potash (K2O) 4 %

Calcium (Ca) 6.5 %
Magnesium (Mg) 0.9 %
Sulfur (S) 1.7 %
Iron (Fe) 0.9 %


Derived From: Seabird Guano, Fish Meal, Kelp Meal, Bat Guano,
Fish Bone Meal, Rock Phosphate, Blood Meal, Langbeinite,
Ferrous Sulfate, Dolomite, Neem Meal, Sulfate of Potash,
Oyster Shell, Feather Meal, Greensand, Volcanic Ash, Glacial Rock Dust.


ALSO CONTAINS NONPLANT FOOD INGREDIENTS
2.0 % Humic Acid (Derived from Leonardite)


would a nutrient such as this NOT be beneficial used along side an ACT?
 

xmobotx

ecks moe baw teeks
ICMag Donor
Veteran
well; leonardite=coal & the bio-ag site has some reading which states that humic/fulvic from coal is basically worthless

be that as it may your product will probably work but it isnt something i would advise using {mostly based on the laundry list of ingredients but other reservations as well}

anyway; the mr B's wont bring anything 'living' to the table which is the benefit from AACT ~when i say 'top-dress w/ EWC or vermicompost;' i mean; if it isnt feasible to brew tea and/or for a small garden you may as well put your EWC/vermicompost right on your soil and water through it

really the value of brewing AACT is to multiply your micro-lifes from that particular product {of your own manufacture} so that they can be dispersed over a larger area

the mr. B's is a nutrient product and not exactly relevant to the compost tea paradigm {except the microbes from the compost tea would make the 'nutes' available to the plant from the product {assuming the product doesnt kill them}
 
O

OrganicOzarks

a good 'alternative' to AACT is to top-dress w/ EWC ~or even vermicompost

AACT is nice to inoculate a new soil mix and likely to help as an occasional bump in an existing container

BUT; confusing a compost 'tea' w/ nutrient teas is a mistake/attempting to double up and feed w/ your AACT results in thinning the micro-herd and; ultimately 'feeding' your plants w/ 'nutes' in your compost tea indicates a failure to understand living soil & the general idea of making a compost tea

Do you have documentation for this?
More microbes=more nutrient cycling

No failure to understand anything.
 
I buy the Vermi-tea cartridges and brew my own, takes no time at all, no mixing or measuring. I feed and foliar with it, better immunity and uptake and no bugs. I go through like 5G every couple weeks.
 
S

Seal-Clubber

I think alot of people don't fully understand teas.. it can multiply microbes, but ask yourself what good is that really... is it really worth the time, energy to make a tea

I`ve grown for 15 years since the passing of California Health and Safety code 11362.5-9, (prop 215) for medical cannabis. I have grown about 10 years with the chemical stuff and the last few years with pure organic teas.. Organic teas doubled my yield... Is it worth it? YES

really the value of brewing AACT is to multiply your micro-lifes from that particular product {of your own manufacture} so that they can be dispersed over a larger area


My tea smells like death but holy hell, the plants LOVE it. I was thinking about the symbiotic relationship of man and plant. They eat our shit and we eat theirs. ;) think about it. We exhale CO2 and breathe O2, plants do that in reverse. Plants love manure for food and we enjoy the fruits which are produced. Plants produce flowers as waste and as reproduction. Our manure is the food and their flowers is the food. It`s perfect! Just don`t shit on my plants. ;)


Regarding the Pre-made and 100% soluble teas without home brewing, grow shops make MONEY on your disadvantage.. One fucking bitch tried to sell me a pre-mix pack for $5 each which treats 10 gallons. That's $25 for 55 gallons which I use per week. I brew myown tea which is better than anything I have ever seen and I do it for about $3 per week.

Your choice...
 

wayoveryonder

New member
3 "Teas" that have living bacteria ready to go (no brewing necessary):


EM1 soil conditioner- these are low-to-no oxygen breathers, no need to bubble, look up what the Japanese do with the stuff. Personally, I water it in, spray it (check out how R. palustris increases plants ability to photosynthesize), and I drink the stuff, swear by it. Super probiotic for people and plants.

Photosynthesis Plus (Plus C in Cali, known as Quantum in the big ag world (look it up)) This is a group of bacteria and fungi that are meant to be sprayed or watered in. They are stabilized in the bottle with hydrogen sulfide, so the stuff stinks like rotten eggs, but water it in and/or spray and the results will make you look, or sniff, past the smell. The Root Enhancer by the same company is pretty bad ass also.

Sea Green- This is a living bottle of bacteria, drench and foliar. This a bottle of bacteria, though no one from the company knows which ones, they describe it as a concentrated compost tea. This is another product that is pretty awesome.

These three products make a good "tea" pretty simply. I am sure that everyone knows by know that the definition of "tea" is as variable as the microbes in them (nice one), so I won't get into that. Teas are what I do, or have been doing, very successfully, for several years. I use both AACT and stabilized concentrates. Message me for recipes or questions.
 

greenerthumbs

New member
Humate

Humate

well; leonardite=coal & the bio-ag site has some reading which states that humic/fulvic from coal is basically worthless


Actually it's important to note that Leonardite is not coal. Lignite is coal. And even lignite isn't really like a bituminous coal or anthracite, but rather in between coal and peat. They're all just degraded plant matter, but at different points in time on the scale of decay.


Also as far as teas go, they shouldn't smell bad at all. Any time you have a foul odor, you've gone anaerobic. Those are the bacteria and fungi that will kill your soil, not help it. Healthy, aerobic bacteria will break down nutrients into usable forms for plants. Anaerobic will make alcohols, ketones and other toxins. Be careful!
 
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