In this thread you stated that teas we make should smell like good soil.I have a tea that I have been brewing for about 5 days.It consists of earth worm castings,earth juice bloom,and grandmas unsulphured molasses.It doesnt smell like good soil.It smells like sweet stinky cheese.it doesnt have any type of growth in it.I also dont have a air stone that I can use at this time,so I have the air hose from the air pump stuck in it and it is bubbling.Do you have to have the air stone? And,is my tea still good do you think? Since it doesnt smell as you mentioned that it should.Im thinking about adding some kelp meal and compost to it..Think that would be a good idea?
Would there be anything wrong with keeping a tea going constantly and just adding ingrediants to it as you need to? I mean as long as it is bubbling constantly?
Last question..I have read where you say that once the tea or fertalizer or whatever has gone annorobic (I know I spelled that wrong..lols) it is bad.I have read that in other places and I do comply with it.But then why do people use shit or shitty ,sewage,smelling things in thier outdoor veg gardens and so on with a good result ??
Discovering where the best humic layers are is educational too. I've found that deciduous trees offer the best collection sites. Not too dry,but more moist areas seem to have a better mychorizal thing happening. The smell is a clue as well as how it looks. Of course I'm primarily after the BIM's. The michorizza is a prime indicator...can't hurt to get some of those fungi in the collection huh?yup thats the one, and yes finding the right spot to collect is key to success. the more diverse and healthy the better. plus its hella fun hiking through the forest looking for prime spots.
tactical farmer you would so like making beneficial indigenous micro organisms culture aka BIM. might want to do a google search on it.
yumAt any rate, mushrooms in the compost pile is never a bad thing. I've been working on a project trying to introduce Ectomycorrhiza to their favorite trees in hopes of growing some delicious edible mushrooms. It's also much healthier for the tree.
L. amethystina is a common species in most temperate zones of Europe, Asia, Central, South, and North America. It grows solitary to scattered with both deciduous and coniferous trees, and is mycorrhizal with these.[2] It appears in late summer to early winter, and often with beech;[1] in Central and South America, it more commonly grows in association with oak.[3] Research has shown that L. amethystina is a so-called "ammonia fungus", an ecological classification referring to those fungi that grow abundantly on soil after the addition of ammonia, or other nitrogen-containing material;[4] the congeneric species Laccaria bicolor is also an ammonia fungus.[3]
I did, it doesnt mention the products I am asking about it nor the time and expected results of the what the finish product should be like. Thanks anyways.
I did, it doesnt mention the products I am asking about it nor the time and expected results of the what the finish product should be like. Thanks anyways.
Hey brother,You don't need all that stuff.
In a 5 gallon bucket that's aerated adequately,brew for 24-36 hours the following:
1/4 cup of compost or EWC
1/4 cup of kelp meal
2 tablespoons molasses
That's it,don't worry about the foam. If it starts to smell like death it went too long. If it smells "good"....which is a matter of personal experience in the matter,use within that time frame.
Yes, I apologize. For some reason I thought it addressed the timing and foam issue more clearly.
Here are my recipes: http://www.microbeorganics.com/#Compost_Tea_Recipes
And reading this may help as well;
http://www.microbeorganics.com/#So_You_Wanna_Build_A_Compost_Tea_Brewer
Basically the foam tells you nothing and as Capt. has mentioned keeping your ingredients simple is what you want. In compost tea you are NOT striving for nutrients. Rather you are extracting and multiplying the beneficial microbes which create a nutrient cycling consortia which provide nytrients directly to the roots of your plants.
For further info on this go to; http://www.microbeorganics.com/#Organic_Growing_Microbial_Perspective