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Living organic soil from start through recycling

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Gascanastan

Gone but NOT forgotten...
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I have some plants that need an N boost. Can I make a plain old alfalfa tea without aerating or fermenting? And at approximately what concentration? I will need to mix it with about 40 gallons of water for the plants in question.

I have burned the fuck out of plants with alfalfa tea....its fast and hot. Great stuff just be caerful....I can't remember the ratio...somewhere around 1 tablespoon per gallon.
 

GeorgeSmiley

Remembers
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I have burned the fuck out of plants with alfalfa tea....its fast and hot. Great stuff just be caerful....I can't remember the ratio...somewhere around 1 tablespoon per gallon.

I go by MM's recommendation on Alfalfa

On MM's website under "extras" he listed the following

For 50 gallon brewer
*alfalfa meal – up to 0.25% (.5 liter or 500 ml), (17 ounces US), (0.5 quart US), (2 plus cups)

Which roughly comes out to .34 oz .or 2 teaspoons per gallon of alfalfa meal.


I think...... I dunno I smoke weed
GS
 

Gascanastan

Gone but NOT forgotten...
Veteran
I go by MM's recommendation on Alfalfa

On MM's website under "extras" he listed the following

For 50 gallon brewer


Which roughly comes out to .34 oz .or 2 teaspoons per gallon of alfalfa meal.


I think...... I dunno I smoke weed
GS

I hear that.....I get stoned and I get high.....and therefore I temporarilly shuffle information in my thought processes....I forget shit.
 

ClackamasCootz

Expired
Veteran
Buuutttttt

MM's recipe is for brewing an AACT - different application.

A 2-day brew (maximum) at the rate I suggested will not burn your plants - otherwise I'd be sitting over on the Cannabis Infirmary sub-forum seeking advice and perhaps even enlightenment. Or something close.

CC
 

Gascanastan

Gone but NOT forgotten...
Veteran
Buuutttttt

MM's recipe is for brewing an AACT - different application.

A 2-day brew (maximum) at the rate I suggested will not burn your plants - otherwise I'd be sitting over on the Cannabis Infirmary sub-forum seeking advice and perhaps even enlightenment. Or something close.

CC
Ahhhh yes..CT Guy uses alfalfa in his brew also....
 

ClackamasCootz

Expired
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Correct and for that specific application, i.e. AACT, they (MM & CT) have worked out the appropriate amount from their testing. I'm a complete idiot on the AACT technology as it's been pointed out several times.

I'm talking about botanical teas which isn't about growing out a tank of microbes and it's probably worthless as has been pointed out by the same critics of my AACT skills.

No big deal - even at 1 tablespoon per gallon there will be massive benefits. I'd probably let it brew an extra day or so to extract more of the worthless elements, compounds, auxins, etc.

No big deal either way - the plants will show increased vigor regardless.

CC
 

GeorgeSmiley

Remembers
Veteran
Buuutttttt

MM's recipe is for brewing an AACT - different application.

A 2-day brew (maximum) at the rate I suggested will not burn your plants - otherwise I'd be sitting over on the Cannabis Infirmary sub-forum seeking advice and perhaps even enlightenment. Or something close.

CC

My apologies..... I thought discussion was on aact, missed end of last page.....

gs
 
Last edited:
Y

YosemiteSam

For some reason the botanical teas appeal to me...perhaps I be an idiot to

I just got some outdoor plants in too small pots and they need a little help. This seems like the best way to do it. I also have some stinging nettles that will follow the alfalfa by a week or so.

And my plants loved the aloe spray...that is some good stuff. Can't wait to try it for cloning. Been using AgSil 16 for a wile by itself cause it eliminates damping off...aloe sounds like a great combo with that.

edit...should I brew in the final amount of water or can I go less water and then dilute? I am lazy about cleaning up a reservoir
 

ClackamasCootz

Expired
Veteran
Been using AgSil 16 for a wile by itself cause it eliminates damping off...aloe sounds like a great combo with that.

No kidding - I've been PM free for over 3 years using botanical teas (Neem meal, Kelp meal & Alfalfa meal) and then later I added Aloe vera - I laugh at the 'cures' offered on cannabis infirmary boards.

Talk about a good way to screw up a garden - friggin' amazing
 
Y

YosemiteSam

It is like modern medicine...the cure is more dangerous than the disease half the time.
 

Gascanastan

Gone but NOT forgotten...
Veteran
It is like modern medicine...the cure is more dangerous than the disease half the time.

I had a discussion the other day how this is exactly like western medicine....they treat the symptom...not the problem.

Like kids that eat nothing but refined sugar and high fructose corn syrup laced foods all day then the parents wonder why they are 'hyper'...so Dr.Pharmie hooks 'em up with Ritalin....
 

ClackamasCootz

Expired
Veteran
YS

Just as an aside - if it's Nitrogen that you feel that you need then Stinging Nettle will give you numbers that will make you smile.

BUT - you have to soak the leaves in water for 3 - 4 weeks. One suggestion that I might make is to get a huge amount ready so that at the end of summer you can hit your raised beds and by spring you'll be glad you went through the trouble.

Planting Red or Crimson clover (field clovers) will also increase the tilth in your beds. See if your Garden Zone allows for over-wintering on cover crops. Clover isn't the only option - Hairy vetch, about any legume, etc. No mystery - basic soil building practices.

CC
 

Scrappy4

senior member
Veteran

Thank you, I use oak leaves for my leaf mold. I doubt the leaves return much in nutrition, but they make for an outstanding texture because of the lignin content. This lignin or wood fiber also makes oak leaves notorious for their long break down times. To speed this process up I cut the leaves at least twice with my mower, then I add things with healthy nitrogen levels to speed up composting. The things I add are grass clippings, alfalfa meal and soybean meal. In 2-3 weeks I get something that looks like compost, and this almost done compost does make decent top dressing. But to finish properly it takes several more weeks. I also use fresh not quite done compost for earth worm habitat. Oak leaves in a pile on their own might take a year or more to make leaf mold.

I've also found places that city slickers dump yard waste in the local woods.(illegal but widely practiced) If you dig under these piles you will find decent leaf mold, and most of the time worms" win win as they say.....scrappy
 

ClackamasCootz

Expired
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Scrappy

I got lucky at the end of last summer when I was getting the vermicompost reactor up and running and I needed several lbs. of worms. The 'worm guy' I buy from had this huge pile of black leaf mold and he wanted $45.00 per yard (about $1.66 per cubic foot) so bought 3 yards and had him screen it which left a bit over 2 c.y. and I split that with another gentleman who had a truck & trailer to haul it across the Columbia River to my place.

It's been sitting in a pile with a loose tarp over it (plenty of aeration) and there must have been a lot of cocoons because this spring as I was turning it over I saw massive amounts of Red Wigglers. So now I just pull out what I need for this or that reason, screen out the worms and cocoons and toss them into one of the SmartPots worm bins (I'm running a different species in the vermicompost reactor - flow through design).

Pretty cheap soil amendment even after sharing it with the other fellow. Makes for a really nice soil mix with compost and worm castings. Almost too easy to grow great plants.

CC
 

Gascanastan

Gone but NOT forgotten...
Veteran
Thank you, I use oak leaves for my leaf mold. I doubt the leaves return much in nutrition, but they make for an outstanding texture because of the lignin content. This lignin or wood fiber also makes oak leaves notorious for their long break down times. To speed this process up I cut the leaves at least twice with my mower, then I add things with healthy nitrogen levels to speed up composting. The things I add are grass clippings, alfalfa meal and soybean meal. In 2-3 weeks I get something that looks like compost, and this almost done compost does make decent top dressing. But to finish properly it takes several more weeks. I also use fresh not quite done compost for earth worm habitat. Oak leaves in a pile on their own might take a year or more to make leaf mold.

I've also found places that city slickers dump yard waste in the local woods.(illegal but widely practiced) If you dig under these piles you will find decent leaf mold, and most of the time worms" win win as they say.....scrappy

Lovin your posts Scrapp...

I'm utilizing a lot of straw and douglas fir shavings mixed in with horse shat from my horsey ...so ATM I'm trying to balance that very issue.
 

Scrappy4

senior member
Veteran
I have some plants that need an N boost. Can I make a plain old alfalfa tea without aerating or fermenting? And at approximately what concentration? I will need to mix it with about 40 gallons of water for the plants in question.

For 40 gallons of water I would add a half gallon (8cups) of alfalfa meal. If you do not areate it, I would at least stir it well' and let it soak for one or two days. If you leave it more than a week it will start to stink (ferment) but it still works well.....scrappy
 

Scrappy4

senior member
Veteran
For some reason the botanical teas appeal to me...perhaps I be an idiot to

I just got some outdoor plants in too small pots and they need a little help. This seems like the best way to do it. I also have some stinging nettles that will follow the alfalfa by a week or so.

And my plants loved the aloe spray...that is some good stuff. Can't wait to try it for cloning. Been using AgSil 16 for a wile by itself cause it eliminates damping off...aloe sounds like a great combo with that.

edit...should I brew in the final amount of water or can I go less water and then dilute? I am lazy about cleaning up a reservoir

Botanical teas will appeal to your medicinal plants as well. Hard to quantify but everything that gets these teas just looks happy, how's that for science, lol. We hosted a neighborhood BBQ, and the neighbors were amazed at our veggie garden. Once they smelled my comfrey tea bucket though, I think they will stick to their miracle grow. The light weights....

I make small batches of botanic teas using dried plant materials in the winter and dilute, just because it's easier for me. If it's easier for you too, go fer it. In the summer I use my compost tea brewer, but clean up is fairly simple, I just hose it off......scrappy
 
Y

YosemiteSam

For 40 gallons of water I would add a half gallon (8cups) of alfalfa meal. If you do not areate it, I would at least stir it well' and let it soak for one or two days. If you leave it more than a week it will start to stink (ferment) but it still works well.....scrappy

I could put some kind of filter over a small pump and rig a waterfall thing...probably a good idea to move it around some. I was just being super lazy.
 
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