How to Make Organic Compost or Worm Tea

COPYRIGHT © 2011 Cherie Kuranko ~ "InkSpot"

All Rights Reserved.

Organic compost tea can improve the growth and health of your vegetables without using harmful fertilizers and pesticides. Give your plants a sip of compost tea and just watch them grow. You will need the following items to complete this easy homemade compost tea. In just a couple days you will be serving up a nutritious tea to your plants, though it takes much less time to get the tea brewing.

• Two 5-gallon buckets
• 1 gallon of mature compost from your organic compost pile (Alternative: 1 gallon worm castings)
• Aquarium water pump
• Aquarium gang valve with at least 3 available connections
• 4 gallons of water
• 4 feet + (48 inches) of aquarium hose
• Unsulfured molasses
• Electrical source to plug in the aquarium pump
• Cheesecloth
• Bailing Twine, Rope or recycled tire tube rubber band

First, attach a piece of aquarium hose to the water pump and attach the other end to the inlet on the gang valve. This provides the hose that feeds air into the gang valve where it then sends air into the bucket through the 3 outlet valves. The length should be long enough to set the pump in a dry area near your bucket.

Next, cut your aquarium hoses that will attach to the three outlet valves on the gang valve. The gang valve can be attached to the rim of the bucket, therefore the hose lengths will be about 12-14 inches long. They should easily extend to the bottom of your bucket. Let the ends dangle in the bottom.

Using mature organic compost, remove any large sticks and other materials that haven't broken down during the composting stage. Mix the soil up a bit to loosen it. Then add 1 gallon of compost to the bottom of the bucket covering the aquarium hoses in the bottom. Try to keep the hoses in three separate areas for even air circulation.

Fill the bucket with unchlorinated water. Leave about 6 inches of head space at the top of the bucket. Chlorinated water can kill the beneficial organisms in the compost tea. Most public water systems have chlorinated water. You have a couple alternatives if your water is chlorinated. You can use rain water collected in a rain barrel. You may also fill a bucket with chlorinated water by itself and aerate it using your pump and valve system for at least 1-2 hours. This process should allow the chloride to evaporate.

To help feed your microbial organisms you need to add about 1 to 1 1/2 ounces of unsulfured molasses.

Plug in the aquarium pump and turn it on. Make sure it is working properly and then leave it to brew for 2-3 days. Once or twice a day stir up the mixture, breaking up any solid materials.

When the organic compost tea is finished you will need the other clean 5-gallon bucket. Place a piece of cheesecloth over the top rim of the empty bucket and use either a piece of baling twine, rope or even an old tire tube cut into a wide strip to make a fat rubber band to secure the cheesecloth snugly.

Turn off the pump and remove the hoses from your compost tea. Rinse them and store the system indoors. Next, strain the tea by slowly pouring it over the bucket with the cheesecloth. The tea will drain into the new bucket and you can either throw the solid material into the garden or return it to your compost pile.

You should use the compost tea immediately as the microbial organisms will die without the air source. Your tea should smell earthy and sweet. If it smells bad do not use it on your garden.

Pour the tea into a watering can and apply to your vegetable or flower plants. It is safe to sprinkle it on the foliage and the soil surrounding your plants. You may use organic compost tea every two weeks to give your plants a boost of beneficial nutrients and energy.

You may also use this system to create a fantastic worm tea. Just substitute the composted manure with 1-gallon of worm castings. 

COPYRIGHT © 2011 Cherie Kuranko ~ "InkSpot"

All Rights Reserved.