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Fertilizers, including compost tea

Compost Tea

In any case, compost tea is rich in nutrients and microbes. The results for disease control are still mixed, depending on the source of the compost, whether it has just been dumped in a container of water or aerated, and how long it was fermented for. Furthermore, there is potential for human pathogens in animal manure based teas, but that potential exists if using manure in a garden.

The compost tea party To get good compost tea, you have to start with good compost. By Susie Sutphin. Rodale Institute. 2011. link defective

Compost tea research enters its second year. Rodale Institute. 2003. Not all diseases respond the same way, but marketable yields in the compost tea plots of potatoes were between 18 and 19 percent higher than in the untreated plots and about 15 percent higher than in the nutrient-only plots. Compost tea-treated plants also produced tubers that tested higher for a range of nutrients, including iron, boron, potassium, and manganese. Iron showed the biggest response, with levels an astonishing 1700 percent higher in plants receiving compost tea than in untreated plants. link defective

Compost Tea to Suppress Plant Disease By Vern Grubinger, Vegetable and Berry Specialist, University of Vermont Extension

Compost Tea and Its impact On Plant Diseases by Mario Lanthier. BC Organic Grower, Volume10, Number 2, Spring 2007

Growing Solutions Incorporated -use in agriculture golf courses, lawn care services, landscaping, greenhouses and vineyards.

Organic Materials Management/ Compost Tea

Testing

Soil Food Web Canada (Alberta) Soil Laboratory and Research Centre will test soil, composts, and compost teas chemistry and biology.

Soil Amended with Insect Exoskeleton Is Effective Alternative to Harmful Chemical Fertilizers (Beyond Pesticides, June 14, 2023) The exoskeleton of the black soldier fly (BSF; Hermetica illucens) has the potential to be an effective organic fertilizer. A study in the journal Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment highlights the positive impacts on plant size, flower count, seed production, appeal to pollinators, and resilience to herbivory that the fly’s molted exoskeleton (or exuviae) can have when used as a soil supplement. BSF exuviae contain large amounts of the natural biomolecule chitin, which enhances the growth of beneficial microorganisms. Chitin increases the concentration of plant-growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), a microorganism useful to the plant’s defense system in fighting plant pathogens and insect pests. Moreover, PGPR leads to faster regrowth by enhancing nutrient and water uptake. Black soldier flies are already the “most widely used insects produced for animal feed” and are known for their ability to break down organic matter. Along with their most recent use as soil supplements, BSF can contribute to a circular and organic agricultural system.

Manure