[compost_tea] Re: Compost Tea Best Practices - Ingredients INPUT REQUESTED

From: chris reid <reidchris_at_earthlink.net>
Date: Sun, 07 Dec 2003 10:44:26 -0500

Bob Norsen said:
Hi Chris One of my happiest customers has put a handfull of hay IN the
BobOLator.
If pre-activation is being done with the compost I would suggest putting the
hay on top of the compost, wetting the compost thru the hay. We had a low
count on protozoa last test so we are looking for the same answer you are.
Bob

Bob,

I tried preactivating the hay in water and then adding hay and water to tea
at the suggestion of SFI/NY. the bacteria blew away the fungi and the tea
was fairly marginal. So I'm not going to add the protozoal inoculant to the
tea because of bacterial being along with it and the rapid rate at which
they can become too many. Was the "handful of hay" tea then tested and had
a different protozoa count than previous tea? I tend to prefer a separate
prep to try to give the fungi a chance.

That's my problem with such suggestions. The consequences of too many
bacteria on the road to trying to boost the protozoa numbers don't build my
interest in trying this route at the moment.

I tried growing out the fungi without using bottom heat and have not had
success doing so. I can see the point of growing out fungi for the purpose
of making sure your compost has a good viable amount of fungi in it. But it
seems to me the least-damage-able form of fungi is the spore form, and I am
not clear to what extent grown-out fungi will be less viable in the trip
from brewer to field and application. Can Elaine or someone who knows this
from testing confirm how fungal colonization of grown-out tea compares to
fungal colonization of same compost tea with spores?

I want to be clear whether this goal of getting good SFI numbers also
translates into a goal of the optimal soil amendment, or if by adding active
biomass to the SOIL we are improving things more rapidly (and if so, how
much more rapidly). I do understand that active fungal biomass is necessary
outcompeting disease in foliar applications, and that the fungi should "hit
the road" active. How much of this grown-out biomass makes it past the
strainers and meshes of those who strain the tea before adding?

Thanks,

Chris Reid



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Received on Sun Dec 07 2003 - 11:30:41 EST

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