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Fw: Dog Hair...and alfalfa tea->Compost Tea article

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Somebody asked about manure tea?
-----Original Message-----
From: Frank Teuton <fteuton@total.net>
To: OGL@LSV.UKY.EDU <OGL@LSV.UKY.EDU>
Date: Monday, March 29, 1999 4:10 PM
Subject: Fw: Dog Hair...and alfalfa tea->Compost Tea article


>For all you tea buffs, here's more info from the Man from ATTRA.....
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Steve Diver <steved@ncatark.uark.edu>
>To: Frank Teuton <fteuton@total.net>
>Cc: compost@listproc.wsu.edu <compost@listproc.wsu.edu>
>Date: Monday, March 29, 1999 11:35 AM
>Subject: Re: Dog Hair...and alfalfa tea->Compost Tea article
>
>
>>> Eliot says, on page 186 of the latest ed of The New Organic Grower, the
>>> following:
>>>
>>> " A watery fermentation extract of well-finished compost, used as a
>foliar
>>> spray, has proven very effective against a wide range of plant diseases,
>>> including potato and tomato blight, cucumber powdery mildew, and
botrytis
>on
>>> strawberries. The length of fermentation time appears to determine its
>>> effectiveness on different crops. These ideas are developing rapidly,
and
>>> you should check at the library for the latest research results."
>>>
>>> He cites one study as a jumping off place: Heinrich C. Weltzein "Some
>>> Effects of Composted  Organic Materials on Plant Health" Agriculture,
>>> Ecosystems, and Environment, vol 27 (1989) pp 439-446.
>>
>>Fyi, the ATTRA publication on compost teas summarizes the
>>technology and biology of compost tea preparation, accompanied
>>by a bibliography of research articles including Weltzein's
>>research.
>>
>>Compost Teas for Plant Disease Control
>>http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/comptea.html
>>
>>The ATTRA publication is scheduled for an update this
>>spring-summer, which will include more recent developments.
>>
>>In one trial in California, 200 gallons of compost tea applied
>>as a foliar drench to young celery transplants yielded an
>>extra 100 extra boxes per acre.
>>
>>On soils where methyl bromide has been applied for years,
>>you can bet the ecology of those soils have gotten whacky, with
>>very immature and narrow soil foodwebs.   In the example above,
>>the first biological inputs resulted in a huge response.
>>
>>When you think about it, as farmers and gardeners all of our
>>practices are aimed at more or less two main locations:  the
>>root environment and the aerial environment; i.e., the rhizsospere
>>(root-soil interface) and the phyllosphere (leaf surface).
>>
>>When we understand that both of these locations are sites of rich
>>microbial diversity, it becomes clearer practices like cover
>>cropping, green manuring, composting, choice of tillage
>>implement, organic amendment inputs, microbial inoculants, and
>>*compost teas* can play a key role in tweaking the ecology of these
>>environments to favor disease suppression, insect control, plant
>>growth promotion etc.
>>
>>Based on the experience of farmers making and using compost
>>teas as well as researchers investigating compost teas it appears
>>that we are still on the early phase of the learning curve with
>>respect to understanding this practice and what it can do.
>>
>>One new resource that will soon be available to farmers is a
>>Compost Tea Manual developed by Michael Alms at Growing
>>Solutions and Dr. Elaine Ingham at Soil Foodweb Inc.
>>
>>Growing Solutions Inc.
>>http://www.growingsolutions.com/
>>Growing Solutions has some experience with this practice, and
>>in fact they sell a Microb Brewer as a manufactured compost tea
>>brewer.
>>
>>Soil Foodweb Inc.
>>http://www.soilfoodweb.com/
>>Especially see the section on Bacterial, Fungal, Protazoa
>>Nematode Resources and Bacteria/Fungi Inocula
>>
>>
>>Steve Diver
>>
>>
>>
>>
>


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