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I was wondering if there are any websites with a wide variety of the things needed for compost tea, things like kelp meal, molasses, fish emulsion, etc. I can get things like bone meal and blood meal and mycorrhizal fungi tablets at a local place but can't seem to find those other 3. I'm sure there are a number of other great things that you can make compost tea with which is why I'm looking for a site with a wide variety.

Don't know of any particular site for that stuff, but maybe a trip to the healthfood store can take care of much of that for you...

You will certainly find your [url=https://www.google.com/products?rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7GGLL_en&q=unsulfured+molasses&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=saeMS_u0G4eY8Ab_-NWlDw&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=3&ved=0CCYQrQQwAg]unsulfured molasses[/url]there; that's a given... [url=https://www.dirtworks.net/Nutritionals-Livestock.html]kelp meal[/url]you should be able to get through a feed supply if they don't have it at the healthfood store. And fish emulsion is so passe'; I like [url=https://www.google.com/products?q=fish+hydrolysate&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7GGLL_en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=PaiMS-iPHNWa8AaTkqTCDw&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CBMQrQQwAA]fish hydrolysate[/url] better, and you can even get a blend from Neptune's Harvest with the kelp already in it; HOW cool is that?

I don't like fish for brewing; kind of volatile. I'd add some right before application...

HG

What do I search for for a feed supply store? I [url=https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=feed+supply+crystal,+mn&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=51.04407,114.169922&ie=UTF8&hq=feed+supply&hnear=Crystal,+MN&t=h&z=11]searched google maps for feed supply crystal, mn[/url] and all I got was this for a list I'm not sure any of those are what I'd want. And as for whole foods the closest I can find is like a half hour away. If fish is bad for brewing why are a large amount of people in the aact thread using it? Is hydrolysate or emulsion the less volatile of the 2? Would you not use that kelp/fish mix for brewing then either?

Dec, ten minutes on the phone should sort that out, but I saw several promising outlets, and I'm sure they could order if you don't find what you need. Or just use the links I provided...

I can make a good argument for NO foods at all, just rinsing the biology off off the compost. Now you can hold it longer (it's still dormant biology) and feed it up just before. Fish is an incredibly nutritive soil activator, and especially in warm weather it can over charge a tea in short order, especially an already low aeration tea, and some of the aquarium pump home units tend towards being underaerated.

I am just saying that this one addition is the one most responsible for tea overreacting and crashing. In summer we have little control on temp, and as noted, aeration can be spotty, so the other side of the "fire triangle" here that we can control is foods. Kelp is more a fungal food, so not so worried about that. Molasses is a quick sugar hit and great for early boost, but it doesn't have the staying power of the high nitrogen fish.

Hydrolysate is a more filtered product than emulsion (emulsion is just fish in a blender) which makes it more stable. I like Neptunes Harvest because of their cold processing and use of a variety of deep water fish species; many of the others are cooked monocultural products and while cheaper, are more volatile yet (break down easily and go bad).

HG

hey buddy! u live only a couple mins from me! its still a little cold here temp just above the freezing point. might I inquire about what you are needing to buy it for? perhaps ill sell u some ;D

I use to use fish but have strayed from that. I keep it simple now with just compost a little bit of kelp and a little blackstrap molasses. If you start ADDING too much things can go wrong fast like HG said.

KISS is good especially for beginners.

Sage Hermit wrote:hey buddy! u live only a couple mins from me! its still a little cold here temp just above the freezing point. might I inquire about what you are needing to buy it for? perhaps ill sell u some ;D

For compost tea. But lol you're more than just a couple mins from me, I'd guess more like an hour or 2 .

gixxerific wrote:I use to use fish but have strayed from that. I keep it simple now with just compost a little bit of kelp and a little blackstrap molasses. If you start ADDING too much things can go wrong fast like HG said.

KISS is good especially for beginners.

KISS?

Also, what about mycorrhizae? Is this a good compost tea additive or not?

Adding mycorrhizal fungi spores is good but must be done just prior to planting. Otherwise the compost heat will kill the majority of the spores.

Also the remaining spores which germinated need to find active roots within 48 hours otherwise they die off.

Yeah thats really far

KISS = Keep It Simple Silly

In keeping with that thought, mycorrhizhae will distribute well in a tea, but will not breed in a tea, adn should probably be added right before distribution. Got that right from Dr. MIke Amaranthus' mouth; he's about the smartest guy in that subject so believe...

HG

Can you explain the difference between the function of the kelp meal and the fish hydrolysate/emulsion. I can' seem to find out exactly what these two components do (to the plants, not in the tea).

Thanks for the tea-tips. I've seen a lot of act makers who only use compost and nothing else. After all, our main goal in to breed microbes, and ,as you say, nature will take care of everything. The increasing proportions of microbes (in most cases) will probably keep in balance and there will be an ample amount of food to go around with out us messing around. Sometimes when we are messing with with nature, we are just messing things up .

YUP!

That's a big yes...

Fish is a high nitorgen source that also seems to benefit fungal side, kelp is all about surface area for fungi to develop on and the mucilage, so a more fungal food...

HG

HG do you make compost tea? If you do what do/would you put in it. Straight compost? Would YOU add anything perhaps molasses or anything else at all?

I didn't make tea last year and was getting it where I worked before that. I do have a 55 gallon drum that I will be converting to tea brewing this spring...

If I had my way I would simply extract off of compost and then feed extract the night before I was going to use it, and really I am working on a design that will allow for that more than actual "brewing". So in my perfect world, I would extract for about a weeks supply, taking what I needed as I needed, feeding that in a smaller brewer. I think I'd probably just go with molasses and kelp for average garden use, but doing it this way I can use my extract to provide a number of different "teas" on a job by job basis, and could craft them for specific plants (Doing the rhodies? Perhaps we add a cocoa powder and/or saponin to increase the fungal side. Doing the strawberries? Perhaps we just use the molasses this time).

As noted at several points I would add fish just before application for just about every crop; it is an excellent food for most biology but volatile in the brewed form. Best to let it do its job in the soil where oxygen is less limited.

But do you need the foods? Not really. The biology is the important part...

HG

Thanks HG that sounds good to me. Basically what I have been doing.

Gotta go get all the compost off my truck now it's about 3 yards how big of a brewer would I need for that.

Well I used to brew a thousand gallons at a whack, and that used maybe 8o pounds to do that, so you do the math...

A gazillion gallons (or something like that)...

HG

Decado wrote:I was wondering if there are any websites with a wide variety of the things needed for compost tea, things like kelp meal, molasses, fish emulsion, etc. I can get things like bone meal and blood meal and mycorrhizal fungi tablets at a local place but can't seem to find those other 3. I'm sure there are a number of other great things that you can make compost tea with which is why I'm looking for a site with a wide variety.

Try Amazon.

Amazon is convenient, but you do often pay for that convenience. Same product listed on Amazon by the vendor are sometimes available for a better price at the vendor's own website and/or other sources. As with anything else, a little extra effort to shop for prices and shipping rates makes a difference. Then again, "time is money" so do what works for you.

HG, what is this "extract" you are talking about. Perhaps it's obvious, but at least not to me.

Are you talking about like concentrated, liquid compost ?

Extract is unbrewed, unfed tea. Simply humus and biology rinsed from the soil... there are high tech machines to do it, but I think if you figure out how to recirculate the extract over a bed of your compost, you will eventually get all the goodies.

HG

JV wrote:

Decado wrote:I was wondering if there are any websites with a wide variety of the things needed for compost tea, things like kelp meal, molasses, fish emulsion, etc. I can get things like bone meal and blood meal and mycorrhizal fungi tablets at a local place but can't seem to find those other 3. I'm sure there are a number of other great things that you can make compost tea with which is why I'm looking for a site with a wide variety.

Try Amazon.

The problem with amazon is that you're buying from vendors that aren't amazon and end up paying steep shipping prices for each separate thing you buy, if I got it from another website (all from the same place) it would be one smaller shipping fee.

I agree about pitfalls of Amazon if you don't shop carefully.

If you have a local Asian market, you could get dried kelp. Get the inexpensive ones packaged for making broth rather than the pretty ones for serving. I've also tried agar-agar -- powdered or flaked. Really inexpensive at Indian markets. Oh, and well-rinsed seaweed DD collected on the beach during summer.

I imagine any grocery store (or feed store) will have molasses. If not, you could see if a bakery would let you have a small container full.

Remember, you don't need a whole lot when making AACT.

Sorry I didn't know Amazon was a sensitive issue. Next time I'll think twice before giving any input.

JV wrote:Sorry I didn't know Amazon was a sensitive issue. Next time I'll think twice before giving any input.

Lol we're not being hostile or anything, just putting in our 2 cents about amazon. I use it quite a bit but mostly just for things that are amazon prime so I can get the free 2 day shipping.

Anyways I forgot to mention that I found the supplies I need. I found a organic and hydroponic gardening supply store nearby. I was able to get kelp meal, molasses, worm castings, and a endo/ecto mycorrhizae mixture there, great store.

Seek and ye shall find...

HG

The funny thing is the way I found it. I was looking through the back of "Teaming With Microbes" and looked at one of the mycorrhizae websites listed, I then clicked through the site to the distributors and clicked one of those and on that site could put in my zipcode and that's when it gave me the store. I probably never would have found this place if not for that book.

And how would you have found the book?



HG

These forums of course.

HG

Nice

HG, you are basically saying that extract is water that rinsed the compost, was captured, and then rinsed it a few more times? I thing that's what you meant.

You can store that water without it going anaerobic?

Thanks for teaching me yet another new concept.

It will store for a while, depending. Keep it stirred once a day, and smell for the nasties before using, but it should keep a week or so...

Remember you are feeding whoever lives in there when you start, so keep it clean, keep it stirred, and if in doubt, dump it out (on the compost of course...)

HG

When you brew with the extract, do you dilute a portion of the extract in water, or do you use just straight extract?

If it is diluted, what is the ratio?

If you are brewing up you can dilute and brew, or brew and dilute, or just brew. I'd dilute and brew as it increases the carrying capacity for oxygen...

Your call on dilution, but equal parts would be good...

HG