We boost plants during the growing season with a simple homemade natural liquid fertilizer on our plants called compost tea. Once you experience the results of making and using your own natural fertilizer you will wonder why you didn’t do it much earlier.
Compost tea offers an effective, low-strength, natural fertilizer for seedlings and garden plants, and it can suppress fungal plant diseases. How does it work? The tea-brewing process extracts and multiplies, nutrients and beneficial bacteria and fungi from compost and suspends them in water in a form that makes them quickly available to plants.
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How I make compost tea: (materials needed- 5 gallon bucket, air pump, finished compost and 1/2 cup of molasses and strainer)
1. Use a 5 gallon bucket and fill it 3/4 with water. We use well water because there will be no chlorine or other chemicals. Chlorine can kill off many of the helpful bacteria and organisms that are alive in compost. If you only have access to city water – simply fill the bucket a few days in advance and let sit outside. The sun and air will work its magic and within a few days, almost all of the chlorine will be gone.
2. Add 4 scoops of finished compost.
3. Add 1/2 cup of molasses.
(run air pump for 24 hours)
4. Strain the liquid from the compost after 24 hours, using a strainer. There should be no bubbling or off odors. Use the compost tea immediately, without further dilution.
Try your own liquid gold this year and get those plants growing big and strong!
