leadsled
GrowRU
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Info. is pretty good, but his microscope photos were highly misleading and wrong. They are at different magnifications and can't be compared the way he did. A couple of major issues with extraction vs ACT.
1. Not many active organisms.
2. Uses a lot more compost than ACT.
3. Not good for foliar applications due to lack of active organisms.
CT Guy said:Also Fish Bone is a good fungal food as well as bacteria.
If you want to increase nematodes, oat flour or baby oatmeal in your compost works well.
Maxicrop is not the best seaweed product. You want cold water processed ascophyllum nodosum.
Overall though he gives a good presentation and information. Personally though, I still prefer ACT.
Lead- thanks for posting this
I would incorporate kelp meal into my soil mix (1 c/cubic foot) and also use a foliar throughout the life of the plant. (1x week at a light, light dose, say 1/4 tsp./gal of water). It's especially beneficial when rooting cuttings or germinating seeds. In fact, I would drop the cloning products (they contain a chemical that I can't remember the initials of right now, but if not allowed on fruits and vegetables). Originally, this main ingredient was used only in the orchid industry, and while it does work very well and is in small concentrations, I personally choose to avoid it, especially as an organic grower. The only rooting product I know that doesn't have it is Olivia's, and I haven't tested it. I'd recommend a mild solution of seaweed extract and willow water, as both naturally contain the hormones and enzymes you want during rooting.
Hope that helps!
Oh, and don't get me wrong, the video for the most part was very accurate. You just don't see small time applications of compost extract usually because it's just as easy to make the tea. The only people I know doing compost extract are large commercial companies, because time is money and they can't afford to wait 24 hours for a brewing cycle on the ACT.
I mean you could do both compost extract and ACT, but personally I'd just stick with the ACT....
Awesome video.
I wonder if the hose water he's using is either dechlorinated or if the chlorine isn't really affecting his microbial levels?
I've heard the idea is that the soil born fungi that you are trying to inoculate into your soil DOESN'T like to be in the water to long. It needs the soil to survive, therefore you should NOT aerate for 18+ hours. In fact, you should use this asap after extracting.
This makes me wonder just how balanced or fungal dominant an AACT can be and if this extraction method might be superior for a balanced or fungal dominant compost "tea"..... Has anybody ever looked at their aerated compost teas under a microscope in comparison to a compost extraction?
Guerilla, I bet it's the second option (that chlorinated water isn't affecting his microorganisms quite as badly as everyone assumes). IIRC he put the water into the bucket directly from the hose.
Does the tea have to be fungi dominant?
I also just learned of a wild study from Australia's Urban Water Research Association. Apparently chloramine can be neutralized by adding humic acid to the water at a rate of about 1 teaspoon per 100 gallons! My compost guru confirmed this but said it was more like 1/8 teaspoon per gallon.
Same here, although going through the soil nitrogen cycle made me smack my forehead (fishperson, we're all about nitrification). I'm learning also about how dominant species help tell us what's going on with the soil itself, and am appreciating my extremely rocky clay a little more because I *think* I may be able to correct its fertility, just a little bit. I've seen a difference just using the leftover teas I've made in the past with myco-inoculants, especially the subsequent annelid activity (segmented worms--got red wigglers up the wazoo out here).From what I understand so far, and I've only just begun to research this stuff, is that bacteria and fungal dominant teas work rather differently. While vegetables prefer a bacterial dominant environment, fruiting trees prefer a fungal dominant one. This is because fungus is much more capable of breaking down organic matter and mobilizing nutrients, especially phosphorus, and bringing it to the rhizosphere. This is why fungal dominant teas are preferred in the flowering stage of cannabis, while bacterial dominant teas can work great during the vegetative stage. Or you can make a balanced tea and have both....I think.
I find this hard to accept considering there's so many different humic acid products on the market that use different extraction techniques. Some are 80% humic acid by content, some are only 10% or less!
Humic acid will complex chloramines, I agree, I just have yet to see any definitive research on rates.
No offense intended though...he may be right. I just don't see how he accounts for the differences in humic acid products.
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