Compost Tea
When compost tea is sprayed on a plant, the plant will often grow more vigorously, resist disease and insect attack, and may produce higher yields of flower and fruit. While chemical pesticides work by killing microorganisms, both the pathogenic and the beneficial ones, compost tea works on a very different principle. Inoculation of the soil with beneficial organisms can help to release plant available nutrients, aid the decomposition and recycling of soil organic matter, improve soil structure, and add beneficial organisms to the soil. The soil is full of microorganisms, such as bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and nematodes, and can aid plant growth.. Soil also contains disease causing bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and root feeding nematodes. The goal for using compost tea is to enhance the beneficial microorganisms in the soil.
The harmful bacterial decomposers and the plant toxic products they make are enhanced by anaerobic or reduced oxygen conditions. By making sure the tea and compost are well oxygenated and highly aerobic you eliminate 75% of the potential plant disease causing bacterial and plant toxic products. To take care of the other 25% of the potential diseases and pests, get good microorganisms into the soil as well as on at least 60% — 70% of the plants' leaf surface. Good bacteria work against the detrimental ones in four ways: they consume the bad bacteria, they may produce antibiotics that inhibit them, they compete for nutrients, and they compete for space. .................
Microorganism Selection
Compost tea can be dominated by either bacteria or by fungi. Bacteria dominated compost tea is for use as a foliar spray applied to herbaceous plants. It is especially useful for preventing foliar diseases. For the bacteria to dominate, it should be made from a preponderance of green materials such as 25% high nitrogen ingredients, 45% green plants, and 30% woody material. High nitrogen materials include manure, grass clippings, and legumes such as alfalfa, peas, clover, and bean plant residues. Green material includes any green plant debris, kitchen scraps, and coffee grounds, which all contain sugars and proteins that bacteria love. Woody material includes wood chips, sawdust, and paper products. The more frequently you turn the pile, the more the compost tends to become bacterial.
Fungi dominated compost is good for mulching around berries, fruits, and trees. Fungal compost consists of approximately 25% animal manure, 50% green plant material, and 25% shredded wood plant material. Any kind of disturbance to the compost pile destroys fungi by breaking up the mycelia. Fungal compost is especially useful for suppressing disease and introducing fungi for root development immediately after tree planting.
If worm compost (vermicompost) is used, the material does not have to reach the same temperatures but must be adequately processed by the worms. Passage through the earthworm digestive system kills human pathogens and most plant pathogens, but adequate time must be allowed for worms to process all the starting materials.
