Is Compost Tea Worth The Hype? DIY Organic Liquid Fertilizer Recipe And Results

In this week's episode, JM Fortier dives into the world of organic fertilization and shares his firsthand experience with compost tea!
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Dans l'épisode de cette semaine, Jean-Martin Fortier plonge dans le monde de la fertilisation organique et partage son expérience avec le thé de compost!
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#CompostTea #OrganicFertilizer #LivingSoil #RegenerativeFarming #OrganicFarming #MarketGardening #IntensiveFarming #VegetableGrowing #SmallScaleFarming #NoTill #ProfitableFarming #Gardening #Agriculture #JeanMartinFortier

[@SimpleNaturalPractical]

Hey JM, love your work, been inspired by your story since you started lecturing and put your first book out. I'm a trained community health education presenter who has taught organic gardening, now volunteering in Vanuatu in the Tropics sharing my carpentry skills with young men,...and enjoying tropical food growing of course. What about actual soil amending and correcting deficiencies and imbalances with a soil test? Have you ever done this? Most 'organic' growers are clearly missing the foundational mineral needs and balance and focusing on questionable science, that as you say doesn't affect 90+% of what produces quality vegetables. I used to be hardcore 'organic' until I discovered the soil science done by William Albrecht (1940s), defining how to fill up the base mineral saturation in the soil and correct major and minor minerals for a healthy structure and function in the soil. He discovered this impacted animal and human health more than other approaches, that addressing the underlying mineral difeciencies and imbalances could over time give truly nutrient dense healthy produce. Niel Kinsey from Kinsey Ag wrote textbooks on this topic and lectured extensively. I find thier soil recommendations very easy and straight forward. Blessings brother Keep up the good work, thankyou for sharing your journey and passion for growing healthy local food, you have truly inspired more in this space than most and in my books you deserve a medal. Growers that focus on healthy clean veg are the champions of society.......along with mothers, lol Btw im still hardcore organic composting and Mulching creating peds in nicely aggregated soil, but now with true soil science as I understand it as a foundation.

[@bmoreglass7258]

Been making traditional teas for 10 years. have seen an even bigger difference with adding imo4 with the castings lately. Watch useing straw unless you know it’s not from gmo wheat or sprayed. Recommend filling your container a day early to let the water warm up also. Noticed the cold water shocks the microbes and I don’t get as good of a brew. Keep up the amazing inspirational work!! :). Thanks

[@79PoisonBreaker]

I agree to keep at it and results will come with time. I have a simple rule when brewing tea to use 3 different ingredients, ingredients are any combination of compost from different sources , any manure from different sources , as well as worm castings. I think of it like tea from 1 ingredient is good, tea from 2 ingredients is better, and tea from 3 ingredients is best.

[@ryandelatte3294]

As soon as I heard you had Elaine Ingham over to teach about composting I subscribed.

[@mickeygallz5483]

JM huge fan! I read your book almost a decade ago and I'm finally getting into the lifestyle/industry But from my knowledge and experience Regenerative, natural farming, KNF, compost Teas and/or extracts have been pretty well documented through recent scientific discoveries in the rhizophagey cycle, the human microbiom and with increased availability of DNA sampling. It's clear building a soil that is rich in microbial life literally produces more nutrient dense food that are more pest and disease resistant. These have been researched by many people both in the United States and abroad. To the extent that this brings added profit to a farm immediately, no I wouldn't, but I do believe this is the best way we should treat all of our soil not just our market beds! Thanks JM for the content !

[@RubberDuckStyle]

I love compost and worm casting teas. I don't till, use chemical fertilizer, or use pesticides. The key is getting your fungal up to a 1 to 1 with bacteria. Mycorrhizal fungi is supper important too.

[@pilsplease7561]

I swapped fully off organic to chemical fertilizers at the end of the day, organic and chemical are both chemicals if anything the chemicals are ultra pure so you have less risk of anything ending up in your soil you dont want.

[@RubberDuckStyle]

@pilsplease7561 when you give chemical fertilizers to plants they stop producing sugars that feed the biology in the soil. Then without the biology the plant becomes unhealthy and insects start to attack it. Insects only attack unhealthy plants.

[@buckd2958]

@@pilsplease7561chemical petro derived fertilizer aren’t “pure” why would you use a product proven to kill soil biology? Take some of that petro fertilizer and test it for heavy metals and see what the results are. It’s like pouring kerosene on your soil biology.

[@RubberDuckStyle]

@pilsplease7561 your not getting why chemicals are bad. When you use chemical fertilizer the plant doesn't produce exudates (sugars) that feed the biology in the soil. That biology is what makes your plant healthy and make your vegetable more nutrient dence. Since the 1900's vegetables have lost 60% of their nutritional value. This part of the reason we have so much health problems

[@pilsplease7561]

As someone with extensive knowledge on the matter, it does not matter what you feed your plant with chemical or organic the plants perform the same at the end of the day fertilizer is fertilizer it does the same thing you cant tell, your plants cant tell even a lab cannot tell if you used synthetic it does not matter. Biology is a small part of the puzzle and you still get it with synthetic at the end of the day it does not matter vegetables have lost so much nutrients solely because micronutrients are deficient from basically every soil in the world. We took them out without putting them back the trace elements are 99% of the problem. Use Azomite and basalt and etc to replace it and your problem goes away. @@RubberDuckStyle

[@farmerbobsgarden5554]

i have tried this and compared it to using worm dirt. i say worm dirt because it was not just the worm castings that i used. I have found that worm dirt is superior in every way to compost tea in terms of plant performance . that's my take on this subject.

[@chippsterstephens6800]

So how exactly did you quantify what you state? Do you even own a microscope?

[@farmerbobsgarden5554]

@@chippsterstephens6800 woah now !! don't get your panties in a wad . I didn't say that i don't ,or haven't, used compost tea. you have to consider my context of my statement. 1) when i bought this property 25 years ago the depth of the "topsoil" was from 0" to 1&1/4" deep. Compost (of any quality) is practically nil anywhere within 200 miles of me, so i have had to learn how to make my own. 2) I DO own a microscope and i DO know how to use it.(applause please). 3) I'm 70 years old and have been raising veggies on a 'TRUCKPATCH" ( these days called a "market garden") for over 50 years. I've learned a few things not taught in any school anywhere that I'm aware of. 4) remember the non-existant topsoil i mentioned earlier? It's now down to 12 to 13" using my homemade compost - worm bedding - topsoil building technique. 5) I experiment every year using different ideas. 6) i trial these ideas with side by side comparisons ,using the same batch of plants, in the same soil. 7) In my area, we have insanely high insect, weed seed, disease , and nematode pressure. couple that with high summer temps ,along with high humidity and high avg daily wind speeds of 18 - 22 mph. Now , maybe you can see why i say that my "worm dirt" is superior to compost tea in overall plant performance. If you want to know more. send me an email address and i'll gladly give you more detailed info. HAPPY GARDENING !

[@MistyMeadowsPermacultureFarm]

We make tea from worm castings in our DIY compost tea aerator and looked at samples under a high-powered microscope. I recommend the article, "Compost Tea 101: What Every Organic Gardener Should Know" by Valerisa Joe, Channah Rock and Jean McLain (University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences) and some of the articles in the Reference section at the end.

[@NickDumitru]

Consider using a compost extract as a soil drench. Use the aerated tea on the leaves as the plants grow. You’ll see better results than spraying it on a sunny day in an empty field like that.

[@TheNewMediaoftheDawn]

Ive seen great results on my home scale, I’m surprised you didn’t see about 10-20% growth increase over the unsaturated, especially on less quality new soil, of course there are lots of factors involved, as you mentioned. Cheers love your stuff🍀🌹🌲🌎 Edit: I believe I know what happened, You used only a little bit as a microbial inoculant. I use it as a water in fertilizer and water lots in a full soil drench, likely you used to little to see massive gains.

[@01Lenda]

I mean a 5 gallon bucket, filled with water 3/4 way up then compost rest of way, stir with a stick, 24 -48 hrs.. has always been my method. Add some Epsom salts and fish or seaweed for feeding. Not sure why you need all the fancy?

[@t4cchi]

I use the Johnson-sue bioreactor. Not having to turn a compost pile is a great addition, but I was blown away at the science presentation he has on YT from (I think) Colorado State

[@aaronbellomo724]

How many seasons have you used bioreactor compost and do you see results like David Johnson's?

[@t4cchi]

@@aaronbellomo724 this will be my second season with inputs from the reactor. There are a lot of variables, so I cannot attribute my successes to just the bio-reactor; my heavy clay soils are already nutrient rich, but I have seen a greater resistance to disease.

[@nevermore5690]

Teas have their place in larger setups, but keeping in mind that, similar to the law of conservation of mass, the nutrition of the basic building blocks of all the input materials do not increase by brewing them. If you have enough compost and additional inputs to cover your area, it will immediately inoculate any new soil. Compost contains loads more biology and life then the same amount of the best brewed teas. The life in tea,once applied to a soil, with there not being any continual source of nutrition (like a compost provides), they will die off... and just add to the soil that way. Compost teas are at the end of the day just a means to easily apply and spread out the input materials at an extremely diluted rate.

[@PlantMan-y4e]

Have your compared using tea to just compost? Ingham says that she’d use compost over tea since it provides both biology and a continual food source. She also notes that teas are really only needed on new plots for a year or two at most to get the microbe variety in place.

[@imlew7853]

I do not even filter my c t anymore. I dilute, scoop it and spread with a tub. I use my sump pump for larger area with more diluted c t from heavy concentrated mix. You're video is an inspirtation for using compost tea to many gardeners.

[@JamesG1126]

I'm sure it adds fertility and beneficial organisms. The key question for the market gardener is ROI. Does it increase revenue and profits at a sufficient rate to overcome time and costs?

[@TheMarketGardeners]

This is a good question and one we would like to answer in the coming seasons!

[@stephentueller899]

+1 for James G's question. I'm having trouble finding any concrete evidence for ROI, though I'm able to find counter evidence, e.g., from Alberta Urban Garden Simple Organic and Sustainable's experiments and the Garden Fundamentals channel's review of the literature.

[@Gabi-lt4mx]

​@@stephentueller899 o

[@olmax76]

@@Gabi-lt4mx yes but the ROI is difficult to relate to this single factor. imagine a scenario where compost teas and other teas like liquid IMO4 can result in more nutrient dense food which will make your customer happier and healthier, which will boost your status as a grower so it will act as a good marketing tool at the same time as being an awesome tool to improve you produce quality. over time your reputation might have been greatly enhanced in the view of your customers as you adopt such level of care for you soil and thus the nutrient density of your plants however how much of that gained reputation is relatable to the single adaptation of the compost tea, how much to the other soil live enhancing patterns and practices you practice, then how much of that reputation results actually in an improvement of sales. I imagine the effect of reputation enhancement with JM will be significantly less relatively to someone who is just starting out and need to build that rep. I think it can definitely be worth it in this regard but you need to focus on efficiently applying the tea to the beds. I have tried it by hand that really sucks its to time consuming if you could make the tea in an IBC put a pump in the ibc (with proper filter) put some sprinklers to the pump and you can at least distribute 1000l as a foliar. can eventually connect multiple ibc with that has some air pumps in them starting simultaneously with same mix to upscale this to x fold. what i also imagine is that compost some amendments might become obsolete in some cases. but there it also depends what goes in to the tea. there are many option elaine ingham has a manual which is nice some stuf from KNF i think can ben awsome to.

[@colinerikstanhouse6385]

Yes, it's worth the hype. Alfalfa, kelp, worm castings and molasses. Adds the beneficial microbes back into the soil.

[@maggarlion]

I add fish meal and feather meal to the Tea and use it to feed my baby grass seeds. It works. Trust me it does

[@glassbackdiy3949]

I started brewing CT in 2011 (QC with microscopy), since 2019 I've mostly cut out the brewing part gone straight to extract with the same feeds I would have put in the brewer, results are the same with less time investment, I only brew CT for foliar application and I only do that if there's a prolonged warm/humid period forcast to control mildew/fungal issues (UK climate).

[@partidaportet27]

You could try adding some horsetail to your ferments to help mitigate fungal pressure

[@glassbackdiy3949]

@@partidaportet27 the equisetaceae family is one of the few families of plants I don't find in abundance locally (which I find odd for a calciforous soil) I add fern, grasses, and moss with LAB to my ferments for a Si boost instead.

[@andreaberryman5354]

I believe I have fusarium wilt deep underground, and cannot fertilize with nitrogen, but some have noted biofertilizer harms fusarium. Do you notice having zero or reduced fungal pathpgens

[@Power_Prawnstar]

I think my yard lacks phosphorus, so I'm going to make a half compost, half chicken manure tea with Seasol and carp fertilizer (has no P in it) Gonna give it a week, then use it as foliage spray hopefully it gives me that hard to find phosphorus.

[@madisonscott4677]

You think that... no soil on earth lack any kind of minerals

[@Power_Prawnstar]

@madisonscott4677 not the point, I'm feeding the biology, tailoring it to my backyard, I've had an amazing harvest BTW, summer is over now, it worked perfectly

[@madisonscott4677]

@@Power_Prawnstar feeding the biology is not necessary I think

[@dano956]

I agree that you have to have faith because the science doesn't seem to support it. I think if it really worked that by now there would be some consensus on how to best make it, dilute it and apply it. I have no doubt that the fish extract is a benefit but I can't buy the rest of it without some scientific research other than you tube scientists who are in it for the $

[@Jean-uz1wv]

How many times a week should you use compost tea on tomatoes?

[@janew5351]

For a small start what about stinging nettle, sugar and molasses?

[@rikg4086]

Fermented plant juices with nettle or comphrey or other bio accumulators in your region are very rich in trace minerals and has a great shelf life. I made mine with deadnettle, dandelion, and cleaver. I do a 1:1 ratio by weight, brown sugar and plant material, and mix it thoroughly then i put about a quarter inch cap of brown sugar on top in a jar, i typically fill a 16oz jar to the top with that mixture and use papertowel or a breathable material on top secured with twine. I let it sit for about 7-10 days and then extract the liquid for FPJ (fermented plant juice) and have seen amazing results using it in a 1:500 dilution in water and use it as a foliar spray.

[@anthonytanksley6470]

Using a high pressure pump will kill microbes , no foam means it's not very bio active . Essentially just adding organic minerals is all he is doing

[@xy3zprototype]

Im brewing too, 2weeks after watering big results are seen in leaf size too begin

[@quintinturner9961]

One thing I notice when working on farms that have had earth dams(built by bulldozers in catchment points) when they are cleaned by drag scoop or excavator. Anything that grows exponentially tall. I take its a pool of organic matter.

[@Malysandacz]

Would it be better to use pure vermicompost castings rather than tea?

[@nickn9111]

What's the brand of your brewer?

[@michelinebercier-lariviere3095]

Pour être crédible, l’effet du thé de compost devrait être comparé avec l’application de compost et de l’émulsion de poisson directement sur le sol de culture. Ce que vous comparez ici, c’est le thé de compost avec rien.

[@joduval]

Les 3 devraient être comparés

[@odonnellsaussiehomestead8257]

Hi I wand to improve my small farm soil grass is poor and soil is poor. So composting 4 acreas is a lot of compost . So I feel tea might be a quick kick start? What do u think?

[@Damyankee1989]

Anyone know if used charcoal is good to put in compost?

[@andrewradford3953]

Turns it into inoculated biochar.

[@garymun420]

You need my compost tea it's made from Pure worm castings that are made from feeding my worms a very high nutrient diet to ensure I get nutrients across the board as well as adding extra organic nutrients to ensure a nice balanced healthy nutrient-rich microbial rich well-balanced tea Mighty comes in a highly concentrated form you need to dilute as needed

[@sandpine]

What’s the npk of this concoction?

[@djangoLovers]

The big picture is Ecosystem Balance,. Compost tea must be seen as an introduction to different micro ecosystems and IMO (Indigenous Micro Organisms)concept explains it wel. Every plant comes with their own family of micro organisms and lack or diversity brings "dictators" or embalance, the most common "enemy" is the Nematoides, Compost tea will bring different nematoides to the same territory to "simulate" a forest flor.. Can (should)be a solution for Industrial farming to.

[@hadleymanmusic]

can I stop making it after three months? how much do I need

[@denisdufresne5338]

As I am concerned, an healthy soil has the right balance between the quantity of microorganisms and the food in and on the soil so adding compost tea will not really improve the soil fertility. However the compost tea might be useful when sprayed on plants to increase their biome and their immune system. This would be like a prevention action but an healthy plant does not really need it. Besides a compost tea is too much work for a lazy gardener like me.

[@pierrehamel1]

Wish there were much more credible comparative research being done....for home and market gardeners.....lots of opinions out there....many useful.....but much more hard data could get us to optimal levels of production quicker and speed up the process of soil regeneration...randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies are still too rare....This would still leave room for creative experimentation.

[@Swalley311]

PLEASE DON'T USE HORSE MANURE in compost or on your farm at all! It's very risky as horses are commonly fed hay that has been sprayed with persistent herbicides. In my experience, other types of manure have no where near the risk of this...

[@paulmaxwell8851]

So are many types of livestock, like cows. All hay is risky, so make sure you have a good relationship with anyone who wants to sell or give you some!

[@Swalley311]

@@Pietpompies753 Nowhere near the risk of horse manure. Horse owners want "perfect" hay for their pets, and theyre willing to pay more for it.....that's why hay producers will spray persistent herbicides like Grazon on their hayfields meant for horses.

[@dawn9532]

??? We use horse manure all the time and nothing has happened

[@user-tm1ec2on6w]

I inoculate my soils with a bacterial-fungal cocktail called “ Recharge”. It guarantees the correct soil biota that the plants need to THRIVE. I’m not interested in sub-par. Not at all.

[@fakehinterland6685]

If your sprayer exceeds 30 psi (most are around 60psi), you have probably killed the microbial life.

[@srantoniomatos]

What bacterias are you brewing? And how many? How many are still alive when you spray the liquid in the soil? Soil, compost, manures bacterias live, sometimes, seconds. Sometimes minutes... if the compost is the the compost bacterias will be there, if compost is not there, or its different, bacterias will die, or change. Also depends on humidity, temperature... Stop pretending you are soil scientists (this is not solid science not evven to soil scientists), and just be...farmers! This is just post modern witchcratf, pseudo science...

[@MasterKenfucius]

Compost tea is like biochar - a lot of hype and not a whole lot of results. Usually pushed by people who want to sell you equipment to do it.

[@madisonscott4677]

The realy important thing is soil. Without proper knowledge you will have fruits and vegetables yes. But...poor on vitamins and minerals. Go listen to Dr Elaine Ingham videos

[@darrenbolme1741]

Talking too much. Just talk about the tea I didn't finish.

[@jamesmiller210]

One minute into this and you said this either works or it doesn't. I paraphrased. Why would I watch a how to do video when you don't even say for certain, this works?

[@bRiMaTiOn]

Winey a

[@Damyankee1989]

You gotta do it the right way

[@heithheithinson2495]

I mean yeah of course that’s what he says in the beginning of the video. Nobody would watch the video if he just gave the result right out of the gate

[@ogluhv1062]

you need to plant stuff get it active

[@5203mhr]

Jm you are awesome grower and that’s why I bought your book too But on this topic of making compost liquid you are way off from the reality Yes you need to sterilize all parts of brew container plus it’s the aerobic organism that is important to grow good biologically in the container I can go on and on but don’t want to be offending you, so I will stop here

[@gjmarin2004]

Way too many words without saying much. Way more talking than needed way way more talking to too much talking without saying a whole lot. We want to see the product we want to see the results. I don’t wanna hear you talk nonsense like oh my goodness you said the same thing I was just like I couldn’t. I fast forwarded through most of it because I couldn’t take anymore.

[@SuperJaffro]

Pot, meet kettle.

[@samiarti]

Maybe so but your post is worse😂

[@cheftoniFTW]

Typical JMF... Hypes up with promising misleading titles then offers nothing of value, all to impress non-agriculturalists to buy his crappy books. All this guy does to make money is marketing. Not farming.

[@11savagesoldier]

Hahahaha