Hi Andy . Thank you for such a wonderful and useful post . I have two comments . It's my understanding that worm castings are also excellent feedstock for the compost extract. The most reliable sources for complete bioactive castings, AKA vermicompost, are large scale worm farms, which will ship castings anywhere, or homegrown worm bins, rather than retail outlets. Second comment: Regarding the type of water for extract, the post does not specify rainwater or dechlorinated, versus tap water. Your recommendation? From Sharon C., Elgin, Texas.
Hi Sharon! I agree that vermicompost is the most practical option for folks to get their hands on some good quality, biodiverse compost for the reasons that you mentioned. Quality will still vary depending on how the bins were managed, what they were fed, how old the compost is or isn't, how long it's been stored, etc. but with few exceptions the worm farmers AND johnson-su compost makers that I've met tend to be passionate small businesses who make great compost consistently. 🌟 I answered your great Q about water over on the Office Hours thread: https://soilissexy.substack.com/p/office-hours-what-questions-or-stories/comments
Thank you for this! I'm glad to hear extract is more effective than top dressing. It is certainly easier to apply! I have a question. Why not just add the compost to the water and stir with a stick? I've been basically 'sloshing' the water out of the bucket. I thought the bag was for when you plan to use a sprayer. Also, what do you think about adding a little charcoal, fish emulsion and airariting for a couple hours before distributing? Or does that just add bacteria?
Great questions! You can certainly skip the mesh bag if you were to apply the extract with the bucket. I typically apply extracts in the garden using a simple hand watering can because it's easier to control the flow of water and I'm able to spread more extract across a larger area compared to my bucket pouring skills ;) To avoid clogging the spout, the mesh bag really is necessary.
I'd encourage you to put your microbial foods like fish emulsion in the bucket and apply immediately, skipping the aeration / tea brewing step, because yes, it will definitely breed more bacteria in the contained environment of the bucket. Fish emulsion btw is much more a bacterial food compared to fish hydrolysate which will primarily encourage fungi (hydrolysate has more complex molecular structures compared to emulsion which is more processed).
Regarding the charcoal, if you can, add that to the compost during the composting process! This will ensure it's fully "charged" or inoculated before being introduced to the soils (more on that concept in the post 'Biochar: What to Know", if you're interested). I hope that helps! Thanks so much for reading <3
One more question... Should I also use a powder fungi inoculant in my compost brew? I've been sprinkling it in the hole when I plant a new plant. That seems to help; however, I have an acre wildflower meadow that is struggling without water when we are on water restrictions. I spread seeds for the meadow and I'm trying to figure out how to add fungi to the soil. Should I get recycled mushroom blocks and break them up in my compost, use the powdered inoculant in the brew with fish hydrolysate and spread it right away? Or is that a waist of powdered inoculant? It is pretty expensive...
Hi, thanks for reading! At the rates of extraction mentioned here I would not dilute any further to ensure a good inoculation.
I've not collected data to corroborate this hunch, but I expect it is more effective to apply a relatively dense extract to a moist soil rather than trying to drench a dry soil in one go with a greater volume / more diluted extract.
Hi Andy . Thank you for such a wonderful and useful post . I have two comments . It's my understanding that worm castings are also excellent feedstock for the compost extract. The most reliable sources for complete bioactive castings, AKA vermicompost, are large scale worm farms, which will ship castings anywhere, or homegrown worm bins, rather than retail outlets. Second comment: Regarding the type of water for extract, the post does not specify rainwater or dechlorinated, versus tap water. Your recommendation? From Sharon C., Elgin, Texas.
Hi Sharon! I agree that vermicompost is the most practical option for folks to get their hands on some good quality, biodiverse compost for the reasons that you mentioned. Quality will still vary depending on how the bins were managed, what they were fed, how old the compost is or isn't, how long it's been stored, etc. but with few exceptions the worm farmers AND johnson-su compost makers that I've met tend to be passionate small businesses who make great compost consistently. 🌟 I answered your great Q about water over on the Office Hours thread: https://soilissexy.substack.com/p/office-hours-what-questions-or-stories/comments
Thank you for this! I'm glad to hear extract is more effective than top dressing. It is certainly easier to apply! I have a question. Why not just add the compost to the water and stir with a stick? I've been basically 'sloshing' the water out of the bucket. I thought the bag was for when you plan to use a sprayer. Also, what do you think about adding a little charcoal, fish emulsion and airariting for a couple hours before distributing? Or does that just add bacteria?
Great questions! You can certainly skip the mesh bag if you were to apply the extract with the bucket. I typically apply extracts in the garden using a simple hand watering can because it's easier to control the flow of water and I'm able to spread more extract across a larger area compared to my bucket pouring skills ;) To avoid clogging the spout, the mesh bag really is necessary.
I'd encourage you to put your microbial foods like fish emulsion in the bucket and apply immediately, skipping the aeration / tea brewing step, because yes, it will definitely breed more bacteria in the contained environment of the bucket. Fish emulsion btw is much more a bacterial food compared to fish hydrolysate which will primarily encourage fungi (hydrolysate has more complex molecular structures compared to emulsion which is more processed).
Regarding the charcoal, if you can, add that to the compost during the composting process! This will ensure it's fully "charged" or inoculated before being introduced to the soils (more on that concept in the post 'Biochar: What to Know", if you're interested). I hope that helps! Thanks so much for reading <3
One more question... Should I also use a powder fungi inoculant in my compost brew? I've been sprinkling it in the hole when I plant a new plant. That seems to help; however, I have an acre wildflower meadow that is struggling without water when we are on water restrictions. I spread seeds for the meadow and I'm trying to figure out how to add fungi to the soil. Should I get recycled mushroom blocks and break them up in my compost, use the powdered inoculant in the brew with fish hydrolysate and spread it right away? Or is that a waist of powdered inoculant? It is pretty expensive...
Great piece! I know with compost teas you generally dilute it. Do you usually do the same with extracts?
Hi, thanks for reading! At the rates of extraction mentioned here I would not dilute any further to ensure a good inoculation.
I've not collected data to corroborate this hunch, but I expect it is more effective to apply a relatively dense extract to a moist soil rather than trying to drench a dry soil in one go with a greater volume / more diluted extract.
Thanks for the Q, I'm going to post it in our Office Hours threads too: https://soilissexy.substack.com/p/office-hours-what-questions-or-stories/comments