Compost tea brewing Instructions

There are three essential ingredients
A compost tea brewer or Xtractor –Which is a specially designed container and an air supply that keeps the oxygen level at at least 6ppm all the time. It is very important to keep the brewer clean so choose a brewer that does not have internal pipes, nooks, corners and crevices which harbor biofilm and are difficult to clean. You should not allow a brown film to build up on the surface of the brewer; this may contain harmful microbes that reduce the potency of the compost tea you make. Symbio Compost Tea Page

Good compost – Ideally you should buy pre tested compost made by a reputable supplier that is pathogen free and contains and broad spectrum of the beneficial bacteria, fungi, protozoa and nematodes needed to make a good compost tea. If you make your own compost it should have at least 50% woody material in the mix and be made aerobically. It should be turned when the temperature reaches 65oC and typically be made in six – eight weeks. You may then have to leave the compost for a month or more or inoculate it with a fungal inoculant to allow time for fungi to grow.

The correct nutrients – You need to add foods to feed the bacteria and fungi so that they can grow when they have been extracted from the compost. Different foods feed bacteria and fungi. Bacterial dominant teas are made with black strap sulphur free molasses or sugars while fungal dominant teas are made by adding fish hydrolysate and humic substances so be sure to use the correct nutrients for your brew.

Each batch you make will be different depending upon the ambient temperature, pH of the water used, brewing time, compost quality and nutrients added. It is best to make tea at the ambient temperature so you grow the microbes that will survive in the soil temperature to which they are applied

• Step 1 - Fill the brewer with the desired amount of water. If using chlorinated water run the air pump for an hour or two to release any chlorine in the water.
• Step 2 - Add the nutrients to the water.
• Step 3 - Add the compost to the basket or for smaller brewers into the water.
• Step 4 - Brew for the required time.
• Step 5 - Switch off the brewer and allow the compost tea to settle for 20-30 minutes.
• Step 6 - Decant the compost tea via and extra filter if necessary to your spray tank or irrigation tank and apply as a soil or foliar drench.
• Step 7 - Thoroughly clean the brewer.

Hints

If the compost tea foams you can add a small amount e.g. half cup of cooking oil. The finished compost tea should be sprayed within 4-5 hours before the microbes use up all the oxygen and it goes anaerobic. If you cannot apply the tea for any reason, simple run the aerator for a few minutes every hour until the tea is applied. If applying bacterial or fungal additives follow the instructions on the pack as a general rule bacterial additives are added at the start of the brew cycle and fungal additives at the end of the cycle.

Brewing timesYou can further refine the type of tea you make by altering the nutrients and brewing time.

With an ambient temperature of between 15-20oC you can make the following brews.