Hey everyone. Just caught up quick on the last couple of pages and glad to see everyone is doing well, other than Bobo. Sorry bro, but you've got the right meds so that's good. I also agree about Ambers art. Amber, you are a very creative lady, and a very good gardener too.
Hey bassman, hope you get that worked out soon. That can't be good over time. Good luck.
I started my first tea this morning. I let the water aerate overnight first and just added worm castings, kelp, molasses and a bit of EM's. Afterwards I sat down and started reading more and found this site here with good info. I did not know about bacterial vs fungal teas and their different functions. Like endo and ecto myco's bacterial is for leafy plants and fungal benefits shrubs and trees. Also some good expert tips on the bottom. This one stuck out.
Give fungi a head start
We can't claim this last tip to be our own. It comes from the incredible book,
Teaming with Microbes, by authors, Jeff Lowenfels and Wayne Lewis. In it, Lowenfels and Lewis suggest you "give fungi a head start." Since it can be difficult to get fungi to multiple (they do grow in size, just rarely in number) during the compost tea brewing process, the authors recommend growing them prior to the brewing process.To do this, you'll want to moisten a couple cups of compost (just damp, not dripping wet), and then put it in a light-resistant container. Then grind up some simple proteins (fungal foods), such as oatmeal, and mix them in with the moist compost. Cover partially with a lid, and then place in a warm, dark area. We typically put ours under our sink, or above our fridge in a cupboard. After about 3 days, you'll remove the lid, and find a bunch of fungal
mycelia throughout the compost. You can now use this compost to brew your fungal tea.
Here's the link
http://www.compostjunkie.com/compost-tea-recipe.html
Also, I soaked a dozen peat pellets in a light kelp and molasses mixture, placed a touch of myco in each hole and planted seeds. I used mostly seeds I pulled off previous plants for this trial. Once they sprout I'll let them go a week or so, then I'll transplant with myco again. I've also noticed that I made some amendments to my soil mix by simply mixing 50/50 with fresh coir and that lightened up the mix quite a bit, and the new seedlings in that mix are doing well. I now believe that my current mix is too heavy and not draining properly and probably not providing much oxygen. I have a half dozen in 2 gallon pots that I'm going to repot in this lighter mix while I have the chance.
Anyway, got a couple of other things to share, including pics, but that'll have to be later. Have a great day all.