Recipes for Compost Tea

by Doug
(Somewhere out in Lake Ontario)

Compost Tea Recipes


For a bacterial tea - in a 5 gallon pail - use

2 pounds of bacterial dominate compost such as worm compost
2 ounces of blackstrap molasses
1 ounce of soluble kelp or fish emulsion with kelp in it.

This is a simple tea that will produce a good bacterial dominated ocmpost tea suitable for applying to annuals, vegetables and perennials.



For Fungal Tea

2 pounds of fungal compost (compost composed of mostly tree leaves is a good start)
2 tbsp of humic acid (search for organic products to find it)
2 tbsp with material with high saponin content (yucca, aloe vera)
1 ounce of fish emulsion with delp.
Several large comfrey leaves if you have them.

This is an excellent tea for helping woody plants such as trees and shrubs.


Note that it is really important to NOT add anything with any preservatives or chemicals to making compost tea. These kill off fungi and bacteria.


It is also important to not use chlorinated water in your tea. If you have chlorinated water - either use rainwater or aerate the chlorinated water overnight before making tea (some resources say 2 hours of aeration is adequate but...)

Hope this helps.