How to Grow Amazing Plants with Compost Tea - Masterclass with Dr. Elaine Ingham (Part 1 of 5)

Summary

This script delves into the importance of soil biology for plant growth, emphasizing that no soil lacks essential nutrients but often lacks the biological activity to make them available. It discusses the detrimental effects of inorganic fertilizers on soil life and advocates for composting as a means to restore beneficial organisms. The speaker outlines the process of making compost and compost tea to reintroduce bacteria, fungi, and other microbes into the soil, highlighting the balance needed between fungal and bacterial foods and the importance of maintaining aerobic conditions to prevent pathogen growth.

Takeaways

• 🌱 Soil naturally contains all the necessary nutrients for plant growth, and the focus should be on maintaining the biological life that makes these nutrients available to plants.
• 💀 The use of inorganic fertilizers and lime can harm the beneficial biology in the soil, which is essential for nutrient cycling and plant health.
• 🌿 The key to healthy soil is a thriving community of bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, and microarthropods, which work together to break down organic matter and release nutrients.
• 🔬 Understanding the balance between bacteria and fungi is crucial; bacterial foods (high in nitrogen) and fungal foods (high in carbon) should be added to compost based on what the soil is lacking.
• 🔥 A properly managed compost pile should reach high temperatures to kill pathogens and weed seeds, ensuring that only beneficial organisms are present in the final compost.
• 🌡 The process of composting should remain aerobic to prevent the growth of anaerobic pathogens and to maintain the health of beneficial microorganisms.
• 🍽️ Making compost involves using a 'Goldilocks' approach to balance the right amounts of bacterial and fungal foods to support a diverse and robust soil biology.
• 💧 Compost extracts and teas can be made by aerating compost in water, which helps to distribute beneficial organisms and nutrients throughout the soil.
• 🚿 It's important to neutralize chlorine and chloramine in water used for compost teas to prevent these chemicals from harming the beneficial organisms.
• 🔬 Regularly checking the compost with a microscope can help monitor the health and diversity of the microorganisms, ensuring a successful composting process.
• 🌳 Ultimately, the goal is to create a self-sustaining soil ecosystem that supports plant growth without the need for constant external inputs of fertilizers.

Q & A

Why is it unnecessary to add inorganic fertilizers to soil according to the transcript?

The transcript suggests that all soils inherently contain the necessary nutrients for plant growth, and the addition of inorganic fertilizers can actually harm the biology within the soil that helps make these nutrients available to plants.

What role do bacteria and fungi play in making nutrients available to plants as per the transcript?

Bacteria and fungi produce enzymes that help extract nutrients from the soil's crystalline structure, including rocks, sands, and clays, and deliver them to the plant roots in a form that the plants can absorb.

What is the significance of the number of bacteria and fungi near the root system as mentioned in the transcript?

The large number of bacteria and fungi near the root system is crucial as they are directly involved in nutrient cycling, attracting predators, and making nutrients available to the plant in a balanced form.

Why should one avoid using lime and high-NPK fertilizers according to the transcript?

The transcript implies that lime and high-NPK fertilizers can kill the beneficial biology in the soil, which is essential for nutrient cycling and ultimately make it necessary for the grower to manually perform the tasks that these organisms would normally do.

What is the purpose of making compost according to the transcript?

The purpose of making compost is to reintroduce beneficial organisms into the soil, which can help convert waste materials into a form that is beneficial for plant growth and soil health.

What is the 'Goldilocks principle' in relation to composting as mentioned in the transcript?

The 'Goldilocks principle' in composting refers to the balance needed between 'green' or nitrogen-rich materials and 'brown' or carbon-rich materials, ensuring neither too much nor too little of either to support the right microorganism growth.

How does the transcript describe the process of making compost tea?

The transcript describes making compost tea as a process of extracting organisms from compost using aerated water, which involves aerating water that has had compost submerged in it, and then adding foods to nourish the microorganisms in the solution.

Why is it important to remove chlorine and chloramine from water before using it in compost tea according to the transcript?

Chlorine and chloramine are added to water to prevent the growth of organisms, which can be detrimental to the beneficial microorganisms in compost tea. Removing these compounds ensures that the compost tea remains aerobic and supports the growth of beneficial organisms.

What is the role of humic acid in compost tea as described in the transcript?

Humic acid is used to neutralize toxic chemicals like chlorine and chloramine in water, ensuring that the water used in compost tea is not harmful to the beneficial microorganisms.

How can one determine if they have added enough humic acid to water according to the transcript?

The transcript suggests using the color change as an indicator. A tinge of brown in the water signifies that enough humic acid has been added to neutralize the toxic compounds.

What are the potential issues with using water containing chlorine and chloramine directly on soil according to the transcript?

Using water with chlorine and chloramine directly on soil can kill some of the beneficial organisms in the soil, which can disrupt the soil's biology and potentially require additional amendments to restore balance.

Outlines

00:00

🌱 The Importance of Soil Biology for Plant Nutrient Availability

The first paragraph emphasizes the inherent nutrient richness of all soils and the critical role of soil biology in making these nutrients available to plants. It discusses how human practices have disrupted this natural process, leading to a reliance on chemical fertilizers that can actually harm the beneficial microorganisms responsible for nutrient cycling. The speaker encourages a return to fostering soil biology, particularly bacteria and fungi, which work in tandem with plant roots to extract necessary nutrients from the soil matrix. The summary also touches on the complex food web within the soil, including predators that release nutrients when they consume bacteria and fungi, ensuring a balanced and readily available supply for plants.

05:02

🍃 Compost as a Means to Restore Soil Biology

The second paragraph focuses on the process of creating compost as a method to rebuild the soil's biological community. It explains the importance of balancing 'green' or nitrogen-rich materials with 'brown' or carbon-rich materials to support the growth of bacteria and fungi, respectively. The speaker details the 'Goldilocks principle' of composting, where the right balance is necessary for optimal microbial activity. The paragraph also addresses the need to identify what specific organisms might be lacking in one's soil and tailoring the compost recipe accordingly. Additionally, the importance of maintaining high temperatures in the compost pile to kill pathogens and pests is highlighted, ensuring the resulting compost is teeming with beneficial organisms.

10:02

💧 Transforming Compost into Liquid Form for Soil Application

The third paragraph explores the concept of converting compost into a liquid form to facilitate its distribution across large areas, such as fields. It discusses the process of extracting the beneficial organisms from the compost using water and air pumps to create a compost extract. This method involves agitating the compost with bubbles to dislodge the bacteria and fungi, which are then suspended in the water. The speaker also introduces the idea of compost tea, which is similar to a compost extract but includes additional foods to nourish and promote the growth of the microbes in the solution. The paragraph emphasizes the need to assess the specific needs of one's soil to determine the appropriate recipe for the compost tea.

15:04

🌡️ The Role of Temperature in Pathogen Control During Composting

This paragraph delves into the significance of maintaining proper temperatures within the compost pile to eliminate harmful pathogens, weed seeds, and parasites. It clarifies misconceptions about compost sterility at high temperatures and explains that beneficial organisms can survive and even thrive at certain heat levels, while pathogens cannot. The speaker advocates for turning the compost pile to ensure thorough heating and the destruction of harmful organisms. Additionally, the paragraph touches on the use of earthworms in composting and the importance of not overloading them with too much material too quickly, which can lead to their death and the survival of pathogens.

20:05

🌳 Understanding and Preparing Compost Tea for Soil Health

The fourth paragraph provides an in-depth look at the process of making compost tea, which involves aerating water to dislodge beneficial organisms from compost and then adding specific foods to support their growth. It underscores the importance of knowing the needs of one's soil to determine whether to add more bacterial or fungal foods. The speaker discusses the necessity of removing chlorine and chloramine from water used in compost tea to prevent the killing of these beneficial organisms and suggests using humic acid as a natural neutralizer for these chemicals. The paragraph also covers the process of extracting humic acid from compost using a passive water filtration method.

25:06

🛡️ The Benefits of a Healthy Soil Food Web and Aerobic Composting

In the final paragraph, the speaker discusses the benefits of a robust soil food web, including the decomposition of toxins and the breakdown of antibiotics and certain pesticides by a diverse array of microorganisms. It emphasizes the importance of maintaining aerobic conditions in compost to prevent the growth of pathogens and to ensure the health of the compost. The paragraph also encourages the use of a microscope to examine compost and soil to better understand the organisms present and their needs. The speaker concludes by reiterating the importance of aerobic conditions and the avoidance of bad smells, which are indicators of anaerobic processes and potential issues with the compost.

Keywords

💡Geomorphology

Geomorphology is the scientific study of landforms and the processes that shape them. In the context of the video, it is mentioned to emphasize the universal presence of soil nutrients, which is a foundational concept for understanding soil health and fertility.

💡Soil Biology

Soil biology refers to the living organisms in the soil, including bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms, which play a crucial role in nutrient cycling and plant growth. The video script discusses how the death of soil biology can hinder nutrient availability, which is central to the theme of soil health.

💡Nutrient Cycling

Nutrient cycling is the process by which nutrients are circulated within and among ecosystems. The script explains that soil organisms are essential for making nutrients available to plants by breaking down complex structures into simpler forms that can be absorbed by plant roots.

💡Organic Fertilizers

Organic fertilizers are natural substances used to supply nutrients to soil to promote plant growth. The video script questions the use of both organic and inorganic fertilizers, suggesting that they may disrupt the natural soil biology and nutrient cycling processes.

💡Inorganic Fertilizers

Inorganic fertilizers are synthetically produced and contain nutrients in forms that can be readily absorbed by plants. The script argues that these fertilizers can harm soil biology, which is counterproductive to sustainable agriculture.

💡Compost

Compost is a mixture of organic materials that have been decomposed by microorganisms. The video emphasizes the importance of composting as a means to restore and maintain soil biology, by providing a rich source of beneficial microorganisms and nutrients.

💡Compost Tea

Compost tea is a liquid solution made by steeping compost in water, which extracts beneficial microorganisms and nutrients. The script discusses the process of making compost tea as a method to reintroduce beneficial organisms into the soil, supporting plant growth and health.

💡Aerobic Composting

Aerobic composting is the process of decomposing organic matter in the presence of oxygen. The script highlights the importance of maintaining aerobic conditions in compost to ensure the growth of beneficial organisms and the destruction of pathogens.

💡Humic Acid

Humic acid is a component of humus, which is a dark-colored organic matter in soil. The video script explains how humic acid can be extracted from compost and used to neutralize harmful chemicals in water, protecting soil organisms.

💡Chlorine and Chloramine

Chlorine and chloramine are chemicals used to disinfect water by killing bacteria and other pathogens. The script discusses the negative impact of these chemicals on soil biology when used for watering plants and the importance of neutralizing them with humic acid.

💡Microorganisms

Microorganisms are microscopic organisms that play a significant role in various natural processes, including decomposition and nutrient cycling. The video script frequently refers to the importance of microorganisms in maintaining soil health and their role in the composting process.

Highlights

Soil naturally contains all necessary nutrients for plant growth, and deficiencies are due to disrupted biology rather than a lack of minerals.

The use of inorganic fertilizers and lime can harm the beneficial soil biology essential for nutrient availability to plants.

Bacteria and fungi, along with their predators, play a crucial role in making nutrients available to plants by converting them into plant-available forms.

A diverse range of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and nematodes, are vital for a healthy soil ecosystem.

Composting is a method to reintroduce beneficial organisms into the soil and restore its health.

The balance of 'green' and 'brown' materials in compost is essential for supporting the right microorganisms for plant growth.

Proper composting techniques, including maintaining high temperatures, are necessary to kill pathogens and pests while preserving beneficial organisms.

Earthworms can be used in composting to process materials and eliminate harmful organisms, but care must be taken not to overload them with too much material.

Compost extracts and teas can be made to distribute beneficial organisms and nutrients throughout the soil more easily than solid compost.

Aerating compost tea is crucial to prevent the growth of anaerobic pathogens and to maintain a healthy environment for beneficial organisms.

Humic acid can be extracted from compost and used to neutralize harmful chlorine and chloramine in water, protecting soil organisms.

The process of making compost and compost tea should be tailored to the specific needs of the soil and plants, with consideration for the balance of bacteria and fungi.

Using a microscope to examine compost can help identify the presence of beneficial organisms and ensure the quality of the compost.

The importance of maintaining aerobic conditions in composting to prevent the development of foul odors and harmful anaerobic conditions.

The role of composting in decomposing toxins and antibiotics, highlighting the power of a diverse microorganism community in breaking down harmful substances.

The need for identifying and addressing specific soil deficiencies rather than over-applying compost or other amendments.

Transcripts

any um introductory geomorphology

textbook agronomy textbook and you can

find the table in the first couple of

pages

that shows you the actual mineral

concentration in any soil on this planet

there is no soil lacking the nutrients

to grow your plants

what we've done is killed the biology

that makes them in the nutrients the

enzymes at the direction of your plant

to pull those nutrients out of your

sands your shields your clothes your

rocks your pebbles

how many of you lack sand silt clay

rocks or pebbles in your soil

so why are you putting on organic

fertilizers why are you putting on

inorganic fertilizers why are you

putting lime out there it's

they're

they're doing everything necessary to

kill the biology in your soil

all of those inorganic fertilizers

anything high in insult anything high in

any of our npk is going to kill the very

biology that you require

to do this work for you

if you kill them then you're going to

have to do their work

and how easy is that how expensive

is it for you to have to be doing their

work so get them back to back into the

soil get them working for you

now you do need to realize

that of course the bacterium fungi are

making the enzymes to pull those

nutrients out of the crystalline

structure

of your rocks your sands your shields

your clays your rocks your pebbles

and so they get to keep those nutrients

but where these these guys are living is

right up here next to that root system

we have a massive number of bacterium

fungi we've got

um somewhere around a thousand

billion bacteria per teaspoon of the

soil around your root systems we've got

a couple miles of fungal hyphae around

the soil around your root system

so of course they're going to attract

into that root system their predators so

the protozoa that eat bacteria the

bacterial feeding nematodes the fungal

feeding nematodes what do fungal feeding

nematodes eat

yep fungi kind of yeah it's pretty

simple you know so

yeah i always love it when

you know somebody says i don't know

okay let me repeat

fungal feeding

and all of you got it so

um

and then of course fungal feeding

microarthropods anytime any one of these

eat one of those

nutrients are going to be released in a

plant available form

because the concentration of nutrients

in your bacteria or your fungi

are massively higher than the

concentration that the predators require

so there's always excess

nitrogen phosphorus sulfur magnesium

calcium potassium sodium zinc iron

cobalt you name it whatever mineral

nutrient you want to talk about

is being released when any one of these

eat any one of those

and it's in the proper balance

for your root system to take up

so those soluble inorganic mineral

nutrients that your plant needs to take

up

are going to be handed to it right at

the surface of the root system

it's kind of like your plant

calls the pizza delivery guy up

so on the phone

you know and so it's going to tell the

pizza delivery guy to please make boron

pizza for me

and so the bacteria go out there they

make the boron pizza the fungi go out

there do their job and then of course

you got to have the delivery guy

that actually brings the nutrients

uh the pizza to the door and those are

predators

and so you know when the nutrient is

delivered the plant says thank you very

much

now what i need next is

so here's the immediate the

instantaneous response system that your

plants require

so do you have adequate biology do you

have enough of the different species of

bacteria do you have enough biomass do

you have enough of the different species

of fungi their biomass do you have the

protozoa the nematodes the

microarthropods

and that's really what today's talk is

about is making is giving you some

information about how to get these

organisms back into your soil

if you're lacking them

so we've got to make good compost

first of all if we really want to start

getting these organisms back into the

soil if you've inherited something

that somebody else has destroyed

okay it happened

we need now to fix it we need to get

this biology back into the soil

so let's make compost

because you can take almost all of your

waste materials on farm from your

kitchen

from your neighborhood and you can

convert those waste products

into something worth its weight in

platinum

put it on your own property put these

organisms back into the soil

if you find spreading a solid compound

solid material hard to do it's can be

you know you and your shovel

doing this all over your property it can

be

time consuming can be fairly expensive

so perhaps an easier way of dealing with

getting this biology back out into the

soil

is to turn it into a liquid form

so in our compost we want to make

certain that we're taking high nitrogen

containing materials which is the party

food to get the temperatures going in

your compost pile

we want green plant materials in your

compost pile because the bacteria need

to eat something

if you don't feed your bacteria they're

not going to be growing

and so if you're not putting greens into

your compost pile

you're missing a whole community of

really important microorganisms we need

the bacteria

but

not too much

not too little here's the goldilocks

principle holds throughout nature

you need enough but not too much

so what's the proper balance

for the plant i want to grow

so i'll try to briefly go through that

too just in case you haven't heard that

message

but we've got to get bacteria in there

we have to get fungi so

what are the fungal foods

that's the woody material

wide sedan ratio wood chips sawdust

stalks of

any of our plant materials

brown leaves that fall from the plant at

the end of the growing season

so wide seed and racial materials those

are fungal fruits

green plant materials seed in ratio is

about 30 carbons for every one nitrogen

party food you always have to have party

food to get a party going right

so the party foods are very narrow c to

n ratio ten to one so manures

and legumes

and seed material the germ of seeds

very narrow c to n ratio

so

we've got to make sure we put all the

foods that we want what if my soil is

lacking fungi

well then i'm going to make a pile that

has more fungal foods in it than

bacterial what if my soil is lacking

bacteria well then we're going to

reverse it we're going to put more

bacterial foods in than fungal so what's

the proper percentage of green and woody

in your pile it depends on

what you're lacking in your soil what's

the biology you need to put back see

where you better be out there looking at

your soil

and um

figuring out what's lacking

so getting organisms back into the soil

we're going to grow our bacteria with

the bacterial foods green stuff seed in

ratio thirty to one fungal foods wider

seed end ratios and i can go into about

a two hour talk about why

bacteria use those

narrow seat in ratio materials of fungi

use the wider but i don't have time this

morning so getting that biology going in

your compost pile you have to have the

party food

because anytime we're taking plant

material from

out there where there's probably

diseases there's probably insect pests

you've got eggs of some nasty critters

on that organic matter

you probably have some pesticides that

have to be broken down you've got maybe

some antibiotics that have to be broken

down especially if you're getting cow

manure or horse manure or chicken manure

and they're being fed

pelletized

chicken chow or cow chow or something

like that that's coming with a boatload

of nasty stuff in there

and so

we've got to make certain that we get

these organisms growing in our compost

and we must get temperatures if we're

doing a thermal compost we have to get

temperatures high enough to kill all the

bad guys high enough long enough

and so there's a whole if you will

almost like a ritual

of here's my pile of compost

hot in the middle

it's the party foods that are getting

the bacterium fungi to grow and it's

their reproduction that causes the

temperature in your compost pile

no growth of the microorganisms

no temperature you're not going to be

killing the pathogens and the bad guys

so the middle of your pile now think

about yourself if you go into a nice

closed room and you have some fun with

reproductive activities

is there a little heat involved

yes

we're raising the temperature

same thing in the compost pile see

bacteria and fungi they're just like

people

so treat them like people really small

people

so

middle of that pile they're having a

grand old time so it's gotta be high

enough temperature long enough so take

the compost online course go through all

of this that means you're gonna then at

the end of that time and is that one day

two days three days

so you're gonna turn it you're gonna

turn it so that inside material is to

end up on top

what was on the sides is now in the

middle

and now you got to wait and let the

organisms grow and cook all the bad guys

luckily thank god and i think there was

probably a plan there that uh the

pathogens are very sensitive to the

temperature high enough temperature long

enough kills the bad guys it doesn't

kill the good guys i love it when

somebody says well now that your compost

has reached 175 degrees your compost

pile is sterile

oh really

how is this the temperature stays at 175

how can you keep the temperature up

there if the bacteria and fungi aren't

growing

yeah so it's not sterile is it

and it should be all of the beneficial

good guys that like high temperature and

they will grow at that temperature

so

now when it's been hot enough long

enough you're going to turn it again

so what started out up at the top gets

into the middle and now you know what

was in the middle to begin with what was

in the sides to begin with all of that

pile after you leave it heat long enough

we've dealt with all of the weed seeds

they're all killed weed seeds cannot

temp

tolerate those high temperatures you've

killed the human pathogens the plant

pathogens the root feeding nematodes you

fed you've killed all the parasites all

these scared worms

so now you've got something that's only

growing beneficial organisms

it cannot go anaerobic any step along

the way or you're losing some of your

really good organisms and your growing

pathogens and pests and problems

so that whole process of composting worm

composting passage through an

earthworm's digestive system

wipes out the bad guys

so

the problem with an earthworm is you

can't feed them too fast you know i like

the experiments that they've done at

university where they basically take

worms and immobilize them and start

stuffing food down their mouths

and

you know if we stuff food into your

mouth every five seconds and forced it

through

if there were pathogens in the stuff we

were putting into your mouth and forcing

through with the pathogens that come out

the other end

well duh

because if you don't have time to

process it

well and what happens to the worms they

die

so what is it about that experiment that

has anything to do with reality

so let the worm

do its own business let it eat what it

needs to eat you just have to get enough

worms in a worm bin so passage through

the earthworms digestive system

takes care of the human pathogens the

plant pathogens the root feeding

nematodes

worms however can't take care of weed

seed

so if you've got weed seed in your

material if you've got those old tomato

seeds you know the broccoli seeds

whatever you know cucumber seeds you're

going to have to run through a thermal

process

so if you only have small amounts of

those stick in your microwave for about

a minute zap 11 daylights out of them

and then that can go right into your

worm bin as well if you got lots and

lots of weed seeds you're going to have

to do a thermal process

so making the compost

bad guys are the root feeding nematodes

the human pathogens like salmonella

shigella pasteuri listeria e coli bad

guys e coli zero one five seven h

um

with a fungi the fungal diseases that

require reduced oxygen conditions to

grow well they all do so things like

fusarium

pithium phytophthora rhizoctonia

i can name a couple thousand others

boring

so we've got to get rid of all of the

problem organisms so if we keep things

aerobic that doesn't allow any of the

problems to grow and if we run it

through a thermal compost we kill them

with heat

if we run them through an earthworm we

kill them because the earthworm crushes

them to death

so making a compost that has the proper

biology but as i said it's kind of

expensive to spread a solid material

over a large area if you've got a 10

foot by 10 foot garden not difficult

but

let's say you have a 500 acre field

okay now is there an easier way to get

this biology spread out

and absolutely yes there is

let's take that compost with all these

wonderful organisms in it

and use water to extract those organisms

away from those solid surfaces

so those organisms are now in the water

if you've got really good populations of

these organisms in your compost and

you're extracting and then think about

the fact that with our compost

we have bacteria glued to the surfaces

of those organic matter so there's a big

massive glue layer around them when that

one bacterium reproduces bigger glue

layer now each one of those

reproduces and an even bigger glue layer

and yep they're going to start gluing

particles together

how you're going to get those bacteria

ripped off those surfaces

pull apart those aggregates that they've

been building

your water has to have some fair

pressure in order to do that we can't uh

you know here's our bucket of water and

just be

stirring it lightly

not gonna rip anything off anything so

that's not gonna do it we're gonna have

to apply some force

so what we do is get a good air pump

send the

tubing to the bottom of your

bucket

and let those bubbles coming out of the

bottom

let them really be moving rapidly

through that water and make sure you're

hanging your compost right in though

that stream of bubbles coming up so as

the water is being impelled by the

movement by the bubbles coming up

water is now going to move and we've got

to get that going fast enough

so that that water will rip the

organisms off the surfaces of the

compost

so we're going to pull them we're going

to break those glue layers and get the

bacteria into the water we're going to

break some of the strands of the fungi

pull them apart

and now we've got fungal strands

wandering around the protozoa

the good guy nematodes we want to pull

that out of the compost away from those

surfaces and into the water

and that is something that we would call

a compost extract

where we're just extracting the

organisms from the surface of the

compost

and if you're making a compost extract

and it's got good enough biology in it

go apply that

as long as you have lots of really good

compost

why go the next step

of making a compost tea

so a compost tea

starts exactly the same as a compost

extract we've got to get that water

moving

and rip the organisms off the surface of

the compost and into the water

but now we're going to add foods

to that material

to grow those bacteria and fungi that

are in the solution

so does your soil need more fungi

then we're going to put fungal foods

into our compost tea

but if my soil needs more bacteria

then i'm going to put bacterial foods

into that compost tea so you need to

know

what you need

before you can really decide what the

recipe is going to be for your compost

tea there is not one recipe one size

does not fit all

we need to understand what you need

in your plant

for your plant

so i didn't bring along the graphics for

this because i didn't think i was going

to actually go here

how could that happen

um

so when do you add the fungus or the

fungal food

you would add the foods

when you start the aeration

so typically when we're putting together

a compost tea

you're going to put the water and i'll

go through this again in a little bit

you're going to put the water in in your

container

you're going to add some materials to

get rid of chlorine

or chloramine

we don't want any toxic compounds in the

water because for example why do we put

chlorine in water

yeah to prevent organisms from growing

and guess what it works

so you got to do something to get rid of

the chlorine

in almost every large city on the planet

even small cities and towns they're not

putting just chlorine into the water

they're putting chloramine

chloramine is not a gas chlorine's a gas

and if you bubble for a little while

you'll blow the chlorine off but

chloramine is not a gas

and it is more deadly

than the chlorine

but we're having to go to the

chloroamine because it's it's critically

important not to have a biofilm forming

on the pipes between you and the water

treatment plant

because what if biofilm forms inside

your water pipes

guess what nasty diseases are now

growing in your water pipes

so we are putting

more and more toxic materials into city

water

if you drink city water what happens to

the organisms in your digestive system

okay that's a whole other talk

uh

but

yeah do we need to be making certain

we're removing that chlorine and the

chloramine from the water before we

drink it

oh i could go off for a while but on to

this topic so water in your tank let's

make sure that you add something

so that you remove all of those the

chlorine the chloramine the sulfur

compounds anything that might be killing

your organisms in that so what's the

something that you would add

humic acid

humic acid is the best choice in my

opinion

because as the humic acid is

complexed by the chlorine the chloramine

the sulfates whatever ionic compound is

present in that water

it decolorizes

your humic acid

and so you can tell

when you have not yet

put in enough humic acid

to neutralize all those toxic materials

and generally if you put one drop of

humic acid

into a gallon of water that's adequate

to complex

all of the problem compounds that might

be present in your water

but you ought to be looking for the

color change you need just a tinge of

brown is what we want to see because

then we've got excess humic acid

to take care of all of the

problem compounds that might be in that

water

you can add citric acid you can add any

organic acid will do the same thing but

they're not colored

so how do you know when you put enough

citric acid in

you don't

so see why i choose humic acid because i

do a lot better you know with the

dummies approach to doing anything

a simple easy way to tell that you've

put enough in

you cannot call up your water treatment

plant and say

how much chloramine have you been

putting into the water today

because the first question they're going

to ask you back if they're intelligent

people and they know what they're doing

they're going to ask you where do you

live on the pipeline

how many of you know where you live in

relation to the water treatment plant

because i have to put enough chlorine

and chloramine into the water at the

water treatment plant so that there's an

adequate concentration of chlorine and

chloramine in that water all the way to

the end of the pipe

how many of you live at the end of the

pipe

yeah so you're going to have to be using

the humic acid and looking for that

color change

so when we're using water here well

think about when you're

putting water in your watering can

and um

[Music]

going out and watering your flowers have

you dealt with the chlorine and the

chloramine in that water

and if you're applying that chlorine and

chlorimated water

to the soil what are you doing to the

organisms in your soil

you're killing some of them

so now you better put some compost back

in there to deal with the fact that some

of your organisms got killed but do you

want to keep doing that

always have to be put more combat posts

back on putting more compost tea back

out there putting more compost extract

to resuscitate the organisms we killed

with the

chlorinated water

let's start dealing with the chlorine

before it goes on your soil

let's make sure that we're putting our

drops of humic acid where are you going

to get humic acid from

well make compost

and extract that nice dark deep rich

brown color

from your compost because that's the

humic acid it is

the humic acid causes that rich dark

brown color in your compost

so

how are you going to do that how are you

going to get the combo the humic acid

out of your compost

take some cheesecloth

and maybe put that cheesecloth in a

colander so you have a nice support

surface

and you put about a cup of your good

rich finished compost needs to smell

really good

needs to have good structure that you

can see

and now you're going to take about 12

cups of water

and you gently passively

put you know put that water on the

surface and just let it passively move

through that cup of compost

catch the water coming out of the bottom

and you can see that nice rich dark

brown color that's humic acid

make your own humic acid to neutralize

the toxic chemicals that are in your

drinking water

can you drink humic acid absolutely not

a problem because when we're passively

moving water through our compost you

don't get any of the organisms out

because remember the organisms are glued

they are bound

so as you run that water through all

you're getting are the soluble

nutrients humic acid included

coming out of your compost and now

you've made your own neutralizer and it

doesn't cost you fifty dollars a gallon

which is what humic acid costs when you

go to the grocery store when you go to a

nursery

so just typically what a good food web

will do for you so right there decompose

toxins

so yes all of the antibiotics easily

dealt with within 24 hours

the diversity of microorganisms we would

have in a typically compost aerobic

compost um going to get rid of those

antibiotics

most pesticides those two that i

mentioned the exceptions yeah you're

going to have to actually probably find

an inoculum of those bacteria

that and fungi that will decompose them

so want to go on because let's get into

the actual topic of the day

started on this already

aerated compost tea

and we want it

aerated

because

we don't want to be growing any

pathogens in here so

aerated that isn't that really kind of

redundant though

because compost by definition is aerobic

if you go back and you read sir albert

howard's

uh books

from when he came from back from india

with the indore method of composting he

was adamant

about this has to remain aerobic

if you get too much water

in your compost

and that compost goes waterlogged oxygen

cannot move through water at any speed

at all

and you're going to go anaerobic and

that's absolutely

the worst thing so

really do we have to talk about aerated

compost tea isn't that redundant

because by definition compost is aerobic

but we're trying to emphasize

make certain that you've got that

concept that it has to be aerobic it

doesn't have any bad smells

it doesn't have any vomit smell it

doesn't have any decaying flesh smell it

doesn't have any sour milk no vinegar no

ammonia no um

rotten egg smell

start mixing all of those compounds

together and what do you call those

smells

yeah stink

if it smells bad it is bad don't use it

so a little bit of redundancy just to

help you remember how important this is

so it's going to be aerobic so the

compost the organisms in the compost

have to be there so let's get our

microscope and take a look at your

compost learn how to use your own

microscope so identify them know that

you've got good compost and you have the

organisms you need to replenish your

soil well look at your soil so you know

what's not in your soil so you put back

the right thing

not just more of something you already

have too much of