2. Biofertilizers

Biofertilizers are liquid fertilizers brewed in an anaerobic (airless) environment and sprayed on soil as food for microorganisms. To make a biofertilizer, you need a container with a sealable top and a sealable air tube.

Although they are liquid-like chemical fertilizers, these biofertilizers feed the soil naturally, achieving amazing results without the disadvantages of an NPK, for example.

Recipe For A Great Biofertilizer Brew (200 Liters)

Ingredients:

• 10 kgs of manure or rumen (contents of the first or second stomach of a cow)
• 10 liters of molasses
• 1 liter of fresh milk
• 5 liters of kelp
• 1 kg of brewer’s yeast
• 1 kg of powdered double-burnt bone

These ingredients can usually be found in your local agricultural supply stores or gardening centers. If you can’t find one or more of these items you can substitute them or leave them out altogether (except the yeast), as any biofertilizer is better than none.

All material is put into the barrel, mixed well, and sealed, with an air pipe coming out of the top. This air pipe requires an airlock to allow the expanding gasses in the barrel to escape, but not to allow oxygen into the brewer. An airlock can be made easily by placing the tube deep into a bucket of water (make sure it doesn’t pop out) or by using simple tube airlocks like below:

 Recipe For A Great Compost Tea Brew (1,000 Liters)

This liquid fertilizer is designed to supercharge the soil with an enormous amount of good soil microorganisms. These organisms go into a feeding frenzy, breaking down organic matter, releasing nutrients, and even killing pests and diseases by overwhelming them in population, eating all the free nutrients, and starving them out.

Fresh batches must be made every time, as it doesn’t store for more than 8 hours. Batches can be made of any size. Simply divide by 10 or 20 for 100- or 50-liter batches.

Ingredients:

• 6 liters fresh compost (see composting instructions above)
• 4 liters molasses
• 2 liters kelp
• 2 liters fish hydrolysate
• 2 liters humic acid or worm farm juice
• 1 kg calcium nitrate

Put all ingredients in a permeable bag and hang in a tank. Fill the tank with water and super-aerate with an air pump for 24 hours. The pump should be able to circulate an equal volume of air as your tank size in one minute. So my 45-gallon tank would need to pump 45 gallons of air 60 times per hour, which equals 2,700 gallons per hour (GPH), meaning that’s the capacity pump you need. If you are only making 20 gallons of tea per batch, you would use a 1,200 GPH pump (20 x 60 = 1,200).

Ensure you use bubblers or air-stones to diffuse as much oxygen into the water as possible.

A little tea goes a long way, so it’s probably wise to start with a small batch and work your way up.

When brewed (24 hours later) dilute the teat 1:1 with non-chlorinated water and apply to soil with a low-pressure pump (non-high-pressure backpack sprayer or watering can) within 6 to 8 hours (the microorganisms will starve of oxygen after this time, rendering the tea useless).

This is a great soil fertility booster. Apply every month to start, but you can reduce the frequency as your soil improves.