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Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

I have been playing around with a range of ingredients in making a compost tea for my pumpkin plants. It's a little bit hit and miss, as I have no way of knowing if my recipe is optimal. I'm testing my brew on a various household plants including some test pumpkin plant. My most recent recipe is:

Liquid humic acid 1 teaspoon
Liquid fulvic acid 1 teaspoon
Worm castings 1 cup
Fish emulsion 1 tablespoon
Liquid seaweed 1 tablespoon
Rock phosphate 1 tablespoon
Bone Meal 1 tablespoon

I brew for 24 hours and then apply. I'm thinking that my recipe minus the rock phosphate and bone meal would be good for a pumpkins first month. The rock phosphate and bone meal really jumps the P level, which I understand is great for flowering. Do you think I should run with the full recipe during the pumpkin growing phase? Any other comments

4/24/2012 3:15:47 PM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

Ooops....forgot to include 1/2 cup of maple bud syrup.

4/24/2012 3:25:11 PM

Baker City Oregon

I like your recipe. I was just going to brew a batch and am just kind of experimenting also. I have a whole greenhouse full of garden veggie seedlings I think I will experiment on. I think I will try all you are trying except I will use really nice finished compost instead of worm castings and instead of the syrup I will use freeze dried molasses. I say run with it.Don't think it can hurt!?!? Might use blood meal if I don't have bone meal. Maybe both.

4/24/2012 3:53:29 PM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

I made a list of the NPK for each item, trying to make some sense of it all. My lingering question is whether flowering and growing the actual pumpkin are one in the same for nutrient requirements.

4/24/2012 7:38:58 PM

Baker City Oregon

So maybe cut back on the N and add the P when you set fruit. Just modify the recipe to fit the time of the season. Are you using it as a foliar or a drench? You might be able to get away with keeping some of the N if you are using it as a foliar and add the P when the time is right. It would be nice if you had a "guinea pumpkin" to test it out on. I'm not really sure. I'm new at this tea thing myself. I think maybe I'll try it on some of my regular pumpkins this year. Anyone else?

4/24/2012 8:38:22 PM

Seattle, WA

From my own experience, I would use the humic and fulvic as a separate application from the tea itself. I haven't found it to help increase microbes in aerated compost tea, though it has other plant benefits (primarily chelation).

I would also swap the fish emulsion for fish hydrolysate. It's processed differently and fungi love fish hydrolysate, but don't really like the fish emulsion.

I would use the rock phosphate and bone meal in a separate application, along with the seaweed and humate.

You can make a good tea (get good levels of diversity and all proper sets of organisms) using worm castings (I'd probably use 2 cups in 5 gals.) and unsulfured molasses.

Tim Wilson of Microbe Organics (www.microbeorganics.com) recommends these ratios based on his testing:

2.38% by volume compost or vermicompost (EWC) per gallon = .38 cups or around half a cup max or about 2 cups in 5 gallons max.

0.5 to 0.75% molasses by volume per gallon = 1.28 to 1.92 tablespoons per gallon. 0.75% is the maximum I use. It is a good bacterial and fungal food.

0.063% fish hydrolysate by volume per gallon = 0.16 tablespoon = 0.479 teaspoons or half a teaspoon

0.25% (max) kelpmeal by volume per gallon = 0.64 tablespoon or half a tablespoon

Hope that helps!

4/24/2012 9:41:32 PM

Baker City Oregon

See...I knew there was someone out there that knew something about this. Thanks Tad12. That's really good to know!

4/25/2012 1:53:08 AM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

Thanks Tad. Can you suggest what tea ingredients you would apply during the different life cycles of giant pumpkins? I'm assuming heavy N during plant growth and heavy K & P during flowering. Wondering what the mix should be once the pumpkin is on the vine.

4/25/2012 7:06:26 AM

Seattle, WA

I think it really depends on what kind of tea we're talking about.

For ACT or aerated compost tea, the purpose is to get as much beneficial aerobic microbes in good diversity and concentration (bacteria, archea, fungal hyphae, flagellates, amoeba, etc...)

Yes, plants consume more N in veg and more P & K in flower and you can make adjustments to your "nutrient" teas or fertilizing regimen, separate from the ACT.

Your ACT recipe can stay the same. The microbes will immobilize the nutrients in the soil and also cycle them for the plant.

Personally, I like to get all the nutrients/minerals in the soil that I can prior to ever planting. Most of my experience has been with containers and tomato plants though, so there may be some particulars associated with nutrients and pumpkins that will vary.

With the kelp and humic, the best practices for application would be low dose and high frequency. I like to use them with every watering in small amounts if I'm not watering with ACT.

Hope that helps,
Tad

4/25/2012 1:15:16 PM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

Thanks Tad that is very helpful. I've sprayed my patch with a molasses based solution to get the bacteria kick started. Also applied soil soup to the large holes I have dug where the pumpkins will be planted. I've got hundreds of pounds of worm castings and thousands of pounds of horse manure so I'll be making large batches of soil soup to apply to the whole patch real soon.

4/25/2012 4:23:04 PM

Seattle, WA

Wow, hundreds of pounds of worm castings! I'm jealous! That stuff is liquid gold. Some university studies have shown that 20% worm castings in your soil mix is ideal for container plants. I use a soil mix that is 15-20% worm castings, 30%% pumice, and 50% peat moss.

4/25/2012 7:28:50 PM

Owensboro, Ky.

pburdon, why maple syrup in yer tea mix when you have mollasses? Peace, Wayne

4/25/2012 9:15:30 PM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

I have a 30 acre farm with a considerable number of sugar maple trees that I tap each spring. In late spring the trees produce what is called bud sap. When boiled down it is dark brown and has a very strong maple taste and smell. It is suggested that the bud syrup may have plant growth hormones in it that are advantageous to growing giant pumpkins. The world record giant pumpkin received a lot of bud sap throughout it's growing period. At worst bud sap has the sugars that bacteria love to feed on.

I also have a mountain of very rich peat moss that was excavated when a pond was dug a number of years ago. The peat moss has a high level of minerals within it due to being formed by a mineral spring aquifer. I've grown other plants with the peat moss and they were incredibly large. This is my first year growing giant vegetables with the peat moss.

I stumbled upon a fellow who raises worms for shipment to Europe. To him the worm castings are something he has had to have carted away each year. It didn't take much negotiating to purchase the worm castings. My son is planning on selling the worm castings locally. I'm putting many bags of worm castings into my pumpkin patch.

4/26/2012 7:11:17 AM

Seattle, WA

You can sell the castings for a lot of money. I bought some bagged castings the other day and it was $30 wholesale! (Mega Worm)

Quality castings are probably the best thing you can add to your garden, they're amazing!

Just be careful if you're bagging them because you're limiting the amount of oxygen by putting it in a bag. I ship using sand bags because they're a woven plastic (so they don't break down like burlap but still breathable). You should be able to find them locally pretty cheap (under .50 cents/bag).

Good luck!

4/27/2012 7:50:21 PM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

I sold a bunch of 80lb bags to the GVGO guys at the seminar, at $25 a bag.

4/28/2012 7:38:40 AM

Seattle, WA

That's an incredible deal. I wish you were in my area...

4/29/2012 5:12:29 PM

Owensboro, Ky.

pburdon, I would suggest to you, that you arrive at the KPM (KGPG) growers seminar next spring, w/ a truck load!!!! LOL @ $25 or a lil less!!! LOL Peace, Wayne

4/30/2012 12:01:44 AM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

I here you all. I'm getting about $75 a bag from people responding to an ad my son placed. Everyone who comes by quizzes me on the secrets of growing giant vegetables. In fact, I've started a pumpkin plant for one lady who is very keen.

4/30/2012 6:12:32 AM

Erin, Ontario Canada

pburdon (Team Lunatic)

Just wondering how big of a batch are you making with these ingredients?

Liquid humic acid 1 teaspoon
Liquid fulvic acid 1 teaspoon
Worm castings 1 cup
Fish emulsion 1 tablespoon
Liquid seaweed 1 tablespoon
Rock phosphate 1 tablespoon
Bone Meal 1 tablespoon

5/13/2012 2:14:04 PM

Erin, Ontario Canada

And the 1/2 cup of maple bud syrup?

5/13/2012 2:20:52 PM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

I've changed my recipe a number of times, after picking up more online tips and information. I was brewing in a 5 gallon bucket but now am brewing in a 45 gallon drum. I decided to add the fulvic and humic acid just prior to applying the compost tea. I've also cut out the bone meal and rock phosphate as my soil is well balanced and I'm mostly needing a nitrogen boost. I've also begun adding fresh horse manure, but without a microscope all I really know is that it is helping everything I apply it to, grow really well.

I'm also applying the compost tea to my bare patch with the thought that I'm increasing the microbial activity for later benefit.

5/14/2012 7:03:54 AM

Erin, Ontario Canada

Okay thanks pburdon for the info.

I will give the seaweed, fish hydrolysate, worm castings, fulvic acid and maple bud syrup a try. Thanks again

5/14/2012 12:51:46 PM

Goodwood, Ontario, Canada

No problem Darren. Today's batch is destined for my wife's flower garden and some lawn areas where the grass is a little sparse. I'm also putting it on a mound of earth containing peat moss, fresh soil and worm castings that I am going to use for burying my vines.

5/15/2012 7:13:42 AM

Erin, Ontario Canada

PBurdon I just got a hold of some dark amber maple syrup. The fellow I bought it from didn't have and bud syrup. So I told him I was using it for pumpkins and he said he had a 5 gallon pail of the amber with a tiny amount of mold on the top. He said it was still Good and not spoiled? Smells/ taste fine still! I couldn't pass up 5 gallons for $20 bucks! I see u have sugar maples, what do you think pburdon will the amber maple syrup still work? Thanks Darren

5/23/2012 10:06:53 PM

Ontario

Hey Darren, you can put that syrup in smaller containers ,than freeze it. The syrup won't freeze solid,and will not mold, that way you can take out what you need.Hope that helps,good luck Terry

5/23/2012 11:11:51 PM

Erin, Ontario Canada

Thanks Terry I'll do that. I don't think I'll be using more then half this year.

5/24/2012 7:15:48 AM