TEAS AND BREWS (AATC)
ACTIVELY AERATED COMPOST TEA
Making compost and spreading it about the farm, is time consuming so why not take all that time and energy, mix in a bit of living soil science and get the same result in a fraction of the time.
Millions of microbes live in just a few handfuls of good compost so by feeding those existing microbes and giving them the right environment to multiply, in just a period of 24-36 hours the microbial population has grown in millions and is ready to apply to the soil.
If it's getting a bit warm out and the soil requires a drenching? an application of "AACT" is applied shortly after to reactivate our living soil.
"Some plants prefer soils dominated by Fungi others prefer soils dominated by Bacteria"
Following this rule we make three different types of "AACT's"
Fungal Dominant
The Fungal dominant brew can take up to 36 hours to be fully fungal dominant and is not the easiest out of the three to make but with a bit of patience and compost preparation the results can be seen as soon as our sample slide comes into focus.
To create a Fungal feeding brew we increase the amount of Kelp, Fish Hydrasiliate and lower the amount of Molasses for example;
60% Kelp/Fish Hydrolysate
40% unsulphured Molasses
We also prepare the tea bag a couple of weeks beforehand by taking some compost, (vermicompost is the best in my opinion) spread it out in a tray on a base of damp cardboard.
We dust the top with Kelp, oatmeal and some crushed leaf matter, gently mix through and lightly wet up with a spray of Fish Hydrasiliate. It gets covered with damp cardboard and left somewhere warm and dark to rest.
This grows and promotes fungal activity ready for brewing.
Balanced
A balanced AACT is just what it says on the tin.
This brew is usually ready within 24 hours and requires equal parts Molasses to Fish Hydrasiliate.
Bacteria Dominant
A Bacterial dominant AACT requires between 24 and 30 hours of brewing and is achieved by increasing the amount of molasses added to the brew and a bacterial rich compost teabag mix.
Air is bubbled through the brew and provides the perfect aerobic environment for microbial life to multiply.
When we have a really active, alive compost teaming with life, we take enough to stuff in a 400x filter bag (teabag).
Fish Hydrasiliate and Molasses Feed the Microbes
General Rules and Tools
Container / Tank ( we use buckets, a bath, big tubs and 1000 ltr tanks they all work lovely)
Air pump and something to distribute it evenly through the tank. We have tried air stones but find they block up easily.
But a bit of soft pipe/airline connected to the air pump, blocked at the end with small holes drilled in one side of the pipe and weighted down is fine.
A fish tank heater will stabilise the temp
400 micron filter bag (this allows enough space for microbes to pass through)
Basic microscope ( not essential but worth it)
A few rules
Brewed too long and microbes eat each other and you end up with a tank full of ciliates
Brewed to quick you have a tank of molasses and fish hydrolysate
If you are not happy with your brew just add it to your resting compost heap it wont go to waste.
The bath is filled and left to stand for a couple of days with a heater set to around 20C. An air pump is attached to a ring of pipe with holes in and the teabag hung in as close to the air bubbles as possible. the tea is brewed for between 24-36 hours and a quick check under the microscope to check for life and then its shared across our grow space.
