Hydroponics Using Compost Tea (experiment)

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This video shows a good way to make an inexpensive quality hydroponics container and set up for those of you that would like to give it a try :)... We used high quality compost tea from our grow boxes for its nutrients. The experiment worked fine for the first few weeks, but the growth was far less than when done in our good aerated soil... As the nutrients started to get used up,I did not have the time to replenish them; and the plants lost their green look and I made this video. I pulled the plants out and planted them back in our grow box in the outside greenhouse and all of the plants turned deep green within a week and began to grow and produce fast. I have been eating greens from them since :). I did a first video on how I set up the hydroponics and I have taken photos and when I find the time. I will do my bast to splice them together and make this experiment more detailed and comprehensive. I was going to make this hydroponics work really well using a water drain and recovery system with adding all the additives such as fish fertilizers and ph levels and mineral levels and I simply did not find the time, with all I have going on. We love our very low maintenance grow boxes with our home made compost soil and all plants love it too ... the soil is made of peat moss and composts (no dirt/clay at all) and it is so fluffy and holds moisture like a sponge and allows oxygenation of all roots and the living active soil ... all plants we have ever put in it simply grow like crazy and the plants are so healthy that they do not get pests. Simply plant and pick. The bottom line is that good aerated compost soil is highly productive!! I think it is important to add the following: Hydroponics (use of fish water) has some very important benefits to gardening... It must be noted that Aquaponics systems when they are designed as close to perfect will be the closest thing to mimicking the ultimate earth-like growing conditions... I do not use the term dirt, because dirt (what is in your back yard ground), is not near as effective as a composted growing medium, with NO back yard dirt at all in them... Plants have evolved in a dirt/ compost medium system naturally for millions of years and to grow things in water without composted mediums is difficult to get to work at the perfect compost medium levels... but it can be done with lots of added ingredients and a lot of work maintaining the perfect temp levels as well as mineral levels... Every person will choose their own type of system and what they are willing to spend the time on... When I get the time to do It, my plans are to use the Aquaponics type of system (raising fish in a large area of an, OUTSIDE THE HOME, greenhouse that will be partially in the ground to keep the water stabilized in summer and winter, so the fish remain healthy without heating or cooling the water... the large water body will stabilize the outside greenhouse temperatures and the incredible fish water will be used to water my greenhouse garden that has no dirt in it, but only organic composed mediums.... The growing medium we use is totally organic composted manures (cow, chicken, turkey, sheep, goat, deer, ... as many different as possible, but at least 3 different and with peat moss) and the plants grow like they are on steroids and it is so aerated due to all the organic stuff and it is what people are trying to mimic using just fish water without growing medium... 4. If you choose to use the aquaponics system, I would strongly suggest that you do not buy plans from people trying to make money for their designs and for their minerals/chemicals that they want you to add to mimic a good growing medium... just look it up on YouTube and do it for free and copy the ideas of people that have done it for years and are having the most success.... Note...Some people have commented about their use of worms and castings, for nutrients, with good results, and the use of the worms as food for the fish... which could benefit all of us, as well :) THE NUMBER ONE THING THAT I HOPE TO PORTRAY, IS THAT IF ANYONE THINKS THAT ANY CERTAIN WAY OF GARDENING IS SOMETHING THAT WILL GET YOU TO GROW YOUR OWN FOOD, THAT IS FANTASTIC!!! NUMBER ONE THING IS... DO IT... IT WILL IMPROVE YOUR LIFE DRAMATICALLY.... IF YOU CAN ONLY AFFORD TO PRICE MATCH AT THE STORE AND YOU KNOW IT IS GROWN WITH PESTICIDES AND MAN MADE CHEMICALS, OR WHAT EVER... BUY THEM AND EAT THEM AND DO WHAT YOU CAN TO WASH ETC AS YOU BELIEVE.... WE DO WHAT WE CAN BUT EATING 40 PERCENT OF YOUR FOOD IS AND HAS BEEN PROVEN TO GET RID OF ALL SORTS OF DISEASES AND PREVENTS ... IT WILL MAKE YOUR QUALITY OF LIFE SOOOOOOOO MUCH BETTER (I STRUGGLE TO DO IT THE BEST THAT I CAN, BUT MY FAMILY BENEFITS SOOOO MUCH FROM ANYTHING WE CAN DO; AND WE HAVE WALKED THE PATH OF NOT DOING IT WELL AND DOING IT BETTER AND HEALTH IS SOOOO WORTH IT :) GOD BLESS YOU IN YOUR GOOD EFFORTS TO LIVE HEALTHY!!!

Comments

I created this tea 40 years ago the only issue I see your having is your manures are overpowering the plant you need to reduce it by 75 percent if you don't your creating a nutrient lock out and then your plants will have a end result you exsperianced before using your tea you need iron fe and cal-mag use ro water and your done see my video on nutrient tea it works there is no maintenance at all if you do it right see my video http://www.ebay.com/itm/282284781019?ssPageName=STRK:MESOX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1561.l2649

Its now time for all you guys to trial out the latest LED grow light tubes from 3 feet to 12 feet and interconecting up to 3 in a line, uses 70% less electricity than halogens

Using compost in hydroponic is an oxymoron. By definition hydroponics uses inorganic chemicals to raise plants.

New sub liked the video. Everyone seems to have there own way of doing things :) Thanks for sharing your way :) Have you ever considered doing a hybrid system with soil/compost tea or soil/hydro solutions? Seem like there are some people getting great results that way. Just wondering :) Know this is an older video I will have to check to see if you stuck with this or if you tried it again :)

add a little bit of urine to that every week

it just needs chelated iron and probably magnesium. nothing too chemically.

Can you boil the compost tea or does that take away the whole point of comost tea? If you dont boil can it bring eggs/larva into you soil?

By making compost tea you are growing a culture of the microbes and beneficial bacteria that is in the compost. I see you have an air stone are you adding any unsulfured molasses or other type simple sugar to your tea to feed the culture? That may account for the plants starting off green then loosing color as the tea culture die off. Also it might help to add some compost ever once in awhile ( make a tea bag of fresh compost about once a week or so ) . I have use worm tea in my garden with great results. I see this is an older post I am just sharing some of my thoughts . Thanks

what would the plants look like if you added micro mineral rocks into the compost tea? would you get the same result if you started with health plants?

Be careful of those chemicals! I know this guy who used this chemical with his compost tea called dihydrogen monoxide and that stuff can kill!

Have you considered a biofilter? Could be the lack of bacteriological breakdown re: nitrogen cycle. Was your reservoir aerated? Perhaps a second vessel as a biofilter to promote amine/nitrite oxidation as is common practice with aquaponics.

I read in one of your earlier comment responses that you did not add additional tea to the tea-water hydroponic solution. I'd wager that's where the problem is occurring. You mention the kale starting off green and fading with time; I'd guess that's due to lack of nutrients that would otherwise be found in soil/compost tea. Need to buff up the nutrients!

As is the case with all hydroponics, water must be monitored and maintained, as that is the one and only source of nutrient. pH and nitrate levels at the very least should be checked and held within tolerance. I'm planning to give this a try, with a few tweeks, of course, sometime in the next couple months. I'll sub to your channel and try to remember to give an update.

Cheers!

and it looks like you have root rot from a bad bacteria!!!! :(

you can get organic Hydroponics Solutions or just go aquaponic besides the so called chemical way is the same thing you get from organic only you have to wait for the organic to turn into the so called chemicals ether way you get noxygen phosphate and potassium!!!!!! just one way looks more appealing to marketing people like to thank they are not eating something that is chemically induced whining they do anyway it's chemistry organic or not all life bases around it !!!!!! But thanks for the video I like to hear and learn from everyone and happy gardening!!!!

Great video... Thanks for posting... Now I want waste my time with compost tea...Maybe you could start pissing in it to give it some nitrogen...

Just a suggestion because it makes me shake my head every time I see people drilling holes in the lids of their containers/buckets/bins etc...you can go buy yourself a cheap $12 sheet of 3/4"x 4'x8' foam insulation sheathing, cut it to the size you need for a lid (make sure it overlaps a bit to keep out light). You can make many of these out of one piece and you're not destroying a perfectly good lid that you can't replace. Plus if you need different sized holes for net pots, ie 2", 3" 4", 5", 6" you'll have plenty of foam insulation to make different configurations. http://www.homedepot.com/p/R-Tech-3-4-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-R-2-89-Foam-Insulating-Sheathing-310873/202530470

Thanks for this. This is a great video for one who wants to grow hydroponically organically, with no chemicals. I also thought of compost tea as a natural solution...I see the lack of nutrients in your plants & you said they started out green..did you cycle out the compost tea or is that the same batch which you started with. Or did you frequently cycle out with fresh compost tea. Also any new insight on this experiment?

At least an air stone and checking and regulating the ph would help. Great foliar Kelp/humic acid 5:2, 1/8tsp/liter + a tiny pinch of yucca. They should turn lush and grow great. Dont forget a good bright light source is essintial too. I think if your just trying to take somthing and put it in box with tea with out circulating it or oxygenating it wouldn't be the greatest. A pump and a top feed drip emitter on each basket would make an amazing and efficient organic style grow box.

there is no way enough air going through that tank hence why its failed and roots have gone brown
a rich compost tea with humus wormcastings bio char and trace sea minerals would work just fine
just add sugars for flowering

compost tea is more work for less results. It may be good for initial treatment with soils, but in hydro its a waste of time. I would spend my time and money on bat guano or something with a NPK amount.

Once you get the bit into the lid, you can switch the drill direction to reverse. This will cut smoother by heating up and there is less to clean up/chance to crack the plastic. :D