ACT - Aerated Compost Tea

Thank you

 

Replacement for Molasses:

I'm continually getting this question. What can I use as a replacement for molasses?

Many people assume that molasses is just sugar and propose using various forms of sugar in its stead. This may actually work to some extent, however black strap molasses is a complex carbohydrate bearing lots of minerals and nutrients plus it is a powerful antioxidant. [some nutrient companies will happily sell you a bottle of carbo this or carbo that when it is actually just molasses, in some cases watered down]

I'm not saying there are not other foodstocks which can be used to feed bacteria/archaea and fungi. Heck, you can grow out some bacteria with potato water or rice water.

What I am saying is that black strap molasses works for the simple process of multiplying bacteria/archaea & fungi so why fret about using something else? If you are somewhere that you cannot get any, then by all means try something different or if you have a scope, go ahead and experiment.

I guess if I was stuck without molasses, I'd try wheat bran.

 

Mesh Bag or Free Suspension;

This is another decision when making ACT or designing an ACT maker. Do I throw the [vermi]compost into the water and let it float around or do I put it in a mesh extractor bag of some kind?

There are pros for both. Generally one gets a higher density of microorganisms if you just dump all your ingredients into the aerated, agitated water. I have observed over and over microscopically that this is the case. If you are using this method with an ACT design which circulates the water through a pipe like an airlift be aware that big chunks will plug up the pipe. Use fine [vermi]compost for this.

ACT made this way is most appropriate for applying to your soil but what if one wishes to spray it onto leaves? Perhaps you are trying to combat powdery mildew. Perhaps you want to run your ACT through an irrigation system.

This is when you are perhaps going to consider using a mesh bag. I researched many different mesh openings and materials before concluding that a 400 micron monofilament nylon mesh is the best for an extractor bag. This is also the size recommended by SFI. This is what we provide with our 50 gallon airlift brewer (as an optional configuration).
If you cannot find the perfect 400 micron mesh bag, don't sweat it. Just get a paint strainer from the hardware store and tie it off with the ingredients and airline in it.

Please do not use nylon socks/stockings. These usually have too small a mesh size to extract fungal hyphae (unless they are recycled from your 400 pound grandmother). Many people argue for using these by saying ‘hey man how big do ya think bacteria are?' My reply to that is ‘hey man, bacteria is only one component of ACT' What about the protozoa besides the fungi already mentioned?

If one does use a mesh extractor it is essential to either use a smaller (e.g. 5 gal) ACT maker which has enough agitation to make that bag dance or to use an air (diffuser) input into the bag.

If you have a cone bottom airlift bioreactor and you wish to use a mesh extractor, I recommend using a separate air pump to supply the bag.
I prefer to use a diffuser in the bag but many just use an open airline. I'm a believer in using what you have (except for chemicals). If you use a mesh bag you do not need to worry about a few large chunks. Many people make good quality ACT this way.

Filtering;

There is another option. Say you have an airlift vortex ACT bioreactor but to run it with a mesh bag would be kinda silly. You want to run it through a sprayer or irrigation set up. If your unit has a drain valve/spout, then just put a pail under it with a piece of mesh tied across the top.

For this we use nylon window screen (800 to 1000 microns mesh size). Because some residue will block the passage we do not want to use 400 microns for this. Open the valve and as organic matter builds up on the screen scoop it off into another bucket. This prevents a build up which will block microbes but also allows you to save the ones that do along with the organic matter for topdressing your soil.

You can obviously see why a filter internal to a pipe or hose just won't work.

Okay, I know that sounds like work. There is another way…the way we do it. Just empty out your ACT maker into the pail, use a mesh bag (800 to 1000 microns) with a sump pump dropped into it, hook the sump pump to a hose. There is your sprayer or waterer or irrigation hookup. When we don't care about getting residue on leaf surfaces, like our corn or the lawn, we use a trash sump pump with no bag and a thumb over the end of the hose.

Frequency of Use;

You can use ACT as much as you wish. We often used it almost every watering. Just don't waterlog your soil.

A friend of mine who used actual living microbial soil (ALMS) as opposed to truly living soil (TLO)…hehe, um used ACT for 7 years to beat back an erwinia infection caused by using chemicals in his one acre garden. The infection was gone in the first year but he liked the increased quality so much that he built a 5000 gallon ACT maker (venturi) and used it through his irrigation system. In the 8th and 9th years he only used it once as the microbial population was so well established and his soil had matured to the point where it was no longer necessary.

Next up…dilution

 

Dilution;

This is another question I get all the time. How much should I dilute my ACT?

Now this is a difficult question to answer. I believe that SFI has stated that 20 gallons can be diluted to do one acre. In my opinion, this is stretching it but is within the realm of possibilities.

When diluting ACT it is not the same as diluting fish hydrolysate or molasses or (saints forbid) a liquid fertilizer. The water is not ‘weakening' a solution so much as acting as a carrier for the microbes which you have multiplied. Logically though, if you do not have a ‘tea' very dense with microorganisms, adding it to water will make it even less dense. So your 5 gallon ACT diluted down enough to cover the quarter acre is still going to get the microbes out there but in much lower numbers.

When we use ACT on our farm our usual practice is to apply it non-diluted, followed by irrigation water if necessary. When we were on the larger farm, we used a 1200 gallon multi-airlift brewer and pumped it straight into the irrigation system, then followed by water. We found that this was enough to do our greenhouse (20 x 64) and a quarter (approx. 750 sq. ft) of our outside beds. A total of just over 2,000 sq. ft. One acre is over 40,000 square feet.

For curiosity (on our little farm where we are now) we diluted 12 gallons of ‘tea' into 40 gallons of water prior to use, this past season. I looked at it under the microscope before and after and although the microbes survived, they were indeed much more widely dispersed.

I guess the moral of the story is that you can dilute your ACT if you so wish but I think it is better applied non-diluted, followed by water ‘only if necessary'.

Next up; design..buy or build