Ok, so I was in Super Wal-Mart yesterday picking up a double outlet air pump for a new AACT brewer I made, and while in the pet dept. I noticed Alfalfa Grass; This particular grass was intended to feed pet rabbits etc. but it was 100% Natural Sun Cured Alfalfa Grass. Now the reason I point this out, is because it made me wonder; Could this possibly be an addition (not substitution) to ppeat moss/Coco Coir. I'm sure that the grass has no where near the water retentiveness in it, however it could provide some aeration to the soil. Along with aeration, it would slowly feed the bacteria the essential foods thus allowing the slow release nitrogen into the plant. Plus there's the decomposition of it as it sits in the soil, thus providing more food and nutrients. Now I'm no expert in this field it was just a light bulb that came on in my head, so I purchased it. It was 3.95$ and funny enough came out to be after tax $4.20 (I actually chuckled in store; a sign maybe?) anyways just looking for the usual thoughts.
I would call the company and check to see if it is organic non-gmo..100% natural means nothing , just marketing words. I use alfalfa in my AACT and soil mix, but in fairly small amounts..
Alfalfa grass is a good cover crop.......deep roots for aeration and when tilled in has N. Not sure how the fresh grass would fit into the growing paradigm, but interested nonetheless. chunk
It is indeed organic, I simply wrote the natural suncured part so people would have an idea on what to look for incase this turned into something.
gdaddypurp21 The usual warning about adding too much alfalfa meal to a soil mix or even a worm bin is that it breaks down very quickly by bacteria - too fast in some cases creating thermal heat. This is fine in a compost pile and probably a worthy goal. In soil and especially in a container, this thermal heat can wreck havoc on the root system. The product that you purchased will be better than alfalfa meal for teas, FPE, etc. If you have worm bins the wet alfalfa after making a tea is a nice food for worms. Good find! LD
Thank you guys for your input, and LD I had just finished an article on the useful ness of dry shredded alfalfa "hay" they called it in composting Bokashi Composting and Vermicomposting. As far as I could tell from what I gathered it is indeed useless other than composting and your right in the thermal heat. Again as always everyones input is much appreciated
Add about 1 cup to 5 gallons of dechlorinated water (creek water or rain water is better) and let it brew for a couple of days. Drain and strain and apply as a soil soak. Dilute 50% with water and apply as a foliar spray. During the summer months when heat can be an issue, alfalfa tea contains properties which greatly reduce heat stress in plants. If given a choice between bat guano vs. alfalfa meal I'd opt for the alfalfa products without a question. LD
OK sorry I misread and mistyped everything yesterday ( I was having a bad day my favorite bowl of 7 years broke) anyways the meal is what I was refering to with the heat issues and being of no use besides a soil amendment and a tea additive. However I did read much about FPE with alfalfa grass and its composting benefits as well like you said the vermicomposting benefits. Along side of this I did read that if added to the soil in small quantities it allows further decompostition action within the soil (not too much as to raise thermal heat and burn roots or evaporate moisture) and the further decompostition adds more foods and nutrients for both plants and microorganisms. I couldn't find too much scientifical fact on the uses of alfalfa grass within the soil as opposed to composting or top mulch. However, I did just plant a small crop of green onions and added the alfalfa grass to it. (I'm aware of Gonions need of phosphorous but they were free from the nursery and all I had to experiment with) in 60-90 days
gdaddypurp21 I'm not sure if this answers your question but here goes................ Alfalfa is a nitrogen fixing plant as are legumes, clover, etc. What many organic farmers do at the end of the harvest season in the fall is to plant alfalfa in the raised beds and when they're about 12" or so (depending on how cold the weather turns and how quickly), they're broken at the soil line and allowed to fall on the beds - much like using straw to over-winter. It may be that if you live in an area which gets a lot of snow, this alfalfa planting may not be enough to protect your raised beds from freezing. It appears, to me at least, that done this way, the soil does not heat-up as it does when alfalfa hay or alfalfa meal is added to the soil mix - especially in container gardens. When you plant your vegetable starts in the spring, the remaining alfalfa hay is left in place and is slightly pushed aside for easier transplanting. Not sure if that answers your question(s) entirely but the terms 'nitrogen fixing' and 'over-wintering' may be helpful in your search for additional information. HTH LD
My question is if I don't have alfalfa meal today. It seems smarter for me to to get it and measure it in the mix rather than wait to add alf meal teas which I can't control the dosage very well( or can I )? Do alfalfa teas create heat? Guess I got to go get some. Is rabbit food an ok source? Don't want to buy 50#
You can mix in the alfalfa meal later, just give the mix more time before planting though, as alfalfa is considered a hot or fast fertilizer,so it can burn plants if your not careful. You could also top dress it, after your plants are growing. I like using alfalfa meal in teas. I just bubble a handfull in a bucket of water, then feed. Or I may just soak some alfalfa in water, strain and spray the water for a foliar feeding. I also use it in tiny amounts in a ACT. I suppose too much could heat up a soil mix. In organic growing there is a saying, "less is more" and that might apply here. Rabbit food type alfalfa pellets are fine as long as there is not salt added. They will take longer to break down though, I don't know how long though, I've never used them. hope this helps........MIW
Sorry for the need to break this down "barney style" but is it safe to say that it would be redundant to add high N guano to a tea that will already have alfalfa? Guano wont bring anything new or better to the overall picture? I have high P Indonesian guano but I was gonna grab high N guano at some point. I already have some alfalfa meal....Hope this question makes sense?