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Published Friday, February 21,
2020
Don't drink the 'tea'  By Victoria Torley The other day I had a good question. Someone asked me about manure tea. If you’re a gardener, you’ve probably used manure tea or talked to people who have, but there is always some confusion about it. So, let’s answer the questions and reduce the confusion. To begin with, manure tea is made on a 5 to 1 ratio. That means that for every liter of manure – yes you have to measure it – you need five liters of water. My suggestion, use an empty one-liter milk carton and fill it with manure then use the same carton to measure five liters of water into a large container. I use a big plastic tub. Now, put the manure into a porous bag. A coffee sack works, so does an old cotton sack of some sort, like a pillowcase. In goes the manure, tie the top tightly, and drop it into the water. To get the most out of the manure, you need to wobble the sack daily, so be ready for that. Cover the container to keep the bugs out and set the whole thing in the shade. During the rainy season, make sure to cover with plastic so you don’t dilute the product. After five to seven days of daily swishing the manure around, the tea should be a dark brown color. Pull out the bag of manure and hang it over the water so that all that fluid drips back into the container. Okay, now that you have it, how do you use it? This is the tricky part because full-strength manure tea will burn plant roots, so it needs to be diluted. But how much? A usual rule of thumb is to dilute so that you have a half-and-half mixture. So one cup of tea to one cup of clean water – for most plants. If you want to use manure tea on orchid roots, start with one cup manure tea and four cups of water, and spray it on the roots. This is true for other delicate plants. Do not spray manure tea on leaves! The tea is for the roots of plants, not the leaves. Do you have to spray? Of course not. You can use the dilute tea in a watering can and pour it directly around your plants. If you are using a garden hose sprayer, set it for a 50/50 mix and aim for the roots, not the leaves. Here is another handy tip – if you have a compost pile (clippings, vegetable parings, weeds and so forth) you can pour full-strength manure tea on the pile to speed up decomposition. Manure tea is handy stuff, easy to make, easy to use. Give it a try. Plant
for the Week
 Last week I surprised you with Adonias, my “person for the week.” This is one of the plants he grows behind Las Delicias in Arenal. We call it Mexican hibiscus, and it is wonderfully tasty – a bit lemony. Use it in slushies for great color and flavor. Full sun and manure tea and the plant will grow beautifully. For more information on this article or request for information about gardening, Ms. Victoria Torley, gardener columnist, can be reached at victoriatorley1@gmail.com |
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