100 year old rootzone with good biology managed with compost teas


The last 20 years have seen rapid developments in the use of compost teas in all areas of commercial and amenity plant production. These developments have been driven by substantial research, aided by electron microscopy and other investigative techniques, plus the urgent need for solutions to the increasing problems of soil depletion and pest and disease pressure caused by continued chemical inputs to the soil


TEA time! T


here has been a lot of discussion on the use of compost teas in turf management since the RAC Country Club started using it in 2003.


The philosophy is simple, you either get the soil to work for you and reap the benefits of plant and soil evolution, or use soil as a receptacle for chemicals. The use of compost and compost teas is the simplest way to develop healthy soil, maximise yields and minimise chemical inputs. Unfortunately, compost is almost impossible to apply to golf and bowling greens, cricket squares and other areas of fine turf. But, compost teas give you most of the benefits of adding compost without the increase in organic matter and the problems that causes. It is also an easy way to reintroduce soil life to compacted waterlogged football and rugby pitches.


What is Compost Tea?


“You either get the soil to work for you and reap the benefits of plant and soil evolution, or use soil as a receptacle for chemicals”


Martin Ward, Symbio


Compost tea is an extract of a given compost of a given constitution. It can be either bacterial or fungal dominated but, in all cases, a good compost tea will contain:


• Enzymes and amino-acids


• Bacteria, fungi, protozoa and beneficial nematodes


• Water soluble nutrients and organically bound nutrients


The quantity, diversity and quality of these micro-organisms depend on the quality of the compost used for the extraction, the brewer used and micronutrients and starters added for optimum organism growth.


Compost Tea is not a product,


but a solution to transport micro-organisms. It is a temporary survival unit that allows living micro-organisms to be taken from the compost, multiplied rapidly and introduced to the soil and leaf.


Why do we need living soil?


Typical sportsturf rootzones, that have been used as a receptacle for chemicals over the years, are effectively dead. These rootzones contain the limited biology


suitable for poa annua, a grass that survives because of constant


seeding and high


nutrient water and pesticide inputs. All


plants rely on relationships with soil microbes that promote healthy growth. These symbiotic plant microbe systems, in which grasses, except poa annua, apply about 20% of their energy to root formation and leak about 30% of the energy they produce through their roots to feed the microbes forming the soil food web, have evolved over millions of years. In return, the microbes convert the proteins and carbohydrates that leak out of the root back into plant food available at the right time for optimum plant growth.


Typical 100 year old rootzone that is chemically managed


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138