This topic contains 24 replies, has 7 voices, and was last updated by Stringfellow 8 years, 1 month ago.
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Howard’s book is brilliant because he explains biological processes so well. Even though its old, much of the content is still relevant.
I like Eliot Coleman’s Winter Harvest Handbook for its incredible and trusty detail, inspiring photos too.
Teaming with Microbes by Jeff Lowenfels is great for understanding more about soil life and I find it more accessible than his sequel Teaming with Nutrients.Steve Soloman’s book is an interesting read and explains his own path to mineralising his soil and has interesting bits about compost but half the book is taken up with how to apply minerals and amendments to the soil after having had a soil test. This may be relatively cheap to obtain in the USA but I dread to think what a comprehensive soil test would cost in this country. I would think Teaming with Microbes would be a better read and using Remin mineral additive a better option if you are concerned about lack of minerals in your soil.
I have read Masanobu Fukuoka: One Straw Revolution… pretty interesting read I gotta say… go for it 🙂
I read Albert Howard’s book as one of my first on gardening. I found it a fascinating read, although of course you must place into context that a lot of the work he did on compost generation was done in India, where the temperature is much hotter. It’s definitely worth a read though……
J.M.Fortier book “The Market Gardener” is good on planning and layout. There are videos of his talks on you tube.
I was originally interested in trying out compost tea, but getting a pump and hooking it all up eventually put me off the whole thing. Recently, I’ve watched a quite a few videos on youtube by people who have been trying out compost tea or using for a while, and it’s quite interesting to see that they have either given it up or decided not to continue using it. It seems there is no scientific proof that it makes any difference to the soil.
Two videos I found interesting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1RVJeea2dE and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ka_WLbsyysU
Of the books you mention, I’ve read Fukuoka’s and found it very interesting.
Just gotten “How to create a Vegetable Garden” by Charles… love it! loads more details and pics on creating beds and about sowing information… A definite MUST-HAVE!
If you’re interested in biodynamics…. try Gardening for Life – The Biodynamic Way by Maria Thun (think it´s kinda difficult to get hold of`) and Culture and Horticulture – The Classic Guide to Biodynamic and Organic Gardening by Wolf D. Storl
Nice discussion and recommendations here, thanks Karen for your comment and Hawfinch for your observations on compost teas.
Some swear by them, mostly larger growers or golf course specialists who have a lot of area to maintain and can justify the cost of kit and the time needed to brew up.
I have almost bought a brewer, several times, but always feel I am unlikely to have the necessary time and that my results are good enough already.
So thanks for the book idea Tris but not this year anyway! I think they make sense if you had five acres of average soil, even one acre perhaps, and wanted a cheap way to improve growth?
If anyone has experience otherwise, it will be good to hear.Here’s my thought about compost tea….
When we first started our garden 4 years ago, … I was an eager beaver ( still am.. ha!)… reading up about compost tea, worm tea preparations etc .. We now have a 5 litre bucket of stinging nettle tea and comfrey tea sitting in my shed for 2 years.
I realised that it takes up way too much time to conscientiously mix and dilute the tea to water the plants. It is just way too much work.
The point is … I do believe many of us are already practising adding compost and well rotted animal manure to our beds or plants and then letting nature (e.g. rain) and whatever necessary initial watering to feed the soil and plants. Personally… adding compost tea is just redundant. Just add all the necessary composting materials and manure to the compost heap and eureka!
PS: I had given some comfrey and nettle tea to a neighbour and the poor lady killed her roses coz I believe she didn’t dilute the tea enough. That is another huge risk!
Oh btw Charles… thank goodness you didn’t get the brewer! We have a 5-tiered worm tea preparation thingy and it is just sitting pretty in the corner of our shed! Blimey!
Compost tea is not made to be a fertiliser. It is brewed to add beneficial insects that are supposed to aid in disease prevention. I have had a few discussions on american sites as they think the way we brew with a sack of manure in a barrel is wrong. They couldn’t understand that we were making a fertiliser not brewing microbes.
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