Do you know whether organic tea concentrates are usable 12 months later?

[RhysParticipant]

Charles

Last year I had a first go at making a nettle tea concentrate (whose use worked brilliantly on broad beans in April), along with making comfrey tea from my new mini-forest of greenery.

I still have some of those concentrates left in the garage 6 – 12 months after being made and was wondering whether they would still be usable now.

I’ve not seen any articles, literature etc on this topic and I simply don’t know if anyone has done any work of that nature??

Do you simply make fresh every time and use it immediately or have you managed to develop stocks of concentrate that can be used successfully down the line??

[zufParticipant]

I would not use them. If you want to make concentrates which last a year or so than you should look at fermented stuff such as FPJ (fermented plant exctract) and similar.
Recipes can be found here – http://theunconventionalfarmer.com/

Instructions for fermented plant extract:
Find a fast-growing plant in your area. It must be a green-color plant, fresh juicy succulent leaves are best.
Collect a bunch of the growing tips of the plant. The green leaves give you Nitrogen, the growing tips give you the growth hormones. We try not to wash them for you may wash off those microbes too. We want the photosynthetic bacteria that naturally occur on the leaf surface of these fast-growing plants (phyllosphere microbes).
Weigh the amount of material you’ve collected and add roughly half that weight in sugar.
Put in a clay jar or plastic container.
If fermenting a large batch, put a large rock on top of the material to push it down into the bottom of the container. After at least 5 hours, remove the rock, and cover the container with a newspaper/cheese cloth/etc and secure with string/rubber-band.
If fermenting a smaller batch, you can add water. Add at least enough water to cover the material but if you want to add more no problem.
Keep container out of direct sunlight. Solution will be fermented in approximately 7-15 days (depending on temperature).
After that time, drain the liquid and put in plastic bottle, leaving 1/3 empty so organisms can breathe.
DON’T TIGHTEN lid for at least 2 weeks or so. Wait till tiny bubble disappear and then close the container tightly.
Note: if you observe un-dissolved sugar in the bottom it means fermentation did not go to completion. Add a little water to reactivate and leave lid off for a few days.

[zufParticipant]

Notes on this fermented plant extract:

To use on it’s own, mix 1Tbsp/L or 4tbsp/gallon.
Apply as foliar spray in morning or evening when temp is lower . During the middle of the day when sunlight is highest, the plant stomata are closed (to preserve moisture), thus the intake of our foliar spray becomes difficult and less effective.
Plant material can be used as animal feed or compost.
Extract should have a sweet, sour, and even alcoholic smell and taste. Yes, you can taste it no problem but make sure to smell it first! Make sure it doesn’t smell foul – in that case you screwed something up and will have to start over. It should keep forever technically. Will be progressively more vinegary but no problem.

[peatParticipant]

Hi If you made the comfrey tea by pressing it will keep a long time, but if you made by soaking in water it won’t keep.

[RhysParticipant]

Thanks for the answers – very helpful.

For the record, the comfrey tea is pressed concentrate, whereas the nettle tea was just generated by soaking.

I’ll ditch the nettle tea and keep the comfrey!!

[zufParticipant]

Well for the record, it’s ok to use old nettle tea, as long as it’s not smelling bad it’s good to use – there are still minerals and stuff in it . If you need it right away and you can’t make new one soon enough, it’s an option.

[RhysParticipant]

Don’t need it right away, but it just seemed a waste to throw away if it was usable. This year, the spring is cooler than last year so things are taking longer to get going – the comfrey plants are only just showing tiny leaves in mid March, whereas last year I harvested some leaves to plant potatoes on 3rd April. I certainly won’t be doing that this year……..

[ashleighParticipant]

my understanding of old compost teas is that while they would still have some minerals they would also be anerobic and full of the associated microbes, which are the kind you DON’T want in your veg beds.

one of the main things that’s beneficial about fresh compost tea is it’s full of aerobic microbes (esp if it’s been stirred or bubbled) which are the kind that help plants be healthy

[Don FoleyParticipant]

So if it can’t be used on vegetable beds how should it be disposed of/best put to use?
I have 40 ltrs.of Comfrey Tea made using the last cut of Comfrey Leaves last September which has been “brewing” since.
Are you saying this should not be used or can I use it on flower beds etc. i.e., just not on vegetables?

Don.

[peatParticipant]

Hi Don
If you made without using water by compression then it is ok to use

[Author]

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