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Nh

I have a few questions about examining compost tea with a microscope.
Can I simply say without using a microscope, I am fighting a loosing battle to brew good quality compost tea consistently since so many variables (compost, water, other nutrients) change over time?

I know I can send in a sample to soil foodweb but should I test or have my tea analyzed every time I build a new compost pile? In other words, don't use compost tea if you don't know what is in your tea because one bad batch of tea can ruin 10 previously applied good batches?

Are there free resources that explain how to use the microscope to examine compost tea? I see a lot of movement in the tea when I brought a sample to a friend but how do I interpret what is good versus bad micronism and how much of good micronism makes the difference between good and excellent tea?
Most likely I will buy Dr. Ingham's manual book but was wondering if there are free resources on the web as well.

Thank you in advance for your reply.

Patrick

6/20/2008 11:04:03 AM

Seattle, WA

Patrick,

Check out www.microbeorganics.com

It's run by a friend of mine, Tim Wilson. He also has a DVD that he sells for $40 that shows the organisms in the tea as they are moving around. I found it much more useful in identifying the organisms than the photos in Dr. Ingham's microscope book (I have both).

The way you know you have good vs bad organisms is if you've maintained the dissolved oxygen levels above 6mg/l then you've selected for aerobic organisms, which are most beneficial (this is a bit of a generalization).

Email Tim if you're interested in a microscope. He was instrumental in helping me in getting our microscope and has a lot of knowledge on the subject (there's a TON you need to know when comparing microscopes).

I'm hoping to build a site in the next year that will have more microscope footage for people to compare what their finding, but it's just not there yet.

Good luck!

~Tad

6/20/2008 1:38:19 PM

Nh

Thank for your response, Tad

I will check out the site you recommend. To measure the dissolved oxygen level, I need an dissolved oxygen meter. Those are very expensive :-(

Patrick

6/22/2008 3:28:26 PM

Seattle, WA

DO meters are expensive, I agree. In regards to microscope work though, that's how you know for sure you have aerobic organisms.

There are other indicators, such as how many ciliates are in the tea and also the presence of fungi and how the bacteria is interacting with the fungi.

~Tad

6/22/2008 11:24:32 PM