Homemade organic nutrient mix ????

[Carolyn]

Can anyone tell me if there is a way to make the nutrient solution
(organic), and bypass the big expenditure for commercially made
nutrients ?

[fw]

Carolyn --

That's exactly what we're working on figuring out.  Rising energy costs are going to make production and transportation more expensive with time, so it seems prudent to begin now to figure out how to create our own nutrient solutions locally whenever possible.

We're presently experimenting using commercial nutrients in half our tests and compost tea in the other half.  So far we've grown only radishes and lettuce, and it's too early to say for sure how it's going.  Stay tuned.

Different plants having different requirements, it's obvious we'd need to create different "flavors" of compost from which to make our tea, and choose the right one according to the needs of the plants in production.  But why shouldn't this work? 

Have you (or anyone else) thought of how you might proceed without "store bought" nutrients?  Have you seen any web sites where the issue is discussed?  I'd sure like not to re-invent the wheel.

Regards,
Fred / NW Oregon

[Carolyn]

Actually, we're just in the process of gathering information to
determine feasibility of growing beyond our immediate needs. We're raw
foodists, and as such we juice a variety of greens, wheat grass, herbs,
carrots, apples. It's quite expensive and unpredictable to purchase
organics to juice....we don't know how they were grown or when picked.

I'm guessing that it would be difficult to make a 'tea' with any
combination of organic ingredients, and maintain a stable balance of
nutrients....howlong was tea allowed to 'steep', what exactly was in
the compost used, etc.

[fw]

I'm guessing that it would be difficult to make a 'tea'  with any
combination of organic ingredients, and maintain a stable balance of
nutrients....howlong was tea allowed to 'steep', what exactly was in
the compost used, etc.

No doubt it would be difficult to make two batches exactly the same, but that's not the point.  The real question is, can you make two batches that work?  Soil differs from one garden to the next, yet seeds from the same package will grow in both.  Perhaps the margin for "error" in nutrient solutions is greater than we might first imagine.  That's what we hope to find out by experimenting.

PBS.

Fred / NW Oregon