Compost Teas: 24 hour, EM, IM, BD & fermented plant extracts

[m.norsen AT attbi.com]

Recent messages have asked about why did the brewer run 
low on O2 when nutrients were added to a brew. This 
experience may shed a glimmer of quantitative light on 
this subject.

Normal brew in a 250 gallon brewer was completed but the 
tea wss not needed for another day.  So on a hunch that 
some added nutrients and tea base would extend the life 
of the brew. Just a lttle more is better. Right?  1/4 
the original amount of tea base ( a special compost)
1/4 the initial amount of nutrients ( kelp and 
molasses ) was added to a brew already rich in 
bacteria.  The brewer dropped rapidly to low O2 = 2.4.
Anaerobic at O2= 2.+-  To stop the anaerobic condition 
the compost was removed, three times the original air 
injectors were turned on.  In 12 hours the O2 was back 
to normal 6.7.

To find some quantitative measure of the effect of 
nutrients I added just 4 oz molasses to the 250 gallon 
brew.  That is 1 part molasses in 8,000 parts of the 
brew.  Couldn't have much effect ?   

O2 dropped within an hour to 2.4 with the three times 
normal air jets all putting in a storm of air in little 
bubbles.  It took 8 hours for the bew to come back to 
the normal 7.3 O2.  

At no time were there odors to tell me that the brew was 
running low on O2.  Only clue was the O2 meter. 

Message:  use a tested recipe, tested brewer. stay right 
with the details.  Don't trust intuition unless equipt 
with instruments that tell you what is going on deep in 
that vat. Then get what you do tested enough to know 
from experience that what you do, works.

We were thinking about this in our local bull session.
Making TEA is like making bead.  You have to put all the 
goodies together in the right way and the right 
quantity, Then at the recipe temperature you have to 
wait for the bread to rise and then to bake.  Then you 
test it with aroma and butter
My mouth waters just to remember grandmas results.
   Especially her tall cinnomon rolls !!
Tea is working with the same microscopic life. Got to 
mix the right stuff and treat it the right way to get 
the right results.  Now if there was just a viual rise 
and texture to admire.  If there was an aroma and if it 
tasted SOOoo good with butter TEA would be easier to 
learn about what and how.  Only from an O2 meter, a PH 
meter,  some lab reports and after a few months some 
reaction in you garden does your skill in making TEA 
become evident.  Farmers have lived by this kind of 
skill and faith for centuries. If you will succeed with 
TEA you gotta -like- learn to enjoy playing golf wearing 
a blindfold.  Do it exactly as perscribed and expect 
better than par.  With tea make it per a tested recipe 
of tested compost crafted to form a good TEA BASE add 
the right nutrients run a proven cycle in a proven 
brewer, apply while fresh and 'live', under the right 
conditions.  Watch in wonder as your garden grows.
That is the test