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  • From: Steve Diver <steved@ipa.net>
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Compost tea and bugs in a jug
  • Date: Mon, 12 Jun 2006 15:44:19 -0400 (EDT)

Here are several more journal articles on compost teas,
which include aqueous compost extracts.

They demonstrate that compost teas possess microbial activity,
and secondly, that they can be suppressive to plant diseases.

Several papers indicate they also deliver bioactive substances
that are disease suppressive.

Compost Tea as a Container Medium Drench for Suppressing
Seedling Damping-Off Caused by Pythium ultimum
Steven J. Scheuerell and Walter F. Mahaffee
Phytopathology 94:1156-1163. 2004.
http://www.apsnet.org/phyto/search/2004/0901-01r.asp

Compost and Compost Water Extract-Induced Systemic Acquired
Resistance in Cucumber and Arabidopsis
W. Zhang, D. Y. Han, W. A. Dick, K. R. Davis, and H. A. J. Hoitink
Phytopathology 88:450-455. 1998.
http://www.apsnet.org/phyto/search/1998/0316-05r.asp

Suppression of Bacterial Spot of Tomato with Foliar Sprays of
Compost Extracts Under Greenhouse and Field Conditions
Jaber H. Al-Dahmani, Pervaiz A. Abbasi, Sally A. Miller, and Harry
A. J. Hoitink
Plant Dis. 87:913-919. 2003.
http://www.apsnet.org/pd/search/2003/0528-02r.asp

Harry Hoitink is the plant pathologist at Ohio State University
who has pioneered research on disease suppressive properties
of composts, potting mixes, and compost extracts.

Steve Scheuerell at Oregon State University published
the literature review on compost teas in the journal of
Compost Science and Utilization.

Compost Tea: Principles and Prospects for Plant Disease Control
Steve Scheuerell and Walter Mahaffee
Compost Science and Utilization, Autumn 2002
Vol. 10, No. 4. p. 313-338.

Scheuerell's paper uses the terminology of aerated
compost teas (ACT) and non-aerated compost teas
(NCT) to describe the two broad categories.

This is an important distinction because the early
European scientific literature of Weltzein and Trankner
and others largely refers to compost extracts and NCTs,
whereas the modern compost tea industry in the United
States usually refers to ACTs. Both are employed in
farming systems world-wide and both are examined in
the scientific literature.

Organic Eprints, the online documentation archives
for research papers in organic agriculture, hosted by
Danish Research Centre for Organic Farming (DARCOF)
and the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL)
in Switzerland, contains the following helpful documentation.

Litterick, Audrey; Harrier, L.; Wallace, P.; Watson, C. A.
and Wood, M. (2003)
Effects of composting manures and other organic wastes on
soil processes and pest and disease interactions.
Report, Scottish Agricultural College.
http://orgprints.org/6694/

Especially see:

Objective 2
A review of the effects of different composting processes on
chemical and biological parameters in the finished compost
or compost extract.
http://orgprints.org/6694/07/Annex_Effects_of_different_composting_processes.pdf

Objective 4
A review of the effects of uncomposted materials, composts, manures
and compost extracts on beneficial microorganisms, pest and disease
incidence and severity in agricultural and horticultural crops.
http://orgprints.org/6694/03/Annex_Effects_on_microorganisms.pdf

In fact, this report was later summarized and published as
a literature review in Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences, as
cited below.

The Role of Uncomposted Materials, Composts, Manures,
and Compost Extracts in Reducing Pest and Disease
Incidence and Severity in Sustainable Temperate
Agricultural and Horticultural Crop Production—A Review
Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences, 23(6):453–479 (2004)

Providing access to resources is one way to make this
topic more clear.

Regards,
Steve Diver








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