Nettle Fertilizer

Orange_King

Thanks to a link from here I had a go at making the nettle soup fertilizer but on double checking I think I made an error by keeping it in a sealed container as opposed to letting the air get to it.

Should I start from scratch again or will it be ok to use after a week with only minimal stirring?

Optimisticpair

Poor you. They reckon leave it stewing for a month before diluting it so I would uncork it and let it sit - why not compare the results with a second brew that has been in a bucket?

I'm trying to convince myself that after the bottom-of-the-pond sludge has composted the plants won't know the difference - that was made without air.

Orange_King

Have done what you have suggested - it doesn't smell that bad yet thankfully!

Lotus-eater

It should be fine, even sealed, shouldn't make any difference.

It should smell though!

The longer you leave it, the stronger it gets, dilute it to very weak tea colour, as you leave it longer it gets darker, so you dilute it like to get the same colour.

You can use it from about two weeks, but sometimes I leave it for months.

Orange_King

Maybe I am getting used to the smells of decaying garden waste after half emptying the compost bin yesterday - now that did smell bad in comparison. The liquid in the nettle container was turning quite dark and there were plennty of bare stalks in the tub.

Do I top up with fresh nettles and keep it going that way or start another batch off?

Lotus-eater

You can do either.

Optimisticpair

Orange_King wrote: »

Have done what you have suggested - it doesn't smell that bad yet thankfully!

Nothing to lose by trying it. Let me know how it goes on? I'm interested in trialling different methods and ingredients.

Orange_King

I will do. I have heard that there is great benefit to be had using this on a wide range of crops - tomatoes included. I don't know how often it should be applied though - maybe Lotus Eater would oblige again thanks?

tim_n

I did an instructable on nettle fertiliser: http://www.instructables.com/id/nettle-fertiliser

Lotus-eater

Well, I stick everything I can in there and I use it on most things.

If it's just nettles, it's quite high in Nitrogen, so will promote green leafy growth, I add lots of comfrey to mine as well, so use it most of the year on tomatoes.
You should really use a nettle brew on tomatoes while they are young and then a more comfrey one when they get a bit older and start fruiting.

Urine is also high in nitrogen and has trace elements, so there is a good reason to add a bit of that to the brew when you use it.

As for how often, this is the hard bit, because as with all home made fertilisers, you don't really know what elements are in there and in what quantities.

You can guess and that's why we use the weak tea colour to help us. Also nettles at the start of the year and the new tops of nettles later have a higher nutrient value.

While things are in full flow, I think about once a week is ok, you can also filter it and use it as a spray foliar feed. When watering it in, I always water usually first and then add the fertiliser when the ground is wet.

You don't want to use it too much, as the plants will have too much soft green growth and will be susceptible to disease and pests.

You learn to use it and its a skill to have. But tbh, whack it on once a week and you can't really go wrong.

tim_n

Dilute about 1:10 (or weak tea coloured) I use it once a week.