Worm Teas Compared What's the Difference between Leachate, Compost and Fermented Tea скачать в хорошем качестве

Worm Teas Compared What's the Difference between Leachate, Compost and Fermented Tea

There are many types of garden teas out there under the category “worm tea”. Mindy from VermisTerra earthworm farm clears up the terms explaining the difference between Vermiwash, Leachate Tea vs Compost Tea vs Fermented Tea. Mindy from Digging Deep with a Soil Geek explains organic acids and how they transform and enhance soil to create the ideal environment that plants need for optimal growth. — Compost Tea (non-fermented) Main action: Feeds and multiplies existing soil life. It’s a living brew of aerobic bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and nematodes that thrive on the organic matter (like compost, molasses, and kelp) during aeration. When applied, these organisms repopulate the soil food web and help decompose organic matter faster. Think of it as “adding chefs and construction workers” to help process nutrients already in the soil — microbial workforce support. Effect: It maintains or boosts healthy biological activity, but it mostly works within the existing soil environment. Fermented Worm Tea (VermisTerra’s Earthworm Casting Tea) Does everything compost tea does and more Main action: Transforms the soil environment itself. During fermentation, microbes produce organic acids, enzymes, chelates, and bio-active compounds that remain stable in the liquid. When applied, these organic acids can lower pH locally, release locked-up nutrients, and alter redox and ion exchange conditions — effectively “resetting” parts of the soil chemistry. The tea also carries dormant but highly active microbial spores that “wake up” upon contact with the soil and roots, changing both the microbial composition and nutrient availability. Effect: It can shift the soil toward balance — correcting pH, breaking compaction, reducing salt buildup, suppressing pathogens, and stimulating root growth. 🌱 In short Compost tea: Adds helpers to your soil. Fermented worm tea: Adds transformers that change the soil environment itself.