288 Sustainable Farming
Compost tea
Compost can be used to make a liquid to fertilize plants and help
control pests. Wrap some compost in a piece of cloth and tie it up.
Put the cloth in a bucket of water for 7 to 14 days. When the water
turns brown, take the cloth sack out. Spread the leftover compost in
your field. Spray or sprinkle the compost tea on the leaves of your
plants. Be sure to wash your hands after working with compost tea.
Other ways to add nutrients to soil
Other materials can be added to change soil pH (see page 282) and to add
nutrients to the soil. Limestone, wood ash, and ground animal bones and
seashells make soil less acid. The ground up animal bones also adds phosphorous
and the wood ash adds potassium. Dried leaves and pine needles make soils
more acid. Sugar cane that has rotted for at least a year and coffee pulp that is
ground and dried add nutrients to soil, turning crop waste into fertilizer.
Ashes from wood fires can be
dug into your garden soil to
make it less acid.
Improving soil helps control weeds
All of the methods of improving soil with organic matter, such as green
manures, compost, and mulch, also help control weeds. When the soil is
healthy, small amounts of weeds do not harm crop yields.
Weeds can also be controlled by planting
crops close together so there is no room for weeds
to grow, and by allowing animals to eat the
weeds. Also, crops that are native to the area
tend to be harmed less by local weeds. Over many
years, locally bred crops adapt to weather, weeds,
and pests, and do well where other crops or other
varieties of the same crop may not.
A Community Guide to Environmental Health 2012