The Power of Soil Microbes
Healthy plants and gardens begin with healthy soil.
At Heart and Soil Garden Company, we brew compost tea to be used as an organic land care tool to boost the living universe beneath your feet. Applied directly to your soil and plants, compost tea introduces beneficial microorganisms and organic compounds that help supercharge the living biology required for a thriving organic garden. Our compost tea can be used for lawns, gardens, trees, and house plants as a soil drench or foliar spray! Learn more about compost tea and it's incredible benefits below.
What is Aerated Compost Tea?
Actively aerated compost tea (AACT) is an all natural biological fertilizer that is full of beneficial microbes including bacteria, fungi, protozoa and nematodes, all of which have an important role in soil health. The tea is created by steeping high quality compost in water, adding the right amount food sources for the soil microorganisms, such as molasses or kelp meal, and bubbling in oxygen. The purpose is to extract beneficial microbes and soluble nutrients, and then provide them to plants in a form that they can readily uptake and utilize.
Benefits of Compost Tea
Less Dependence on Synthetic Fertilizers
As soil microbes break down organic matter, they free up nutrients and minerals and change them into a more bioavailable form for plants to take up.
Reduced Water Usage
Healthy soil full of organic matter retains more moisture, thereby requiring much less frequent waterings. A crucial benefit in times of drought and town water restrictions.
Improved Ability to Resist Disease and Environmental Stress
When plants are surrounded by beneficial bacteria, they are much more capable of fending off pests, disease, and stress, much like the human body.
Safe for Children, Pets, and Wildlife
Our compost tea is made with 100% all natural organic ingredients and our recipes are lab tested. The tea can be applied as a soil drench or foliar spray to the lawn, garden, trees, and houseplants!
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The Science Behind the Tea
Most clients are surprised to hear that more often than not, their soil contains all of the nutrients it needs to feed their plants without adding additional fertilizers. The problem is that those nutrients are not in a plant available form. Enter the microbes.Â
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There is a complex relationship between plants, their roots, and soil organisms. Living plant roots actively influence this system by releasing root exudates—including soluble sugars, amino acids, organic acids, phenolic compounds, and other carbon-containing molecules—into the rhizosphere, the narrow zone of soil directly influenced by roots. These compounds provide energy and chemical signals that selectively influence microbial communities surrounding the roots.
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Bacteria and fungi participate in the decomposition and transformation of organic matter, mineralization and immobilization of nutrients, and formation of soil aggregates. Microbial biomass is then consumed by organisms such as protozoa and nematodes, which release nutrients in plant-available forms as they feed. This interconnected network—often referred to as the soil food web—plays an important role in nutrient cycling, soil aggregation, carbon dynamics, water infiltration, and plant health.
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Rather than viewing soil fertility simply as a matter of adding nutrients, ecological soil management recognizes that fertility is largely a function of the biological processes that transform, store, and cycle those nutrients through the soil ecosystem organisms. At Heart and Soil Garden Company, we brew each batch of compost tea to work with the local ecology and those biological relationships to help your gardens thrive.