Because fermentation takes time. Fermentation releases the hormones that are so good for the roses, so we have to wait for it to happen. It hasn't happened after a day or two.

I have a batch brewing right now in the backyard, and I should have made a batch today for the front yard, but alas, I was cleaning house. Yech!

Sherry

The chemicals in the tea react fast when applied to the roses. By placing alfalfa in water (tea can be made with meal or pellets) and applying it in a day or two you might as well just place the alfalfa on the ground as it is and let the rain work it in. Doing this would take quite a bit of time for the nutrients in the alfalfa to breakdown so the roses can take them up and use them. If you're going to let them steep for just a day or two, you're wasting your time making tea.
It takes that long for the process just to begin.
As sherryocala said, fermentation is the process that releases the good stuff quickly so it can do it's work fast.
Same with manure tea. The good stuff in manure will get to the roses eventually but it happens faster if allowed to steep for a few days and applied as a liquid.
I think the small amount of alcohol produced in the fermenting process helps it be absorbed faster
Try eating corn and see how fast it affects you, then drink a glass of corn whiskey and see how fast that affects you.

I guess you could say liquer is quicker.

Fermentation (tea): the name used for the aerobic treatment to break down certain unwanted chemicals and modify others

When you smell the tea after it has sat for a week, you will know it is more than just alfalfa and water...

Advice? Get a clothespin for your nose. You'll need it!!! That Alfalfa tea is some of the most foul stuff out there. Raw sewage has nothing on it.

When should we start applying it to the roses in the Atlanta area?
Thanks.