The wee critters that make up the Soil Food Web do not live and function well in soils depleted of organic matter and any soil needs around 5 to 8 percent OM in the soil to have a good, active Soil Food Web. Spraying compost tea might introduce some soil bacteria, but if there is not enough organic matter in the soil to support them it will be a waste to time, energy, and money doing that. Get the amount of oprganic matter in the soil up to that 5 to 8 percent range and the soil bacteria will be there along with earthworms etc.
These simple soil tests might be if some use,
1) Soil test for organic matter. From that soil sample put enough of the rest to make a 4 inch level in a clear 1 quart jar, with a tight fitting lid. Fill that jar with water and replace the lid, tightly. Shake the jar vigorously and then let it stand for 24 hours. Your soil will settle out according to soil particle size and weight. For example, a good loam will have about 1-3/4 inch (about 45%) of sand on the bottom. about 1 inch (about 25%) of silt next, about 1 inch (25%) of clay above that, and about 1/4 inch (about 5%) of organic matter on the top.

2) Drainage. Dig a hole 1 foot square and 1 foot deep and fill that with water. After that water drains away refill the hole with more water and time how long it takes that to drain away. Anything less than 2 hours and your soil drains� too quickly and needs more organic matter to slow that drainage down. Anything over 6 hours and the soil drains too slowly and needs lots of organic matter to speed it up.

3) Tilth. Take a handful of your slightly damp soil and squeeze it tightly. When the pressure is released the soil should hold together in that clump, but when poked with a finger that clump should fall apart.

4) Smell. What does your soil smell like? A pleasant, rich earthy odor? Putrid, offensive, repugnant odor? The more organic matter in your soil the more active the soil bacteria will be and the nicer your soil will smell.

5) Life. How many earthworms per shovel full were there? 5 or more indicates a pretty healthy soil. Fewer than 5, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicates a soil that is not healthy.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Soil Food Web Primer

Kimmsr,

Thanks for all the tips.

So let me get this straight.... I will have no microbial life in the soil until I raise the organic matter? Compost tea will do me no good?

The soil microbes need organic matter to live. Compost teas add bacteria and fungi but if the soil has nothing to support them they cannot live there, anymore then you could live in the desert without water and food. Compost tea is known to increase, at least for a while, microbial activity in soils with adequate levels of organic matter in the soil, and as long as what little OM in the compost tea supports them in soils with little to no OM. That is not long lasting however and many peoples solution to that problem is to spray more Compost Tea more often.
Long term, your soil organic matter levels need to be in the 5 to 8 percent range which will support an active Soil Food Web that will aid in creating a good, healthy soil.

hey peach,

I'm new to this organic strategy but been studying a lot. Had soil biology tests done on my soil and compost. Expensive, but I'm going to document and write on my blog about the before and after. From what I've learned so far, yes the microbes need organic matter to work their magic. Reading "Teaming with Microbes" by Lowenfells and Lewis, I've come to the understanding that 1) it is bad for the exisistng microbial populations to till or otherwise disturb the soil unless the populations are so low you can't hurt them, and 2) adding compost right on top of the soil along with compost tea will help boost the organic levels in the soil. The microbes will gradually pull the organics into the ground where they will really help. I'm in heavy clay too, and this method of top dressing with compost followed with actively aerated compost tea seems to be helping already. I'm also incorporating one or two core aerations per year into my plan. I plan on the aeration being done right before the compost. But I won't have the follow up tests for another year yet. I will eventually post the soil tests and my organic lawncare trials and tribulations on my blog, but can send the first tests (soil and compost) to you now if you want.

Good luck.

Here is a link that might be useful: My blog - Native Plant Landscaping Journey

Peach,

I just found this out about 1/2 hour ago. A contractor working at the house asked me what were all the little tiny piles in our side yard. He thought perhaps I had planted little sprigs of something. This is an area that is bare hard pan clay. Ignorant as I was over the past 11 years, I'd raked up all the leaves and treated this area with lawn chemicals in an effort to grow grass. Now I know the error of my ways. In the spring, I stopped all chemical treatment, and spread some compost around. About 6 weeks ago, I sprayed some left over compost tea over the area. I also planted about 8 native shrubs and mulched the plantings with generous heap of compost and leaves. The bare ground is still there and the recent rains puddled up quickly. Today, I wondered what the heck the contractor was talking about. I went out and found dozens and dozens of little tiny piles of dirt and recently fallen leaves. Each pile was about the size of a silver dollar. I never noticed them before. I took a small trowel and dug up three of these mounds. Low and behold, there were earthworms in each space. They had pulled leaves into their burrows and broken up the little bit of clay soil around them. Amazing. So, I take it that life is returning here. The natural way is working. Too dark today to get pictures, but I'll post some later.

Take care,
Hal

I find it amazing that people today do not know what worm castings look like.

Here is a link that might be useful: worm casting images

Hal,

Thanks for all the information. I'd definitely be interested in continuing to follow your progress. I'm very interested to hear that you've generated some "life" in the soil. I've been doing a ton of research and have found that the key is to do just exactly what your doing.....build organic matter, promote, establish and add micro-organisms and continue to fertilize. Duh, seems to make sense doesn't it?

Kimmsr - thanks for the worm castings link. Interesting. I'm anxious to get a good picture to post. Not sure that's what I've got "piled" up. Actually looks like a little mound of organic matter (leaves, wood chips, etc.)

Peach - yeh it sure does makes sense. But it took me a long time to come to this understanding. Way too long. I was a definite chemical and synthetic fertilzer person. No longer though. Now that it is "obvious" to me, I'm trying to remember where I came from. I don't want to sound "radical" to others when I preach the organic way. I trust your "continue to fertilize" comment only refers to organic.

Take care all
Hal

"If you build it, they will come" applies to the Soil Food Web. If your provide an environment they can live in they will develop in your soil with out you needing to add any. The link below might be some interesting winter reading.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Soil Food Web Primer

I read the document you suggested. Seems like a chicken and egg scenario then.

So, Kimmsr, your saying that the application of compost teas is a waste of time and money? "They" being the microorganisms will simply show up if you have organic matter in the soil. Seems to fly in the face of almost every single thing ive read so far......

It may be and it may not be a "waste of time and money" since as you start to build up organic matter in your soil the Activated Compost Teas may well help supply fairly large numbers of the necessary bacteria. However once the populations of the Soil Food Web have an environment they can live in they will and spending time, money, and energy making ACT probably is not necessary.
Where I have a real problme is those suggesting using ACT without also indicating that there is a need to build up the organic matter in the soil, as if ACT is a total solution when it is not. Spraying ACT may be part of a short term solution to a long term problem but it is not THE solution.

Compost tea is made from compost. The healthy organisms that digested the leaves or other source, are still there in the compost as it is applied.

Very true, maplerbirch. However, if there is not enough organic matter in the soil to support those organisms they will either die or go dormant until there is an environment they can live with. An analogy is if you were to go into a desert with no food and water, how long could you survive?
Soils lacking adequate levels of organic matter will not support a healthy Soil Food Web.

Don't know how to post pictures here, so I put them in an internet storage area I have. The following three links are to three pictures that I hope help to document what I mentioned in earlier post.

These are pictures of the piles of organic matter made by the earthworms that are returning. This is an area that I tried to grow grass in for years. For twelve years, I used synthetic lawn chemicals and raked up all the leaves. This became a very dead, dry, clay surface. Water puddled with the sightest rainfall. This spring I stopped chemicals. Two months ago I sprayed leftover AACT here. Now life is starting to return. I dug up several of these little piles to find earthworms actively pulling leaves and other organic bits into the ground. So no more chemicals, And this year, I'll let the leaves cover the ground.

http://members.accesstoledo.com/hfmann/gardening/organic matter - earthworms.jpg

http://members.accesstoledo.com/hfmann/gardening/organic piles - earthworms.jpg

http://members.accesstoledo.com/hfmann/gardening/closeup - Single pile organic matter.jpg

Here is a link that might be useful: Hal's conversion to Native Plants landscape

I don't know if I can help or not. I would have reworded kimmsr's advice slightly. What he is telling you is you need both microbes (from the compost tea) and organic matter (food from organic fertilizer). I believe he nuances that because he lives in a special world where he does not have to fertilize to have a great lawn. In my world I found that I need a lot of fertilizer to achieve the density needed to deter weeds. One or the other may be a waste of money if you don't have the other one. You may already have organic food in the soil naturally. I believe that is rare, but kimmsr might disagree. But if you add rabbit food at a rate of 20 pounds per 1,000 square feet, then you can be certain there is plenty of food for the microbes in the tea.

Lowenfells, by the way, is a master at compost tea. I used to participate on a forum with him, and he really knows his stuff. As far as I know he has written the first book to take into consideration the recent (1990s) findings that there are tens of thousands of species of microbes in the soil. Prior to that all the books by the experts assumed no microbes and that compost was the only "fertilizer" you needed. I call them "Rodalians" after J.I. Rodale, the previous guru on organic gardening. Rodale was working without the knowledge of the microbial population. Now we know that compost is not a fertilizer but a source of microbes. And we know that animal feed is a fertilizer and source of enzymes, vitamins, and minerals for the soil microbes.

One important thing about compost tea: In most of the country you cannot make it right during the heat of summer. If you are making it in an air conditioned space, then fine. If you are making it outdoors, it is too warm to support the multiplication of microbes that you can get with cooler water. The water temp must be between 50 and 70 degrees F to get the best results. Colder than that and the microbes go dormant. Up around 80 degrees F the microbes cannot get enough oxygen to survive. 70 degrees would be a great temp.

Dave makes invalid assumptions and I do not live in a "special" world where I do not need to fertilize. Although I do not "fertilize" I do work at feeding the soil bacteria that do feed my plants by adding compost (a good source of nutrients plants need) and other organic matter that is also a good source of nutirents plants need. Since all that I have added to my soil here over the last 45 years is compost and other forms of organic matter (shredded leaves) and since the soil tests have gone from a soil pH of 5.7 and below optimum levels of Phosphorus (P), Potash (K), and Magnesium (Mg) with above optimum levels of Calcium (Ca) to a soil ph of 7.2 and above optimum levels of P, K, Ca, and Mg then there must be some nutrient value in the organic matter I have been adding.
Researchers have known for many years that all organic matter has on and in it the bacteria that will digest that, cause it to rot. Build a compost pile without adding any bacteria from an outside source and see what happens. Where did those bacteria that digested that organic matter come from if you did not add any? All that Activated Compost Tea does is add more of those bacteria, which you may, or may not need.
Provide, in the soil, good living conditions and the bacteria will be there and that means sufficient levels of organic matter (a food source) in the soil with enough moisture (which the organic matter will help with), and sufficient levels of air (which the organic matter will help with).
Making, or buying, Activated Compost Tea might be a waste of time, money, and energy. Not getting sufficient levels of organic matter into the soil will guarantee that.

Well, its funny how when you start to get a little bit obsessed with something you can become very knowledgeable very quickly. Perhaps a little bit of knowledge can be dangerous......I've read all I can get my hands on regarding this discussion......which for some reason seems to be getting a little bit...feisty?

Kimmsr, you really sound like you know your stuff and I'm sure you have a wonderful lawn. However, most homeowners/lawnowners don't have the benefit of having worked on their lawn for 45 years. (nor do I expect that they would plan on doing so.) All of your numbers are swell but I'm not sure it applies to what we are discussing.

What I've gathered from all of my reading........and all of your bickering.......is that having a nice lawn is definitely based on the soil but that isn't limited to just improving the SOIL food web. You must also find ways to increase organic matter, you must find ways to provide natural sources of nutrition and you must deal with pests. Proper mowing and watering are also extremely important.

I'd also say that adding more microbes to an existing situation is better and that they most certainly wouldn't go to waste.

It need not take 45 years for someone to get their soil into good condition but it may well take 3 to 5 years before the Soil Food Web is really working, provided sufficient amounts of organic matter are added to the soil.
What I am saying about ACT is that it is not the magic elixar some are making it sound like. Spraying Activated Tea on soils that do not have sufficient levels of organic matter will do very little because the micro organisms in that mix will have very little to live on. Making Activated Compost Tea to spray on soils with sufficient levels of organic matter might be a waste of time and energy since the Soil Food Web may well be active enough and not need more of those micro organisms. Spending money on some product labeled Activated Compost Tea is probably not something worth doing.

Ive reconsidered drilling into soil after giving someone a hard time about doing this.

Having solid grey clay, as an experiment I'm going to drill with a three quarter inch diameter, sixteen inch long auger, holes every few feet, in a section of our property, lay down compost, a little nit of lava sand, and sweep and water it in.

I'd like to see what happens in a side by side comparison, where no holes are drilled but ammendment is laid down. The area is all grass. I'm kind of excited about it.

A lot of people have clay, it takes years it seems to get to a point where the clay actually becomes superior to all other soils.

I believe there is a hard pan issue in a section of our property, that's the thing about clay. You screw with it too much, it becomes worse. You handle it with care, it's awesome material.

Maybe it's what you have if your yard was farmland at one time. If you'd like to try my experiment, it is better than tilling becaus tilling is what causes a hard pan.

Another point, until the clay is really buiit up with organic material, as is the case at the back of our property, where we eliminated the hard pan a few years ago, is that unammended clay is sensitive to foot traffic early on.

In our backyard, as an experiment, I trained our bermuda to be four inches high all summer. Very deep, deep, infrequent watering.

Surprisingly, the bermuda is very deense and foot traffic doesn't effect the clay or grass out there at all. Very surprinsing, since I had always thought that bermuda needs to be cut short. As a matter of fact, it stayed green and hardly grew at all. I mowed four or five times this summer...

My understanding is that organic matter inside of clay doesn't have to be very active biologically to enhance clay greatly, because chemical interactions by themselves of very fine organic material with clay particles enhances drainage greatly in this type of soil

I have observed that once clay is up to par as far as organic content, a long, long soaking, and you can walk away for a week or two or more, even in drought.

Clay is unique in it's capacities and approach. I'm going with it, not that I have a choice, and may the force be with you as well.

The base soil you have is the base soil you will have to deal with and almost no matter what kind of soil you have the best way to fix that soil is to add organic matter to it. In clay soils that organic matter will seperate the soil particles so moisture, plant roots, and nutrients can move areound more freely. In sand, like I have, the organic matter fills in the pore spaces and aids in holding moisture and nutrients there in the root zone so the plants roots can find them.
If the soil you have is boggy there are other problems that must be fixed including too much organic matter, although it probably is better to leave a wetland as is.

Well, mackel.....I, for one, am interested to see what you find out with your experiment. We're just South of Ft. Worth in Crowley and I fight the same clay crap you do. I played absolute hell trying to dig holes for trees. I've been pouring the "feed" to it and it's gotten a LOT better. But I've been toying with the idea of aerating this year. Some folks here are advocates and some not.....I'd like to hear your results as they come in.