I have a very long list of "rose recipes" that I have collected over the years. I didnt find Karl's alfalfa tea recipe but here is another - which could be Karl's - that I found. I think you could just do the alfalfa pellets alone with just an addition or two.......but this sounds interesting, although I have not tried it.
For 5
gallon bucket:
2 C alfalfa
pellets
1 C cottonseed meal
1/3 C Epsom salts
1/3 C fish emulsion
< ¼ C kelp [0.16 C]
<1/4 C molasses [0.16 C]
OR:
In 5 gallon bucket:
4 C alfalfa -
stir during 5-7 days
Add: 4 C Epsom salts
4 C cornmeal
Put 2 C on each bush once a week for a month
in early spring
Here is another from Howard Walters, who many years ago had a wonderful column in the Am. Rose Society magazine. I loved his good advice and have saved many of my old magazines with his columns.
Here is the recipe that
Howard Walters recommended, and it is the ultimate and the best: "Add
10 to 12 cups of alfalfa meal or pellets to a 32 gallon plastic
garbage can (with lid), add water, stir, steep for four or five days,
stirring occasionally. You can also fortify with 2 cups of Epsom
salts, 1/2 cup of Sequestrene (chelated iron now sold as Sprint 330)
or your favorite trace element elixir. The tea will start to smell in
about three days. Keep the lid ON. Use about a gallon of mix on the
large bushes, and 1/3 of that on the minis. And keep the water going.
One load of meal or pellets will brew up to two barrelfuls, but add
more fortifiers. You will see greener growth and stronger stems
within a week." REMEMBER, KEEP THE LID ON. Howard recommended
using this in the fall only, but spring and fall are better rather
than throughout the season. You will notice there is no mention of
making this into garbage international. Just use what is in the
recipe. AND ABOVE ALL - KEEP THE LID ON!!!!
4 C alfalfa pellets : 5
gallon bucket
Add ½ C epsom salts
Q
Karl Bapst Alfalfa tea recipe
Q