Manure tea is exactly what it says it is- a ‘tea’ (aka fertiliser) for your plants, made from manure. All you have to do to make your own, is steep some manure in water, wait then strain.

Using home-made manure tea

All sorts of plants and trees will benefit from the application of manure tea. As the tea contains a variety of nutrients, everything from fruit trees to vegetables to ornamentals will be able to draw some goodness from it. Even better, you can make it for free, or close to; no more expensive fertiliser to buy!

Why Make Manure Tea?

Manure tea is a nutrient-rich liquid fertiliser that is easy to make and can be used throughout the garden. It has the particular benefit of aging fresh manure and drawing the nutrients from it, which means that you can essentially use the manure quickly. Fresh manure can contain harmful bacteria which may be drawn up by plants. This, in turn means that pathogens could enter your food. Fresh manure may also contain weed seed, which can permeate throughout garden soils, which in turn could mean many hours of weeding for you. Additionally, the high levels of nitrogen, ammonium & salt in fresh manure often burns roots, especially in young plants.

Because the process of making manure tea effectively neutralises the ammonia, salt & nitrogen, manure tea is safe for immediate use in the garden. Manure tea has the further benefit of allowing the nutrients to be absorbed quickly because they are in liquid form.

Which Manure/s Can I Use?

Horse, cow, poultry, goat and sheep manures are all good to use in a manure tea. This chicken manure, shown below, has been scooped straight from the coop and contains (organic) bedding material. This doesn’t need to be separated out, as the tea is strained before use.

Avoid manures from carnivores like cats and dogs, as they contain harmful compounds that may leach into produce and make you sick.

If you don’t produce any manure on your own property, you may be able to purchase some direct from farms or at roadside stands. In Australia, inexpensive bagged fresh manure is readily available in semi-rural areas on the side of the road.

How to Make the Tea

Making manure tea is a very simple process. In fact, once you’ve done it, it may well become a lifelong gardening habit.

Step 1– 1/3 fill a bucket with manure. Fresh, aged or or even commercially-purchased pelletised manures are all suitable.

Step 2– Fill the bucket with water.

Step 3– Stir it thoroughly, and break up any lumps as best you can. Let the mixture rest for at least one week, stirring intermittently. Make sure you position the bucket away from the house in a well-ventilated area while it’s sitting, because trust me this puppy will smell.

Step 4- After the mixture has rested sufficiently, stir it again then strain it into another container for use.

You’ll be left with a lump-free brown liquid just like this.

The finished product

To use your newly-made liquid fertiliser, dilute 10:1 in water and apply liberally (as shown in top pic). Alternatively, depending on how strong your mixture is, apply it undiluted in small amounts. As with most liquid fertilisers, you will be able to use manure tea frequently. Once a fortnight is suitable for most vegetables, while fruit trees and ornamentals need less frequent application. Any unused ‘tea’ can be stored in a sealed container for later use.