MAKING PLANT ‘TEA’…

To make, simply add a few handfuls of manure (or compost) to a bucket of water, stir well, and keep adding until the mixture is the colour of weak tea. Apply straight away.

Grass clippings, rinsed seaweed and comfrey (a fast-growing potassium- and phosphate-rich herb) can also make nutritious plant ‘teas’. Fill the bottom third of a bucket with the plant matter, top up to three-quarters full with fresh water, and stir. Dilute to the colour of weak tea and apply as a foliage spray early in the morning on an overcast day.