Use Stinging Nettles To Make A Liquid Fertilizer

Try as one may, there's no keeping stinging nettles out of the gardens here. I don't know when they get in, but all of a sudden I just see one standing tall and over-healthy-looking, over by the Astrantias....or more sneeky, I don't see them at all but rather I do FEEL them when I stick my hand down to pull a weed. They sometimes lurk just out of sight, under a broad leaf...or behind a tangle of stems.
The stinging nettle is a plant that I have a love-hate relation with.

Because I get "stung" countless times on my arms, hands or bare legs during the course of the season, I let dockweed (Rumex obtusifolius or Rumex crispus) grow here and there so that I can quickly grind a leaf up and rub it into the sting site wherever I am in the garden. Handy.

But I am drifting away from the subject at hand--Stinging Nettles (Urtica dioica).
I can complain about them and curse them...but the thing to do is to use these pesky plants to benefit oneself.
This is the time that I begin making liquid fertilizer to suppliment certain plants in the garden.

I make a solution, or "tea", from these nettles which I use to feed the veg plants. They do not contain alot of phosphate but they do have useable amounts of nitrogen, iron, magnesium and sulfur. You can also use the plants to activate your compost.

How does one make this solution? It is not difficult, below is the way that I make it.

--First select your bucket which you can close off. Then you cut enough nettles to fill it up. **Do not use plants with seeds and remove the roots.

--Use hedge clippers or some other tool to cut the gathered nettles up. I tend to clip them rather fine, but it doesn't have to be that fine, per se. I know gardeners that place a large, flat stone on top of the clipped foliage down inside the bucket at this point. It keeps the clippings from floating around and mixing with the foam that forms.

--Add rainwater to this, leaving the level a bit under the top, as a foam will form as the plants begin to decompose, and it could spill over. Believe me, you do not want it to spill, because the odor is very unpleasant.
Set the container in a warm and sunny place to help speed-up the process.

--Stir the mixture thoroughly every few days (some say once a day, every day).
After about two weeks it is ready to use.
When you are using this mixture, filter out the debris and use only the clearish liquid.

--How to use it: Mix the solution with water in a proportion of 1 : 10 (one part nettle solution to ten parts water). Pour the solution directly at the base of the plants where the roots will have quick use of it.

--This "tea" is ment as a supplimental feeding for plants that have a high demand for nourishment, such as tomatos, leeks, brassicas, cucumbers and courgettes.
There are other things that will appreciate stinging nettle tea: fruit trees and bushes, roses, annuals and perennial flowering plants.
** It is NOT ment to supplemant such plants as onions beans and peas.

One should be able to notice the effects of the solution within just a few days. You can also add some comfrey (Symphytum officinale) and horse tail (Equisetum arvense) bits to the tea.

When the bucketful of "tea" is all used up, you can throw the left over dregs onto your compost heap...although if you used horsetail, I would not take the chance.

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Sjoerd http://www.volkstuindersvereniginghoornenomstreken.nl/Page11.html

NETTY--Yes, the preparation technique is indeed similar to that for comfrey. I make that each year as well. Sometimes I make them separately and sometimes I combine them. I also make some "tea" from horse or cow manure. It is very helpful for my plants.

FRANK--My grand parents told me abiout this when I was younger. They used it on some of the plants in their kitchen garden. Then, there is an older gardner on the complex here that told me about it and after asking around further, I learned that many folks already knew about it and used it themselves.

FISH 4--Yes, you can make tea solely from it. The plant contains quite a bit of nitrogen.
AS for willow tea: I am only aware of it's use in helping to stimulate root formation. I have never heard of it being used as a plant food suppliment.

WEEDS--Thanks for liking the posting. Thanks for your ideas concerning the use of Equisetum arvense. I do disagree with you about the plant having no benefits in regards to being used in a fertilizer "tea".
We have been aware of it's nitrogen content here for some time. You can look here for some info on it:
http://www.seasonalgardener.com/Tips/Liquidplantfertilizer/tabid/3190/Default.html

EJ--OK, good luck with gathering them. I know that you have sensitive skin, so do be careful please.
When I saw the first tom on my greenhouse plants, I began harvesting the nettles for fertilizer that same day. hahaha.

Howe are the qiail doing?

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Sjoerd http://www.volkstuindersvereniginghoornenomstreken.nl/Page11.html