DIY: Mint Compost Tea

We like to be as sustainable and biodynamic as possible with our home garden. Brendan did a ton of research on mint hay composting where you take mint plants, crush up their leaves and stalks to extract their oils, and then mix in water and let the sun do its job! We have a ton of invasive mountain mint, so we decided to give it a try!

The main benefits to mint compost, per GardeningKnowHow:

• Mint hay compost is 100% natural. It adds organic material to growing beds and can be used for soil amendment. Mint compost has a pH of 6.8.

• As a byproduct, using mint compost promotes sustainable agriculture.

• Using mint as mulch improves water retention in soil and reduces the need for irrigation.

• It contains natural humus, which improves both sandy and clay soils.

• Mint compost is a good source of natural nutrients. It’s high in nitrogen and contains phosphorus and potassium, the three main nutrients found in commercial fertilizer.

• It contains micronutrients that may be missing in animal manure compost.

• Mulching keeps soil temperatures warm and helps control weeds.

• Mint can act as a deterrent to mice, rats, and insects.

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We let our water/mint solution bake in the sun for 48 hours and then we spread it all over the garden! We'll update this post as time goes on so we can see if our experiment worked!