A group of women developing home gardens and milpa systems joined a workshop about Super Plus Fertilizer.
We started off by collecting the ingredients for the fertilizer. We hopped in the truck and drove to a nearby neighbor's property to collect cow manure. The women were wearing skirts and small sandals but they didn't hesitate to grab shovels and start collecting manure!
The ingredients for the Super Plus Fertilizer are:
cow manure (2 buckets)
whey or whole milk (2-4 liters)
molasses (2 liters)
ashes (4 kg)
oxygenated water (100 mL)
water (180 liters)
Workshop participants collecting cow manure for Super Plus fertilizer
Since many families on the coast of Chiapas have cattle and make cheese, it wasn't difficult to collect whey. Whey is the liquid that separates from curds during the cheese-making process, and it is very protein-rich. We stopped by one of the women's houses to pick some up. If you don't have access to whey, you could also use whole milk. We got the ashes from the kitchen and the agroecological extension worker brought the molasses and oxygenated water. Then we gathered together with all of the ingredients to start making the Super Plus Fertilizer.
Ingredients and process of making the Super Plus Fertilizer
The Process:
First, you should begin by adding the two buckets of manure to a 200 L barrel and the start filling the barrel with water (must be water without chlorine). We accidentally added the water to the barrel first and then the manure splashed up in our faces when we added it, which is not ideal! We recommend putting in the manure first.
Second, we mixed the whey or milk with the molasses together in a container and added the mixture to the barrel. We added the oxygenated water in at the same time as we added the whey and molasses mixture. We stirred continually.
Third, we added the ashes, continued to add more water, and stirred continually.
Finally, we covered the barrel with a cloth and tied it securely to the barrel. Then we put a piece of tape on the barrel and wrote the date when it will be ready (in 20 days)!
What are the benefits of using Super Plus fertilizer??
Stimulates flowering and fruit growth of trees and plants
Increases foliage
Allows for better rooting of the plant
Accelerates and increases uniformity of germination of seeds
Accelerates and increases the growth of plant shoots
Deters pests due to its strong smell!
We went over some of the ways to use Super Plus most effectively
It's ready after 20 days and can be used immediately (it will be most effective the sooner it's used)
It's best to apply in the afternoon/evening when the sun is less strong and there is no rain
Apply before the trees or plants flower. If applied with flowers, then the flowers could be damaged or fall
Dilute 1 liter of Super Plus in a 20 liter manual pump with 19-20 liters of water
Strain the Super Plus so that it doesn't clog your pump
Lower the dosage if the plants or trees are younger
It's best to apply underneath the leaf rather then the top if possible
Don't apply near the time of harvest
Wash leaves/ plants well if you are going to consume them days or weeks after having applied
Can you see the different in color in these different microorganisms?
Then we checked on some Mountain Microogranisms (MM) that the women had prepared in a previous workshop. The field technician who accompanied us observed that there were some beneficial microorganisms but also some not so beneficial microorganisms. The ones to the left that are white are more beneficial while the ones to the right that are grey are not the microorganisms we want for our soil. The day they made the MM they hadn't found a lot of white, mycelium in the leaves to add and it probably needed more mycelium to get the mountain microorganisms going. We noticed that the MM was also quite humid and probably needs more bran (salvado). Finally, there might have been too much extra space in the barrel and the microorganisms need to reproduce anaerobically without oxygen so it is better to use a smaller barrel and compact the ingredients well.
Feeding larva to the hens
Then we checked on the Liquid Mountain Microorganisms that the women had made in a previous workshop. Everything was looking and smelling good, but there were lots of larva! We scooped them out and fed them to the chickens who ate them happily.
The different fertilizers and mountain microorganisms we made and checked on today are used to bring more fertility and life to the plants and into the soil. This will help the women have better results in their garden patios and milpa! The women are really eager to attend the workshops and learn how to improve their production without using chemicals.
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