Horsetail broth: Everything about the effect and preparation of the liquid manure

Horsetail tea strengthens the plants naturally. We show the advantages, use of the popular broth and how to prepare it correctly.

The field horsetail is a real all-rounder (Equisetum arvense). The horsetail is not only used as a plant strengthening agent. For some time now, the herb has also been of great use in naturopathy, cosmetics and even in the household. The colloquial name horsetail comes from the fact that household appliances made of tin used to be cleaned with a field horsetail. It works so well because of the embedded silica crystals. It is precisely this silica that is responsible for the plant-strengthening effect. There are many names circulating on the Internet such as extract, tea, liquid manure or cold water withdrawal. In almost all cases, however, a broth is made from the field horsetail.

Benefits & mode of action of horsetail broth

The field horsetail is one of the plants with the highest silica content. Silicic acid strengthens the tissue of the plants and this makes it particularly difficult for fungi to attack the starched plants. Because the fungi usually infect a plant with a fungal spore. This forms an organ similar to a plant root. This means that the spore has to penetrate the leaf tissue in order to be able to feed on the plant. If that doesn't work because the plant tissue is too stubborn, the fungal spores will literally starve to death. But not only for mushrooms (such as mildew) life becomes more difficult. Also sucking insects like Aphids prefer weak plants, because there the cell wall of the leaves and stems can be pierced much more easily.

Because the horsetail broth does not act directly on the pest, it is very important to use the plant broth preventively. Only then does the field horsetail develop its effect. The preparation is therefore not suitable as a plant protection agent for the direct control of an already existing fungal attack. In addition, the horsetail broth must be poured or sprayed regularly, otherwise the silica content in the leaves will drop again. Every 14 days is a good rhythm for administration with the horsetail broth.

Tip: A horsetail broth is completely harmless and therefore particularly suitable for vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumber, zucchini and other plants susceptible to fungi such as roses.

The following products have proven themselves in our garden:

• Field horsetail extract: Plant additives for strong and healthy growth.
• Field horsetail: Gentle, dried, all-natural field horsetail for making broths and manure.

Production: Prepare horsetail manure

If you want to cultivate your own field horsetail for an extract, then watch out: the Field horsetail is one of the most feared weeds, even in agriculture, and is hardly ever combative. You should therefore be happy if the deep-rooted plant does not grow in your garden. A culture in a pot, on the other hand, is unproblematic with the undemanding herb. If you need horsetail quickly, you can easily purchase dried herb on the Internet. Even ready-made preparations are available. In contrast to liquid manure, making a broth is much more time-saving. For one approach, the fresh or dried field horsetail is simply placed in a vessel with water and soaked for 24 hours.

Mixing ratio: 1 kg fresh field horsetail or 150 g dried field horsetail to 10 liters of water.

According to the above procedure, the brew must simmer for another 30 minutes before it is finally ready. Then the brew just has to cool down. Rough sieving of the horsetail stalks is sufficient for a watering application. If you want to apply the broth with a syringe, a coffee filter is recommended. Otherwise, fine suspended matter can quickly clog the nozzle of the syringe.

Ready-to-use horsetail broth: For use, one part of the broth should be diluted with 5 parts of water (1: 5).

Homemade natural fertilizers have many advantages. If you are interested in how to do various other types of Make fertilizer yourself can read this article.