Is Your Compost Contaminated? DO THIS SIMPLE TEST TO CHECK

If you are using compost or manure of questionable origin you should assume that there might be persistent herbicides in it. You can do a simple at-home test (bioassay) to test for the presence of persistent herbicides. Just plant a few seeds in a mix of the material in question and in regular soil and compare the results. Stunted growth could indicate the presence of persistent herbicides in the compost or manure.

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[HomesteadForALiving]

It would be helpful if everyone contacted their feed, manure, and compost suppliers and let them know you can longer purchase their products if they’re using persistent herbicides. Time to leverage the power of the free market to stop this atrocity from destroying food production.

[GreenLove]

I did this bioassay last year to test straw... I poured some water into a barrel with the straw, let it soak for a few days, and used that water to water my plants and used regular water in the control group. My straw was not tainted and both pla ts grew beautifully, and I was able to use it with confidence. Gardening experiments are always fun! Thanks for a good video!

[ausfoodgarden]

I get horse manure from a known source and he doesn't use any chemicals but he unknowingly bought hay that was sprayed with aminopyralid.
Of course, the hay seller didn't mention herbicide use.
I now do a bioassay for ALL my compost. Whether it has manure content or not.
Beans and peas are better indicators than other plants imo They seem to show even small amounts of contamination.
Thank you for spreading this information. I'm sure many gardeners have given up, not knowing what caused their failures.👍👍👍

[nas]

Awesome. There's definitely a difference but it's hard to tell if it comes from herbicides or a nutrient difference. I suggest you use a monocot control group next time, like corn or scallions.
If the monocots don't show any difference in growth and the dicots (like beans) grow better in the potting mix, then the source of that difference is likely a broadleaf persistent herbicide.

[xDanossx]

Dude! I've been following your YT Channel and listening to your podcast but I didn't notice they are both made from you! I knew that voice was from somewhere! Love the Podcast, keep it up!

[cathcolwell]

I didn’t understand which was the safer choice – the plant that was doing well or the one that was not doing as well

[davej]

If the test takes two weeks how do you know the next delivery will be safe. If you test after delivery what do you do with several Cu. Ft. or Cu. Yds. of contaminated material?

[kkrollingskkrollings]

I got some hourse manure as far as i know no herbicides but what about antibiotics or deworming medication given to the source animal? Will that be bad for plants or can it be ok after some time like 6 months or so to use new subscriber.

[lornapenn-chester]

Interesting that the pots that had added manure didn’t thrive over the potting mix - therefore, might as well save the cost and bother of using the manure, even though it doesn’t have the herbicide?

[wordswritteninred]

Okay, I’ve tried this twice now. All I get, is mold. Any advice? I really need these wood chips. As I am having to start a brand new garden, in clay soil. Any advice much appreciated

[Interglacial_optimist]

I already did this test growing basil and tomatoes
Tomatoes grew well in the manure potting soil mix but the basil did not... The basil did fine in a potting soil.... As did the tomatoes

[TeasLouise]

Shame you actually didn't show us what a contaminated plant looks like.

[gavinmatthews]

You should be doing it from two, three differnt families not the same.

Say solanacace, fabaceace, brassicaceae

[jeffbidniy]

Here’s a good video showing the actual effects of it: