Will Yeast Affect the Growth of Radishes?

Composting Basics

• When you add organic material to a compost pile, bacteria and fungi break it down and make nutrients available to living plants. Good compost consists of two types of material. The first is what is known as brown matter, like dead leaves, wood chips and other dried-out plant material. The second is green matter, like grass clippings or fruit and vegetable waste from your kitchen. Green matter also includes things like egg shells and coffee grounds. When you add compost to your garden, it not only adds nutrients but can help improve drainage and the soil's ability to retain nutrients.

Making Compost Tea

• The benefit of compost tea is that it doesn't have to be mixed into the soil prior to planting. Instead, it can be used as a soil drench or sprayed directly onto radish leaves. Basic compost tea is made by putting composted material in an old nylon stocking or other fine mesh bag and leaving the bag in a bucket of water for 7 to 10 days. This allows nutrients from the compost to transfer to the water. You can speed the process up by adding yeast to the water. Yeast bacteria feed on components of the compost and help break it down faster. According to Kentucky State University, adding yeast to your compost tea may also improve its quality.

Applying Compost Tea

• Apply compost tea directly to the soil before planting or just after emergence as a side dressing. To side dress radishes, dig a small trench along the planting bed and add your compost tea to the trench. Or, spray it directly on the leaves. According to Kentucky State University, there is some evidence that compost tea applied to leaves helps fight off disease and pests.

Radish Culture

• Radishes require rich, moist soil for proper growth, texture and flavor. Radishes that grow slowly are often woody and too hot. Fertilizers like compost tea can help them grow more quickly, thereby improving quality. Maintain proper spacing of 1/2 to 1 inch for spring varieties and 2 to 4 inches for fall varieties. Radishes that are too close together may not develop adequate roots. Water frequently; dry conditions will adversely affect the texture and flavor of your radishes.