Activity: The Murky Waters of Compost Tea
Lesson Objective
- Demonstrate ability to present research-based information to an audience.
Continuing Education hours
Activity: 2.0 hours
Science is a rigorous and ever evolving discipline. We want you as Master Gardener Volunteers to be able to think about gardening topics with a scientific mind that is constantly sifting and winnowing information. This activity helps you practice those skills and become more comfortable with thinking and sharing your thoughts on a topic that is controversial in the horticulture world: compost tea.
Instructions
- Watch the introduction video by Kristin Krokowski, Horticulture Educator in Waukesha County. Kristin provides a great framework for thinking about science and research.
- Read 2-4 of the posted articles. These contain research-based information supporting and disagreeing with some of the proposed benefits of compost tea.
- Post a response to the following scenario in our Google+ Community: Imagine that you have been asked by a local group to come talk to them about compost tea. The group is very excited to learn about using it and has expressed that they are planning on incorporating it into their garden maintenance routine the following season. List 1-2 main points about compost tea that you would find important to address during your talk. Explain why you chose those points and how you would discuss them with this audience.
- Respond to someone else’s post. Because you may be replying to someone who has a different viewpoint than you, please be respectful and thoughtful in your reply. Suggestions for replying:
-Ask a question about the post.
-Present another argument or thought that is counter to the original post. Make sure to use respectful language like “Have you thought about this point: ….” and continue the discussion in the spirit of learning (versus someone being “right”).
-Agree with the original post and explain why.
If you would like to do this activity with another controversial horticultural topic, feel free to do so. The same set of instructions still applies but you will need to seek out your own research-based articles on the topic and include links or citations for them in your post. If this was a topic that came up in the context of your volunteering, please explain the actual situation and tell us how you handled it as well as 1-2 main points about this topic that would be important to address (this refers to Instruction #3).
Please note: both the initial post (step 3) and the response (4) are required to consider the activity completed. You can respond to more than one person or post more than one response to someone if you’re having a good conversation.
Introduction
- Kristin Krokowski
- Murky Waters of Compost Tea video
- Note: Video is ~4 minutes long.
Articles
- The Myth of Compost Tea Revisited, by Linda Chalker-Scott, Washington State University Extension
- Organic Farm Calls: Evidence-Based Agriculture and Aerated Compost Tea, Rutgers Cooperative Extension
- Compost Tea to Suppress Plant Disease, by Vern Grubinger, University of Vermont Extension
- Compost Tea as a Container Medium Drench for Suppressing Seedling Damping-Off Caused by Pythium ultimum, Scheuerell and Mahaffee, 2004.
Post your response to this activity in the Evaluating Controversial Topics category of our Google+ Community.
