# How to Make Powerful Liquid Feeds for Growing Food (Complete Guide) Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCkoRgoSd18 Recap page: https://rapidrecap.app/video/CCkoRgoSd18 Generated: 2026-02-21T12:37:21.941+00:00 --- ## Quick Overview The video provides a complete guide on making powerful, cost-effective liquid feeds, primarily focusing on Jadam Liquid Fertilizer (JLF) and Fermented Plant Juices (FPJ) derived from garden waste, weeds, or crop residues to enhance plant health and yields while reducing reliance on expensive commercial amendments. **Key Points:** - The primary recipe for Jadam Liquid Fertilizer requires only water (preferably soft/rainwater), a handful of leaf mold or well-broken-down compost as an inoculant, and crop-specific plant matter. - Jadam philosophy dictates that a crop is its own fertilizer, meaning creating a liquid feed from that crop's residues provides the optimum mineral balance for future generations of the same crop. - Weed liquid feeds can be made by soaking weeds in water for weeks or months; mixing diverse weeds creates a multi-purpose feed, while single weeds like dock provide specific nutrients (e.g., potassium). - Nigel Palmer explains that Fermented Plant Juices (FPJ), made by mixing plant material with organic brown sugar, extract minerals in forms plants can use directly via foliar spray, unlike traditional compost which takes years. - To make FPJ (using nettles as an example), mix 3 parts nettles (by weight) to 2 parts brown sugar, let it ferment for 5-6 days, then strain the resulting concentrated juice which is diluted at 1:500 for foliar spraying. - Comfrey liquid feed can be made odorlessly by rotting the leaves aerobically in a pipe contraption weighted down, avoiding the strong smell associated with anaerobic fermentation in water. - JLF is used as a supplement, often diluted 1:400 or 1:500 after aging for a year, and the solids should never be removed; maintenance involves topping up the liquid with more soft water and the same crop material. **Context:** The speaker addresses the increasing cost of gardening inputs, like skyrocketing compost prices, and promotes self-sufficiency through making powerful liquid amendments using readily available resources such as weeds, grass clippings, or crop residues. The core focus shifts to two main methods: Jadam Liquid Fertilizer (JLF), which emphasizes crop-specific feeding, and Fermented Plant Juices (FPJ), introduced via an interview with Nigel Palmer, which uses brown sugar to rapidly extract nutrients from plants like nettles for immediate use. ## Detailed Analysis The guide details how to create potent liquid feeds to improve garden yields affordably, minimizing dependency on external inputs. JLF creation involves combining soft water, leaf mold/old compost for inoculation, and plant matter; the key is specificity—using broad bean residues for broad beans, for example—as the crop's nutrients naturally balance future growth. For weed utilization, soaking materials like dock or mixed weeds in water extracts nutrients rapidly, avoiding seed spread when seeds are present. Nigel Palmer elaborates on FPJ, noting that mixing plants like nettles with brown sugar draws out minerals via osmosis within about five days, creating a shelf-stable, non-smelly concentrate that can be applied directly to leaves (foliar spray) for near-immediate nutrient uptake, bypassing the slow assimilation process of compost. FPJ dilution for foliar spray is typically 1:500, applied in the morning. For JLF, initial use is 1:30 dilution after two weeks, aging up to a year where dilution reaches 1:400 or 1:500. Maintenance for JLF means topping up the liquid extract with fresh water and the same solids, never removing the solids. An alternative, odor-free method for comfrey feed involves aerobic decomposition in a weighted pipe system. ### Liquid Feed Objectives - Reducing dependency on compost by creating powerful liquid amendments - Improving garden yields and providing more food - Focusing on plant health and soil health through natural resources ### Jadam Liquid Fertilizer (JLF) Creation - Ingredients are soft water, leaf mold/old compost (inoculant), and crop residue - Pack container full of plant matter, fill with water just above the material, and sprinkle inoculant on top - Use crop residues to create crop-specific feeds for optimum mineral balance; age for up to a year, diluting up to 1:400 or 1:500 ### Weed Feed Utilization - Soaking weeds in water extracts nutrients rapidly without spreading seeds if material is mature - Single-type feeds target specific needs (e.g., dock for potassium); mixed weeds create multi-purpose feeds - Initial dilution is 1 part feed to 10 parts water after 2 weeks; older feeds dilute 1:50 ### Fermented Plant Juice (FPJ) Fundamentals (Interview with Nigel Palmer) - FPJ uses organic brown sugar to draw out liquid via osmosis, creating shelf-stable, non-smelly extracts - Nettles are broad-spectrum, containing nearly all necessary minerals for thriving plants - Foliar sprays deliver nutrients directly to leaves, absorbed within hours, short-circuiting soil digestion time ### FPJ Recipe and Application - Mix 125g nettles with 80-85g brown sugar (3:2 ratio by weight for drier material), let ferment 5-6 days, then strain - Soak seeds for at least 20 minutes in diluted FPJ (ratio higher than 1:500) before planting - Foliar spraying dilution is 1:500, applied in the morning when dew is present to maximize leaf contact time ### Odorless Comfrey Feed Alternative - Traditional comfrey tea in water is very smelly due to anaerobic rot - Roger Atkinson's method uses a weighted pipe system to rot comfrey aerobically, resulting in concentrated, nearly odorless liquid feed diluted 30 or 40 to 1