# Can Trub Be Used As A Fertilizer?



## Bribie G (8/10/08)

Here on Bribie Island the soil is basically just dark coloured sand and gardeners go to wierd and wonderful ends to improve soil fertility, texture and particularly wettability as there is some bloody oily substance in the sand here that makes the soil almost unwettable once it has become dry.

Did three bottling sessions last night and it occurred to me that rather than pouring the yeast cake (minus some Notto I saved) down the sink to end up in Moreton Bay, it would be a huge bonus if it could be turned into plant food. We're talking mega litres of high protein sludge over the course of a brewing year. (of course hops and grains go into the garden already)

I have a small very successful veg garden producing Silverbeet, Zucchini, herbs, tomatoes and chillies at the moment and I'm loath to do an experiment that could nuke the garden, Anyone have any experience with using trub as a direct fertilizer, or recycling it through compost or whatever?


----------



## bradsbrew (8/10/08)

I have made a compost heap and all that is added to it basic vege scraps, my mashed grain, yeast cake and first washings. Havent used any of the compost yet but I will put in the vege garden to feed up the soil.

Cheers Brad


----------



## Sunshine_Brewer (8/10/08)

as a qualified horticulturist I would advise you to not directly use the trub on your plants, but there is only one way to find out if it really does have any detrimental effects on your plants.
I think it would be better utilised by worms in a worm farm or on the compost pile which is then given to plants periodically. I do not know the exact composition of the trub but can imagine this substance to be slighlty acidic whick in moderation is not such a bad thing.
Myabe try a small section in the garden or just throw it in the compost.
I would be interested in the results

SB


----------



## afromaiko (8/10/08)

I used to throw it on the lawn at my old place and the grass in those spots grew like crazy, noticeably more lush and greener than the surrounding areas.

Edit: these days I just tip it down the toilet. :huh:


----------



## Batz (8/10/08)

afromaiko said:


> Edit: these days I just tip it down the toilet. :huh:



Could be interesting in a septic system :lol: 

Batz


----------



## mika (8/10/08)

I have noticed the grass growing greener in one particular patch where I dumped the trub, but was only that one batch (Kit and Bits btw) and have noticed a positive or negative effect. Like Bradsbrew I add my grains to the compost. I figure it's all organic matter so why not. Yes the wort is acidic (5.2ish) but when dumping ~2litres of trub on a lawn every 2 weeks or so, I don't think it'll have an effect.
There are some who use sugar as a fertiliser, so perhaps if you suffer from poor attenuation it might help. Though I don't know how accessible the sugars need to be for the plants to be able to use them.


----------



## Bribie G (8/10/08)

I have an 'informal' compost heap which receives all peelings and veg waste from the kitchen plus lawn trimmings. Next bottling session I'll pour over the trub, thoroughly circulate the pile, add a few buckets of water for good measure and see what the results are


----------



## RobB (8/10/08)

I dump my trub on the garden with no ill effects. Ditto for my hops and break. Grains get composted.

One of the presenters on gardening talk-back radio over here used to collect trailer loads of brewing waste from Swan (shudder) and dump it on her vegies. The spent grain goes to feed lots so she would have been taking home yeast/hops/break. She swore by the stuff.


----------



## Mantis (8/10/08)

Up to about my 30th brew now and have put all the trubs on the vegies and fruit trees. After emptying fermenter I take it out and put about 5 litres of water in it , swish it around and pour it directly on the vegies. The first ones I tried it on were onions and they picked up noticeably in about a week. Since then it has gone on anything that looks like it needs a boost. This spring I am harvesting more and better vegies than ever. Not saying it is all down to the yeast trub as I have been improving the soil gradually over the years with manures etc but it sure hasnt hurt. 
I'll try it on one of my prized tomatoes this weekend and let you know the results

:icon_cheers: 

Oh,yeah and the spent grains go to the chooks so they come back to the garden too as stinky stuff :lol:


----------



## Darren (8/10/08)

Yep, Makes the lawn go crazy.

cheers

Darren


----------



## Batz (8/10/08)

Darren said:


> Yep, Makes the lawn go crazy.
> 
> cheers
> 
> Darren




Excellent Darren
I noticed you posted to this thread and wondering if it maybe lethal as a fertilizer :lol: :lol: 

Batz


----------



## Darren (8/10/08)

Hahaha Batz,

If you throw piles of spent grain on your lawn that will kill it 8)

cheers

Darren


----------



## Guest Lurker (8/10/08)

When people ask how I grow such juicy tomatoes, living on a perth sand dune, I explain that I have found sacks of special organic fertilizer. It a bit complicated, you have to hold it at a particular temperature before adding to the tomato bed, but as a bonus, you can use the waste product to make beer.


----------



## Sunshine_Brewer (8/10/08)

Batz said:


> Excellent Darren
> I noticed you posted to this thread and wondering if it maybe lethal as a fertilizer :lol: :lol:
> 
> Batz



If you guys wnt to keep fertilising the lawn so you can mow it every weekend then grreat! there is something about having a coldie after mowing the lawn...
But give it to your animals first if you have any, chickens love trub when it is diluted slightly with water then chook grain is added over night so it can absorb the vitamins within. Nothing but slightly swollen grain which is easier for them to digest. Next is the pigs, they absolutely gulp it down as do the heffers...mooooo!
then i would give it to your trees or your shrubs, then your compost or worm farm then maybe your lawn if you really enjoy those hard earned thirsts :chug: and if your really keen make some promite its great in gravy.


----------



## Batz (8/10/08)

Darren said:


> If you throw piles of spent grain on your lawn that will kill it 8)
> 
> cheers
> 
> Darren




Chooks around here love brew day 


Batz


----------



## Darren (8/10/08)

I have one chook (fox got the other). She too loves brewday (25 kilos usually). She actually prefers the pile of spent malt a few days later when its full of maggots  

cheers

Darren


----------



## Ducatiboy stu (8/10/08)

Batz said:


> Could be interesting in a septic system :lol:
> 
> Batz




Actually it goes well in septics....

The yeast is fairly high in nutrients and is organic so makes a good fertilizer. Its Ph would only be the same as your beer...

And spent grains make an awsome compost mulch...


----------



## Ducatiboy stu (8/10/08)

Batz said:


> Chooks around here love brew day
> 
> 
> Batz




Bastard chooks. I have to be very careful NOT to leave any grains out of my site....I have even had the bloody thing in my mash tun when I took the lid off and went inside to get a big spoon... 


Damn things have even broken into full un opened sacks of grain....very expensive chook food :angry:


----------



## Mantis (8/10/08)

Darren said:


> I have one chook (fox got the other). She too loves brewday (25 kilos usually). She actually prefers the pile of spent malt a few days later when its full of maggots
> 
> cheers
> 
> Darren



Yep, chooks love any moving thing, cockroaches, earwigs, snails slugs etc etc. I would like to let them roam my garden to clean up the pests, but they would also destroy the vegie patch. Also the Jack Russell loves killing them. I taught him as a pup to get the birds, meaning the blackbirds that scratch all the mulch off the patch, but he now kills anything with feathers , sigh.


----------



## ikern (9/10/08)

+1 for the spent grains. They make an excellent mulch. We have very sandy soil and I spread the grains out in a 1" layer and it seems to form a hard crust that water still goes straight through but seems to retain the moisture in the soil very well.

Hops, break and yeast trub all goes on the garden beds also (after dilution with the garden hose). No ill effects so far.

Soz.


----------



## brettprevans (9/10/08)

+1 for all things beer related going into the soil. only thing to keep in mind is that hops can be poisonous to dogs, so dont let them get at it if you can help it. Ive got a dog and he's never shown any interest in hops, so its not a big worry. he does loves some spent grain mixed up in his food though.


----------



## staggalee (9/10/08)

That`s right re. hops being toxic to dogs.  
On another note, when we got our minature Fox Terrier, I always gave him the yeast deposit from the bottom of the bottle, which he lapped up like there was no tomorrow. He`s 14 now, built like a little brick shithouse and still runs like the wind  
And yes, trub can only do good things for your lawn/garden. If there is a lot of hop residue in it though , I`d be hosing it well in, case the dog gets curious.

staggalee


----------



## TidalPete (9/10/08)

Sunshine_Brewer said:


> If you guys wnt to keep fertilising the lawn so you can mow it every weekend then grreat! there is something about having a coldie after mowing the lawn...
> But give it to your animals first if you have any, chickens love trub when it is diluted slightly with water then chook grain is added over night so it can absorb the vitamins within. Nothing but slightly swollen grain which is easier for them to digest. Next is the pigs, they absolutely gulp it down as do the heffers...mooooo!
> then i would give it to your trees or your shrubs, then your compost or worm farm then maybe your lawn if you really enjoy those hard earned thirsts :chug: and if your really keen make some promite its great in gravy.



I find that adding a little dolomite & blood & bone to the compost bin gets the pH back on track & keeps the worms happy & yeh, dumping your fermenter sludge on a bare spot of lawn is good too.

TP :beer:


----------



## reviled (9/10/08)

I just got my first hop rhyzome :icon_drool2: Yay!!!

And I also happen to need to bottle a batch tonight, should I plant my rhyzome, then go bottle the beer, then layer some trub over it to encourage growth?


----------



## staggalee (9/10/08)

I`d be giving the rhyzome a couple of weeks to establish itself in new surroundings first, then give it a dose. For what you pay for rhyzomes,you wouldn`t want to overdo it for the sake of a bit of trub that would be chucked out anyway.

staggalee.


----------



## Sammus (9/10/08)

I tried dumping spent grain on a corner of my lawn (about 5 times in different corners) and raked it out a bit. Killed whatever it touched. Maybe in smaller doses it would be OK, or throw it in a worm farm or compost heap as suggested earlier.


----------



## Jawaman (9/10/08)

dumping all trub/ hops / rinsing water will not only help your garden but also will reduce your carbon footprint....let's petition Kevin Rudd and get a tax exemption on all brewing supplies...... I love the way my home brewing helps the environment....


----------

