Planting the Plains: Making Your Own Compost Tea

By Anthony Reardon

Published April 3, 2026 at 6:00 AM CDT

Compost tea isn’t a beverage, but it’s a great way to use the nutrients from your composting to make an easily spreadable liquid you can apply almost anywhere. This week, we’ll talk about how and why you may want to consider making a batch, and seeing what it can do for your garden!

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Planting the Plains Planting the Plains

Anthony Reardon

Anthony Reardon is the Horticulture – Small Farms Extension Agent for Johnson County, Kansas.

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Planting the Plains: Surveying Soil Structure

Anthony Reardon

Your soil might not need amending, but how do you know? And do you know much about how your soil is structured? Knowing this, and how to treat it if you've got a lot of clay in your yard, can really make a huge difference. This week, we'll talk about this, and the value of compost in improving your conditions!
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Planting the Plains: Fall Garden Check-in

Anthony Reardon

Fall is a good time to handle a few maintenance items in your garden, but it's also a good time to make some notes on what grew well and what didn't, and the more things you track in those notes can also make a difference. Learn more in this week's episode!
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Planting the Plains: The Fall Finish Line

Anthony Reardon

Yep, it's fall once again, and time to think both about what you can do to clean up this year's garden, and also what you can do now for next year's garden. Check out this week's episode to hear how you can get across the finish line this fall!
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Planting the Plains: Preparing for a Freeze

Anthony Reardon

As the weather cools down, and we await the appearance of frost formed overnight, it's time to consider what you can do to ready your plants for the coming changes. This week, we'll talk about how to prepare for a freeze!
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Planting the Plains: Readying Your Lawn for the Cool Season

Anthony Reardon

It's great to keep your lawn healthy in the cooler months, but to do so, you'll really benefit from knowing about various types of grasses. But, wait...there's more! Do you know what type of soil you have in your yard? Understanding BOTH of these is the key before putting in your new grass, and we'll talk more about this in this week's episode!