How much should I dilute my homemade comfrey plant food?
June Stewart, by email
ACHRISTINE SAYS Producing your own liquid feed is rewarding and comfrey makes a satisfactory fertiliser, but beware of the strong smell. It is rich in plant nutrients, especially potash, which tomatoes need.
One recipe is to steep 3kg of leaves in 45 litres of water. Cover with a lid and then use undiluted after four weeks. However, you need somewhere to store this.
If you want to make a concentrate, place cut leaves into a container with a hole in it and place a collection bucket underneath. After two to three weeks, a dark, strong smelling liquid will drip out. This can be used at a concentration of 10-20 parts in water.
For tomatoes and cucumbers, dilute the concentrate at one part feed with 15 parts of water once the first truss and small cucumbers can be seen. The concentrate can be stored for the growing season. Any excess at the end of the season goes onto the compost.