Q. I understand that a wonderful organic fertilizer for my vegetable garden is manure tea. How do I make this brew, and how much do I use on my crops?

A. This liquid is used at transplant time and again every three weeks or so. Fresh, not aged, manure from horses, sheep or cows is "soaked" in water at the rate of one part manure to 10 parts water for several days to one week. The manure is then strained through burlap, sacking or cheesecloth, and the resulting tea water becomes the concentrate of your liquid fertilizer. Since the theory of "less is more" holds true with fertilizing, especially for tender young vegetable transplants, dilute this liquid even further until it is the color of a pale herbal tea.