05/26/2025
Growing the bocking 14 Russian comfrey plant is like growing your own fertilizer .
Symphytum is a genus of flowering plants in the borage family, Boraginaceae, known by the common name comfrey. It is also known by the name of knitbone or boneset as herbalists often used this as a topical agent in healing .
Comfrey is a source of fertilizer to the organic gardener. It is very deep rooted and it acts as a dynamic accumulator, mining a host of nutrients from the soil. The nutrients that are available in comfrey are made available through its fast-growing leaves (up to 1.8–2.3 kilograms (4.0–5.1 lb) per plant per cut) which, lacking fibres, quickly break down to a thick black liquid. There is also no risk of nitrogen loss when comfrey is dug into the soil as the C:N ratio of the leaves is lower than that of well-rotted compost. Comfrey is an excellent source of potassium, an essential plant nutrient needed for flower, seed and fruit production. Its leaves contain 2–3 times more potassium than farmyard manure, mined from deep in the subsoil, tapping into reserves that would note normally be available to plants.
Bocking 14 is sterile, and therefore will not set seed (one of its advantages over other cultivars as it will not spread out of control), thus is propagated from root cuttings
Place the comfrey leaves in a bucket or container.
Fill the bucket with water, ensuring the leaves are submerged.
You can add a brick or other weight to help keep the leaves submerged.
Cover the bucket with a lid or mesh to keep out pests and debris.
Brewing the Tea:
Let the mixture sit in a shady location for 1-2 weeks.
Stir the mixture every few days to help it break down.
The leaves will eventually turn a dark, black mass, indicating it's ready.
Dilution and Application:
Once the tea is ready, strain the liquid and discard the leaves.
Dilute the comfrey tea with water before applying it to plants.
A common dilution ratio is 1 part tea to 10 parts water.
You can use the tea as a foliar spray by misting it onto the leaves of plants.
Alternatively, you can apply it to the soil around plants
