Worm Poo!!!
Ok.. worm castings
Castings is just a fancy word for worm poop.
Castings are the end result of worm digested bedding and food scraps. While the worms are digesting the organics many insoluble minerals are converted to plant-based soluble forms. Worm casting are several times richer in available nitrogen, phosphates, potash than traditional compost. Castings also contain 10 to 20 times more microbial activity as well.
Each casting is in-cased in mucus, which helps soil retain moisture. The casting are used as soil enhancer and can be mixed in at a ration anywhere from 1:3 to 1:4 with other soils. Castings can also be made into a tea and used as a liquid feed.
So how do I harvest the casting?
There are two main methods.
- Box dump and sort.
- Box migration.
- Flow through system.
Migration
This method works on the principal that the bedding is mostly devoid of food and the worms will migrate over to fresh food.
- Begin by not feeding the worms for about a week (excess food can be place in the freezer for later).
- Push all the old bedding to one side of your bin and place fresh bedding and food in the other.
- Over the next couple of weeks only place fresh food in the new bedding.
- Soon all of your worms will have migrated over to the new bedding and you can remove the finished castings
Dump and sort
This method works on the principal that compost worms will always move away from a light source.
- Place a large plastic sheet on a flat surface and place your castings in several mounds.
- Begin by removing the very top layer of castings and the castings around the base of the mound.
- Wait a few minutes between layer removal to allow the worms to bury back down to the bottom of the mound.
- In the end you should have a pile of worms at the bottom which are easily removed from a few bits of castings.
Tower systems and flow through systems
Flow through systems work on the principal that compost worms are surface and shallow dwellers.
Flow through systems will not work with other types of earthworms, because other earthworm make deep burrows and will stay deep in the castings, unlike compost red worms who keep to the top feeding area.
Tower flow through systems can be constructed from layered bins with mesh bottoms. To harvest these you simply empty the bottom bin and sue the casting.
There are also many cone shape systems that after a set time you release the bottom and the casting fall out.
These systems are “hands free” harvesting and there are many different varieties.
What can I do with my casting?
Natural fertilizer.
The casting can be added to potting soil mixture for new plants or baskets, ratios of potting soil to castings is somewhere between 1 part soil to 3 or 4 parts castings. The castings can also be added as a top dressing for house plants or dug right into your outside garden and flower beds. Great for balconies with those big heavy pots, instead of changing our the soil just feed it!
Can you tell which of the plants were feed with worm castings?
Tea Anyone?
“Worm Tea” is the process where castings are placed in water for a few days and stirred to add oxygen, the resulting brown tea like liquid is used as a fertilizer for your indoor and outdoor plants. By placing the castings in a fine mesh “tea bag” you can use the worm tea in a spray bottle a natural pesticide spray on your plants to help combat pests. Like composting with worms making Worm Tea can be as easy or as elaborate as you want.
Worm Tea is best used within a day or two after it is made. It should smell like fresh soil and rain. If it begins to smell don’t use it, the beneficial microbes have gone anaerobic.
Simple Worm Tea
To make worm tea you will need a bucket, worm castings and water. There is no exact ratio of water to castings but use appox 4 litres to one cup of castings. Use non chlorinated water, like rain water, or let your tap water sit for 24 hours to help remove the chlorine before you start. You can place the castings directly into the water or if you plan on using the tea as a spray you should place the castings into a small fine mesh bag or an old sock so that it doesn’t clog the spray bottle. (Everyone has that pile of single socks left over from the dryer). Stir the water and castings often to add oxygen and let the tea steep for 12 to 24 hours.
New and improved Worm Tea
With the addition of a molasses and oxygen you can easily increase the beneficial microbes in your worm tea. To the castings and water add 1 tablespoon of molasses, the molasses are used as a food source for the microbes and it increases the beneficial bacteria and effective microorganisms dramatically. Like the basic method we add oxygen into the bucket, not by stirring, but by aerating the worm tea by blowing air through the mixture. This added oxygen to the water results in an explosion of the effective microorganisms
Natural pestiside spray
Want to use the Worm tea as a natural pesticide spray? Add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to your finished worm tea. When sprayed on the plant leaves the oil helps the tea stay on the leaves and helps smother any unwanted bug eggs and larvae.
