Nov 27, Worm Compost

Worm Compost: What it is and how your plants will benefit?

Worms sometimes get a bad reputation. After all, they look slimy and squiggly which makes some people feel a bit repulsed. But really worms are one of the great workhorses in nature.

You could think of them as nature?s recyclers because that?s what they do in the wild: they recycle what they find and return it to the soil where it helps more things grow. So how did this help you as a gardener? Well, you can take advantage of the worm?s natural recycling capabilities by getting involved in the worm compost process.

What is Worm Compost (worm castings)?

You?re probably already familiar with the term compost that refers to decaying materials that are used as fertilizer. This type of compost is the same type of fertilizer but it?s made by the worms using materials you provide.

Here?s how it works.

You gather up kitchen scraps, fallen leaves, branches, or any other waste that would normally just end up in the trash and at the local landfill. Add those goodies to a special bin filled with hungry worms and let the worms dine to their hearts? content.

As a result of the worm?s digestion, you?ll end up with an easy to apply liquid fertilizer and worm castings which can also be added to soil for further enrichment.

Even if you?re not too keen on having lots of worms around, don?t worry. Making the compost is not going to involve a lot of direct contact with the worms. You?ll provide them with a comfortable home in the bin, as well as a balanced diet of things for them to eat.

Then you?ll collect the digestion by-products from beneath the bin. Incidentally, you can buy composting bins that are already set up the way you want them.

The Benefits of Using Worm Castings

One of the biggest plant growth factors is you?re going to have better soil for growing all types of things, including plants and vegetables.

This beneficial compost is actually at work in the forests all over the world and is responsible for providing the rich soil things need to grow there. It?s a natural process that ensures the continued nutrient richness of the soil.

Why You Need Them and How to Get Them

Another benefit is that it?s good for the environment. Because the worms are going to be speeding up the decomposition of things you would normally just toss away and that would begin more junk in our landfills, you?re going to be easing the burden a bit.

You could also see health benefits from using worm castings. If you have richer soil and can grow more things better, you might be inclined to give up buying so much of your product in supermarkets. That would lower the amount of pesticides and herbicides being used on your foods dramatically.

Finally, you?ll also find that composting with worms is much easier than any other method.Because the bins are small and relatively odor-free, you can keep them anywhere, even in an apartment. And don?t forget that you?ll be giving a wonderful life to some very deserving worms.

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Use Compost, Save Money

August 22nd, 2010

Behold! My new Pinus Contorta “Taylor’s Sunburst”!

I know it doesn’t look anything special now, but this is one rare and amazing plant. In the spring the new growth lights up to a bright yellow (in contrast with the dark green older growth) in an amazing display. In Spring it will look like this:

So, did I name this post incorrectly? What does this tree have to do with compost and saving money? Well as I said, this is one rare and amazing plant. At Gee Farms, where I bought mine, a new grafted one about 6 inches tall is $50. A 4 foot one is $900. Mine, listed at 2 foot (but really two and a half+, I was told it has been potted up for sale at that size for 2 seasons), was $200.

Pretty expensive. If 4 feet is $900 then each half foot is over $100, and each inch is just under $20, lets round up and call it $20 an inch.

I make my own compost with my compost tumbler, but despite the fact that I compost just about everything I can. All garden waste, tree trimmings, all kitchen scraps that aren’t meat, etc. Despite all that, I garden so much I can’t make enough compost to fulfill all my garden needs. So I always ending buying more.

At the garden center 40 pound bags of topsoil are about $1 each, 40 pound bags of composted manure are $1.50 each. The compost however is a far far better growing medium. When you plant something you have just that one opportunity to improve the soil, you need to take it.

I’ve heard in some places when you plant a tree you should mix some native soil into the planting hole because you don’t want the tree to get “confused” or “disappointed.” I don’t buy it, for one, trees don’t think, they don’t have feelings, and in nature, all the time, will tree roots go through different types of soil. Secondly, I’ve noticed no problems planting trees in super improved soil, in fact, I’ve noticed only benefits. I think this whole theory was a result of one guy’s poor intuition that unfortunately caught on.

So anyways, you should always plant your new plants in the best soil possible, and full compost is the best soil possible. Yes, it is more expensive than top soil, but it is not expensive, it is still cheap, just not as cheap. Suppose a tree planted in composted manure grows just 1 inch per year more than a tree planted in top soil. With my new tree that 1 inch is worth $20 a year. I only needed to buy 4 bags of compost for this tree, so that is only $2 in extra cost, for $20 the first year, and that is if the compost only gives me 1 extra inch, if it gives a larger benefit the benefit is even higher.

Of course my tree is really expensive, not all trees are, but mine is also slow growing, and not all trees are. If you had a fast growing tree like a lombardy poplar you might get an extra foot or two per year by planting in really good soil.

An ounce of prevention equals a pound of cure, and a bag of compost up front can give you pounds of wood down the road. Spend the couple extra quarters up front and get bagged compost for all your planting (I also plant veggies directly in it), your plants will do better, and the increased yields and growth will far far outweigh the incremental cost of the compost.

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