Worm Tea and Vermicomposting: A Guide for Beginners Towards a Healthy Garden

A Garden is composed of different elements, and each of them plays a significant role in making the system work and flourish. Even from the smallest to large organisms, all of them have a contribution to maintain the system’s equilibrium.

Nutrient-rich soil is an essential element that can make plant growth possible. However, not all areas have these kinds of soil. To help you with that, let’s turn to one of the smallest yet most important parts of the system: Earthworms. A garden that has these creatures greatly benefits from their activity in the soil.

Worm composting is one of the best organic soil enhancers, it is less expensive and environmentally friendly compared to inorganic fertilizers. Sometimes, the least appreciated and recognized organism has the most significant purpose in the ecosystem. If you like to know more about worm composting, you can continue reading right down below.

What is Worm Composting?

Worm composting is also known as vermicomposting or vermiculture. It is an organic, sustainable, and inexpensive form of composting. This process involves compost using worms; worms as the primary decomposers are fed with vegetable scraps, shredded paper, food pieces, leaves, wood ashes, and other food waste in the compost pit to undergo the natural way of decomposition.

The natural process of worm digestion is what makes the composition possible. The worms produce material that will naturally mix into the soil and produce quality fertilizers for your garden. This organic fertilizer or “worm tea” contains phosphates, potassium, nitrogen, and other essential nutrients  that the plants need to survive.

Vermicomposting

Vermicomposting or worm composting is a sustainable, natural, and odor-free solution that produces high quality fertilizer for your garden. The worms that produce the material for worm tea don’t need much attention as long as you have maintained the temperature of 60-80°F, pH, and soil moisture. 30 minutes of your time can be enough to maintain and check their condition. Below are lists of benefits you can acquire from vermicomposting that benefit both the environment and your home.

• Reduce Household Waste – Every household produces waste every day. Vermicomposting is an excellent solution for getting rid of organic wastes such as food scraps, vegetable peelings, and any other biodegradable waste material. Instead of filling up landfills with these wastes, why not let worms do their job and give you natural fertilizer for your garden?
• Great Family Bonding Activity – Vermicomposting can be done even with your little kids at home. It is a great family bonding activity with your kids. Activities such as these are an opportunity to teach your children conservation and proper waste management.
• Sustainable Fertilizer – Inorganic fertilizers can pollute the bodies of water and degrade the quality of the soil. Vermiculture on the other hand, produces an inexpensive and eco-friendly fertilizer that can be readily available right in your backyards’ compost pit. It can naturally enhance the quality of your soil without any side effects.

How to Start Worm Casting

Worm Casts and other waste products from the worms are essential products you get from worm composting. Successful worm composting involves proper preparation and management. If you’re just starting out, you can follow these steps below:

• Prepare the Container – Find a plastic container that cannot interfere with the natural process of worm farming. Punch out 5-6 holes on the container for ventilation and drainage purposes.
• Fill the Container with bedding – Put a wet newspaper at the bottom of the container before adding the soil from your backyard, sprinkle it with enough water for the soil to moisten.
• Settle the Worm in the Container – Place your earthworms in the prepared containers. For this part; you don’t have to worry about the amount of worms you need on the farm as worms can self-regulate their population when feeding correctly.
• Add the Right Compost – Although worms can eat any compostable waste; not all biodegradable waste is fit for them. Good compost can include fruit and vegetable scraps (none-citrus), soy products, tea bags, coffee grounds, eggshells, nuts and seeds, paper scraps, dried leaves, nutshells, human and pet hair, rice and pasta, and dried grass.

Avoid tossing harmful materials into the pit, including avocado rinds, pickled food, dairy products, eggs, meat, bones, pet feces, plastics, charcoal ash, sand, dead weeds, diseased plants, and cooking oil. This material can encourage harmful bacteria to thrive.

• Maintain and Harvest – A worm can eat half of its weight and reproduce fast. Under the right conditions, worms can grow their population within 3-6 weeks. Don’t worry about overpopulation as worms cannot last when there is not enough food. The amount you give them will limit their numbers.

After a few months, you can collect the worm’s waste in the bottom of the container. These waste products within the soil are the main ingredients for worm tea. Worm Tea is a healthy alternative for store-bought fertilizers.

Place the worm’s waste into a container and fill it with water. Close the container and allow it to settle overnight. After “brewing” the waste and water mixture, you now have your worm tea ready. Use worm tea to water your plants.

Takeaway

Vermicomposting is an excellent alternative for inorganic fertilizers as it doesn’t need much of an investment; it only requires your household waste and time to manage it. Aside from that, you are also helping the sustainability and conservation of nature. Be with nature, go organic.