Ive been researching about vermicomposting and worm farming. Does anyone else here already do this? Im trying to understand the ph buffer aspect of worm castings. Im ultimately wanting to create my own supersoil ( living soil ) so i can start saving a little $$ to add to my grow in different aspects. I want to create a soil that i only have to top dress and water.
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I used to and it works well but its just easier to buy some and takes less room
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I think @CurrDogg420, has a lot of knowledge about this, and I think he is the one who was feeding his old root balls to the worms.
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@Medicineman33 im going to reap the benefits of both the castings and the breeding of worms. Theres not very many folks in my area who sell fresh castings and tea. Not to mention theres a bunch of tackle stores and a few pet stores ive spoken with who would be interested in local worms. Im also looking into breeding mealworms too.
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I am an organic farmer, and I have used vermiculture often. It is a great way to make fertile soil.
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Yes i liked fresh castings and mushroom compost as soil amendments
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@OrganicFarmer do you just topdress and go ? Do you ph or check ppm at all? Indoor or outdoor ? Sorry for pestering folks, i just need knowledge and reading through a bunch of commercial bs wastes ny time. Id rather hear from experience.
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I mixed into soil and top dressed if necessary if i was doing a long veg i then fed bloom nutes
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Some of my plants start indoors [controlled lighting, ventilation, and temps] and some of my plants are strictly outdoors. Plant species that are more difficult to germinate, I only do indoors. Or for when I want to get an early start, I start indoors. I generally topdress with worm castings. I always check pH.
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When feeding your worms, we generally mix shredded newspaper and cardboard with table scraps. Some newspapers have been really good about using non-toxic food-grade inks, and that is an important thing to keep in mind.
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I’ve been doing this since 2012. Ask away. I may have an answer. This was my first cannabis grow. It’s turning out ok. I was watering every time with my own worm tea until the ppm got a bit high.
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You can’t just top dress with worm castings. You want to mix it in with your soil at 15% or so. Top dressing can lead to a hard layer on top if it dries out, preventing air circulation, among other things. You’re better off just watering with worm tea.
Worm castings are super concentrated, but they aren’t synthetic. They won’t burn your plants. They feed the soil so the soil can feed the plants. Synthetic fertilizers kill the soil and feed plants directly.
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Newspapers use soy-based ink, usually. There’s nothing to worry about with that. A big problem is the plastic on everything. Even things that look like they’re simply cardboard have plastic on them. If you shred stuff before adding them to your worm beds, you may be picking plastic pieces out for days if you shredded some of that cardboard.
Avoid the shiny stuff because that’s where that problem starts, usually. Careful with acidic things like citrus, as they contain enzymes that can literally dissolve the worms.
Windrows are great for a larger outdoor worm bed. Just use cardboard, straw, mulch, etc to cover them. 100% shade and moisture equivalent to a wrung-out-sponge is what you’re shooting for. Temps like we enjoy. 75-80…up to 90ish. Down to 40…ish.
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Wormcastings are still an inoculant. The inside of a worm’s stomach is covered in digestive juices. All the dirt pushed through the stomach is coated in those juices and digestive bacteria [stuff that breaks down tiny pebbles into basic nutrients]. In humans, we think of Lacto-bacteria because they are focused on helping us to digest cow milk [lacto–].
You can mix it in, or you can top dress and water. The micro-organisms will flow with the water down deep into the soil, either way.
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Pure worm castings will become hard like concrete if it dries out. That’s why top dressing isn’t recommended.