When you plant your vegetable plants, whether in a small garden or a whole field, you often want to add some sort of fertilizer or nutrient-dense soil to supply them with the chemicals they need for growth and vitality. Some people use general-purpose compost for this purpose, but there is an alternative: worm castings. Worm castings are a mixture of composted plant matter and worms — plus the plant matter that the worms have already broken down and digested. They can be a great source of nutrition for your veggie plants, but they have a few small downsides, too. Here are some pros and cons to explore before using worm castings for your vegetable plants.
Pro: They will continue supplying good nutrition
As the worms continue to break down more plant matter, there will be more and more free nutrients available for your plants to use. In other words, this is a fertilizer that keeps on giving, rather than a one-and-done application. This can save you time, as you won't have to reapply worm castings as often as you would other composts or fertilizers.
Con: Worm castings can be tough to work into the soil
Since there are live worms in the mixture, you can't be too forceful when you work the worm castings into the soil. You will need to do so gently, and sometimes even by hand. If your existing soil is really hard or compacted, you'll need to work it a lot before it's loose enough to gently mix the worm castings into.
Pro: You'll be supporting the soil's living ecosystem
With worm castings, you are not just adding nutrients to the soil to be used by your veggie plants. You're introducing worms to the soil to enhance its ecosystem, going forward. That soil will be more nutritious for a long time thanks to the presence of those worms.
Con: Worm castings are expensive
They're not that easy to cultivate, so those that make worm castings do charge quite a lot for them. If you're on a tight budget, this may not be the first soil supplementation to opt for since you can certainly grow decent veggies with compost or commercial fertilizer.
If you can afford them and don't mind working them into the soil gently, worm castings can be a great choice for your vegetable garden. Talk to a retailer of worm casting composting supplies to learn more.
Is fall your absolute favorite time of the year? Perhaps, you’ve always wanted to plant a garden during this beautiful season. If you can relate to this scenario, you might be interested in growing pumpkins. Besides decorating both the outside and inside of your home with bright, orange pumpkins, you can enjoy cooking with them. Pumpkin pies and breads are scrumptious. Besides pumpkins, sweet potatoes, squash, cabbages, Brussels sprouts, and beets are other foods you can grow during the crisp, cool fall months. On this blog, I hope you will discover important tips to help you plant a fall garden. Enjoy!