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Heard about the benefits of worm castings in the garden? Keep reading to learn how to use this natural fertiliser to support the growth and health of your cannabis plants.
Worm castings are a powerful organic fertiliser rich in nitrogen and many other nutrients. Commonly used by all manner of gardeners and farmers, learn more about the benefits of worm castings for cannabis plants below, and how to apply them in multiple ways in your grow-op.
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Worm castings, also known as vermicast, are essentially the waste produced by red Californian worms (Eisenia fetida). Worms feed off of and decompose pretty much all organic matter, meaning that anything that once lived eventually becomes worm food—from fruits and vegetables to humans. As they feed, worms produce manure (i.e. worm castings), which, thanks to their unique digestive systems, are rich in nutrients and beneficial microbes that benefit the growth of plants and help to establish a healthy soil ecosystem.
The term "vermiculture" refers to the process of breeding and producing worms to decompose waste. If you've got a worm bin at home, you're actively practising vermiculture already. If you don't, getting started is as simple as getting your hands on some Californian red worms, giving them a home in a bin or similar structure and feeding them (which is as simple as reserving the scraps from your kitchen every time you cook).
The term vermicompost, on the other hand, refers to the final product produced by composting worms (i.e. worm castings). Worm castings are dark brown or black in colour and have a texture similar to coffee grounds. They smell like fresh, fertile earth and can be used to top-dress potted plants or mixed directly into your soil/potting mix before planting.
Farmers and gardeners have long been using worm castings to fuel the growth of their plants. And cannabis growers can do the same. Worm castings are a great fertiliser with many benefits for cannabis plants, including the following.
Worm castings, like other forms of manure, are naturally rich in nutrients and organic matter that your weed plants can absorb to fuel their growth. The most prominent nutrient is nitrogen (in the form of highly concentrated nitrates), but worm castings also contain a rich array of other nutrients, including:
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Unlike regular chemical fertilisers, however, the nutrients in worm castings aren't readily available to plants, which greatly minimises the risk of overfeeding. The nutrients in worm castings first need to be broken down by soil organisms, and thereby offer a much slower release of nutrients to your plants, allowing for gradual, more controlled feeding.
Besides providing a variety of nutrients for your cannabis plants, worm castings also improve the quality of your soil considerably. And as we've said in many of our other articles on cannabis growing, healthy soil is the key to healthy marijuana plants. Some of the ways worm castings improve soil include:
Through their rich concentration of nutrients, worm castings directly stimulate both the vegetative growth of cannabis plants and their ability to produce healthy, resinous flowers. However, studies show that worm castings also benefit plants by:
As mentioned earlier, the nutrients in worm castings aren't readily available to your plants like those found in liquid chemical fertilisers. Instead, they are released into the soil gradually and in a controlled manner. Plus, many of the organisms present in your soil ecosystem will also feed off the nutrients in worm castings. Therefore, worm castings are very unlikely to cause nutrient burn in cannabis plants.
Making worm castings is a pretty straightforward process and only requires three ingredients:
🗑️ A vermicompost/compost bin
🐛 Red Californian earthworms
🍐 Organic matter to feed the worms
Vermicomposting has gained a lot of attention lately, meaning vermiculture products such as worm farms are becoming ever more accessible. Even in large cities, growers have, in some way or another, incorporated vermicomposting into their lifestyle.
If you want to start making your own vermicompost for your cannabis garden, either shop for a worm bin to suit your needs or consider building one.
Not all worms are equally effective for composting. By far the most commonly used worms for vermiculture are Eisenia fetida, which you can buy from garden centres or grow shops. A single node/pack of worms is usually all you'll need to get your vermicompost started. In spring and summer, the worms will reproduce very actively and, as long as you keep an eye on the mix of ingredients you're putting in your bin, you'll soon have more worms than you'll likely need.
Arguably the biggest challenge of making your own worm castings is maintaining a healthy compost bin. Essentially, this involves putting the right amount of the right ingredients into your compost. Without getting too detailed, this basically boils down to striking the right balance between:
Some of the main concerns about the quality of worm castings are:
Ideally, the best worm castings for weed are those that you make yourself using a compost bin or heap. However, not every cannabis grower has the time or space to dedicate to composting (which is understandable). In that case, we recommend buying high-quality worm castings from a garden shop/centre. Where possible, be sure that the worm castings are relatively fresh or have been stored appropriately.
Using worm castings in your cannabis garden is a simple way to fertilise your plants, promote soil health, and strengthen the root zone. In what follows, we’ll teach you how to use worm castings to support the health and growth of your cannabis garden.
One of the best ways to use worm castings in your cannabis grow is as a soil amendment:
Another great way to use worm castings in your cannabis grow is to apply it directly to the topsoil. Apply roughly 0.5–1 cup (8–16 tablespoons) of worm castings in a circle around the base of your weed plants.
Last but not least, you can also fertilise your cannabis plants by using worm castings to make a nutrient-rich "tea."
Worm castings have long been a favourite among gardeners and farmers. To cannabis growers, they offer all the same benefits and make for a natural, versatile fertiliser that not only feeds your plants, but also improves soil health and structure.