Groundbreaking Fertilizer

Raise compost worms and harvest their waste, which is a natural and powerful plant fertilizer.

- jESSICA JAINCHILL

Sourcing fertilizer is one of the biggest concerns for farmers or homesteaders. Soil must be replenished and maintained yearly with fertilizers that are preferably chemical-free. While livestock manure often does the trick, not everyone wants the responsibility that comes along with raising big animals, especially if you live in an urban area.

Kyle and Jen Strickland, farmers and owners of Midwest Worms, believe that compost worms provide a way for urbanite and rural homesteaders to source a natural and powerful plant fertilizer right in their own home.

COMPOST WORM FERTILIZER BENEFITS

The main benefit compost worms provide is their fertilizer, which comes in the form of worm castings or what some people refer to as a gardener’s “black gold.” In simple terms, worm castings are worm manure. But unlike other manures, it does more than just fertilize your garden.

“Worm castings have an ability to retain higher quantities of moisture than soil, so when you add worm castings into your soil, your soil will naturally retain more water,” Kyle Strickland says. “Also, worm castings are good for the environment, which means it’s good for gardening. It’s better than any fertilizer you can buy. It’s 100% organic and natural.”

In his research, Strickland found that compost worm castings give plants a spectacular nutrient and immunity boost. “Basically, when a worm eats something and secretes it, the compost and worm castings have a high quantity of microorganisms and lots of nutrients and micronutrients for plants in it,” Strickland says. “[Compost worms] produce hormones that are scientifically proven to increase plants’ resistance to disease and increase their natural resistance to pests. It creates something in the plant that causes pests to be less attracted to the plants.”