Worms offer us so many benefits. They are called engineers of the ground. Worms are the ones who are responsible for decomposing our organic matter in the soil.
Worms provide worm tea. Worm tea is a natural fertilizer that you can get if you soak worm castings in water. Many people are unaware of the real importance of worms.
They think of worms as lowly creatures that live in the soil. But have you questioned yourself, what do worms do in the soil? Are worms just for decorations and stuff?
Worms actually do more than what we think they do. Just because they are tiny and helpless does not mean that they are of no use. Worms work in silence, and we are reaping the benefit every day.
When you are eating fruit, worms have something to do with that. If you are eating your vegetables, worms are a big part of that. If your plant waste and animal waste have decomposed, worms are the reason for that.
You see, the benefit of worms on our earth is present everywhere. Did you also know that worms are perfect fertilizers too? Let us talk about that.
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What Is Worm Tea?
Worm tea is a natural fertilizer. Worm tea can be made if you soak worm castings or worm manure in the water. Worms decompose organic matters by consuming them and breaking them into tiny pieces for decomposition.
If you have a worm bin, you can see how worms start to devour organic waste. When worms devour organic matters, they will make castings. These castings have nutrients and microorganisms that are very beneficial.
You might think that casting is worthless, but you are mistaken. You can make worm tea with these worm castings. All you have to do is take these worm castings or worm manure and soak them into water.
Read Also: Worm Wee
What Is Worm Tea Good For?
You might not have heard about worm tea before. Or you might have heard about it, but you do not know the benefits it brings to your soil.
If you are a gardener or you know someone who loves gardening, worm tea is your best friend in making your garden healthy. Instead of fertilizers, you can buy from the store. You can use worm tea as a substitute.
You will spend little to no amount at all, and the benefits can do so much better than commercial fertilizers. Nothing beats and organic and sustainable fertilizer. Worm castings are beneficial along.
When worms consume organic matter, they make this worm casting. Worm tea is just the same as worm castings, but it is in liquid form.
These worm castings are full of nutrients. If you make it into a liquid, you can still get that many nutrients out of it.
Does Worm Tea Really Work?
If you will worm castings alone, that is already beneficial and very good to the soil. If you make it into a liquid type, it is excellent for your garden.
Worm tea works. Here are some of the benefits you can get from using worm tea.
1. Worm Tea Can Serve As An Inoculant
Before planting your plants, it is essential if you do inoculation. You can worm tea as a precursor to growing your plants. The nutrients in the worm tea can prepare your soil and make your seedlings grow faster and healthier.
2. Worm Tea Can Speed Up Composting Process
If you want the breaking down process of organic matters to speed up, you can use worm tea. Worm tea will help in the decomposing of organic wastes.
3. Worm Tea Can Be Use As Foliar Spray
You can use worm tea as a foliar spray. When plants get sprayed with worm tea, your plants can grow more giant stems and more foliage. This can help your plants that are not getting enough sunlight.
4. Worm Team Can Save Polluted Soil
If you wish for your soil to be healthy, use worm tea. Worm tea can convert organic and inorganic materials. Your worm tea can clean your polluted soil and make it healthy for your plants.
If you will use worm tea, it is a big help for the environment. If you buy fertilizers in the store, that is also beneficial, but it is not sustainable, and it is not organic.
There are a lot of chemicals used in fertilizers, and that can also cause water pollution. With worm tea, you are helping the environment by being sustainable.
Can You Drink Worm Tea?
No! You cannot drink worm tea. As much as it is very beneficial to plants, it is not beneficial for humans.
Worm tea is for the soil and the plants. Do not consume worm tea.
How Often Should I Use Worm Tea?
You can use worm tea for your plants once a week. If you prefer, you can also use the worm team once every two weeks.
Of course, some people love to get their plants very healthy, and they use worm tea as often as they like as long as they are overwatering the plants.
How Do You Make Worm Tea?
Now that you know how beneficial and helpful worm tea is, we know you are interested in making one. So let us help you with that. In making worm tea, you can follow these simple steps to create your own.
First: You Need To Gather All Your Materials
The primary step is first to gather the materials you will need. This is to ensure the smoothness of the flow of making your first worm tea. The first material is that you will need a compost tea bag.
This compost tea bag can be any natural fiber bag. It would be best if you also had a five-gallon bucket of water without chlorine in it. You can use rainwater or any distilled water you can buy from a water shop.
The last and most important material is the worm castings. You cannot make worm tea without worm castings. Worm castings are the reason why worm tea exists.
It would help if you had your worm bin for those who do not know how to make worm casting. Make a worm bin. Add some soil and put in some organic wastes like fruit peelings or vegetables.
Make sure to put holes in the bin so you can allow air to go through it. Last, put your worms inside the worm bin.
These worms will make your worm castings. Once they eat the organic matter, they will create worm castings along the way. It is part of their decomposing.
Second: Get The Compost Tea Bag And Fill It With Worm Castings
The second step is to get the bag you just prepared. Get your worm castings and pour it all into the bag. After that, tie the open end of the bag and seal it shut.
Third: Soak The Bag To The Water
The third step is steeping. You get the bag filled with worm castings. Make sure it is shut tightly. Soak the bag into a bucket of water.
Fourth: Soak The Bag Overnight
To steep the bag properly, soak it overnight. This way, you can extract the worm castings properly. You will know if your worm tea is ready if the water will turn light brown.
In this step, you always have to remember that the water must be chlorine-free. This is crucial because chlorine can destroy good bacteria.
If you also want to conserve water, you can use rainwater. This is a sustainable act and a very good one too.
Fifth: Dilute Your Tea With Water
The last step is to get the bag out of the water after an overnight soak. Next is you need to dilute the water with additional water. Do not worry.
The tea will not lose its value. You also must know that the nutrients from worm castings can come from the organic waste that the worms consumed.
If you feed your worms a very well-balanced diet of fruits and vegetables, they will create the perfect worm castings.
Here are the five easy steps on how to make your worm tea. What are you waiting for? Try one now!
How Long Does It Take To Get Worm Tea?
In making worm tea, you can have it already for about two to three days. You only need to soak the worm castings overnight. If the water is already light brown, your worm tea is done and can already be ready to use.
Is Worm Tea Good For Citrus?
Yes. Worm tea is good for everything. While worms may not like citrus fruits, their worm castings have no problem with their healthiness and nutrients to citrus plants.
If you are growing citrus plants, you can use worm tea.
Summary
In summary, when worms consume organic matter, they produce worm castings. Worm castings may not look beneficial for some people. But it is.
Worm tea has so many benefits that it is used as an organic fertilizer for plants. Worm team is an alternative fertilizer without the chemicals. Worm tea will not create water pollution.
If you want to try an alternative fertilizer, try worm tea. It is sustainable, and you can even spend less money since you can make it at home.
Resources
Image credits – Canva
