Is Vermiculture Destroying Your Potted Plants or Making Them Thrive?

Is vermiculture a blessing or a curse for potted plants? After months of struggling with my garden, I finally uncover the shocking truth behind why my plants are dying—and the answer might surprise you. In this video, I reveal how California Red Wigglers are wreaking havoc in my potted plants, turning the soil to dust and leaving my roots dry. I'll show you the devastating effects these worms can have and how I developed a simple trap to solve the problem. Learn how to protect your plants from this hidden enemy and restore your soil's health. Watch till the end to discover how to make a DIY worm trap that really works! 🌱🐛

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Tags: #compostingworms #pottedplants #vermiculture

[S.Senara]

Hey there! I thought I would share a few things that helped me with a similar problem. For reference I live in Nevada where we get almost no rain, our soil is completely dead, and the plant life in general struggles to even grow a natural weed. So soil health and proper watering is essential for me to not have to pay an arm and a leg for “good” soil.

I have to play a very delicate balancing act to keep worms alive without dominating, and the soil rich enough to sustain life and let it thrive. I grow in containers strictly because I do not own my property and cannot change the pre existing landscape. Here’s how I’ve found success so far.

1. Grow bags over grow containers. Bags do a lot, in regards to what you mentioned as problems. They would keep the dirt completely inside the bags so you aren’t washing away as many precious minerals, there’s things you can do to keep all the minerals but having more air and a better lock on good soil helps to keep it all in the container plus the worms dry out and die off more often if the soil gets dry which happens faster in a grow bag which usually means more watering but with number 2 that problem is solved

2. Water proof tarp underneath everything. I keep a tarp underneath the grow bags to hold any excess water. This makes it abundantly clear when I need to water as well as it prevents any nutrients from being washed away. The roots will reach the bottom of the bag and continue to drink water as long as it is there and if the water can’t run off neither can your nutrients. This will also allow the soil closer to the top of the container to be dryer and less hospitable to worms making them less likely to survive in general and their dead bodies add to the nutrients of the plants, they can die off too quickly however and that’s why number 3 matters.

3. Compost directly into your pots. The worms need more food in order to survive now so add extra plant waste directly to the container every month or so, and completely replace the soil once a year. Over time your soil will get higher and higher if you don’t.

Ultimately the solution is simple as long as you give the excess water and nutrients somewhere to go that the plant roots can still reach as well as allowing the worms and roots access to more air and the worms access to more food

[JustinMcThinker-gn]

Your pots are like a birds paradise! 🐦

[Eden-ovqw]

I'm not having problems with composting worms. I use them all the time and used them for 3 years now in Pots, raised beds, and in the garden. I will be watching more closely though, so thanks!

[piotrjasielski]

That's why I have an intermediate bin. I extract castings, keep them in the bin for at least half a year for eggs to hatch and extract the babies with a little bit of food in the middle.

[republiccan]

Thank you I am sure many people have this problem

[mr.obsidian]

Repot them with new soil mix and dump the old soil back in the compost

[vixwolf]

There might be a way to pull them out using a modified version of a worm bucket system

[branchingoutpermaculturewi]

hey alex great video. im just catching up on your videos. cheers mate

[rosabaca-miller]

Hi! Can you give us an update on your cherry trees??? Thank you

[williambronson]

I'm just surprised its red wrigglers rather than Asian jumping worms.

[East_of_Hightower]

Yikes! I did not know thisS I’m thinking I may have had the same issue this summer.

[tyronedarlow]

Hey up Alex a no av done mi motorbike licence but I did t no u ad done Yr aeroplane licence that's takein the micky keep up the good work pal n go steady on that red wine lol