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Bring your soil back to life with worm castings

Spring is here and it is time to plant in Texas. Worm castings are rich in P,N,K but the most valuable component are the beneficial microbes that will add life to soil and plants. We have a ton of worm castings at our two Texas farms. You can pick up a 10 lb bag for $20. Add a handful of castings to seedlings or brew up your own compost tea to really get the most out of just a few lbs of worm castings. You will be surprised just how far a small amount worm castings can go.

Here’s a video from a few years back where we brewed up 500 gallons with a combination of worm castings and compost.

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Categories Compost Tea Party, Worm Castings

Join us for worm composting and compost tea talk at the Alamo Heights Community Garden

16 Apr

Today Tuesday, April 16th, from 6-8pm at the Alamo Heights Community Garden Texas Red Worms will be with Green Spaces Alliance at 403 Ogden St. Join us for instruction and discussion on worms, composting, and compost tea.

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Categories TexasRedWorms workshops

Worms do their part to create lush lawns and landscapes

19 Sep

Check out this recent MySa.com article on the wonderful work going on in the King William historic district along the San Antonio Riverwalk at Villa Finale historic site and museum by head groundskeeper Orlando Cortinas. Worms do their part to keep Villa Finale lawns lush by Rose Mary Brudge.

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Categories Worms in the News

Join TexasRedWorms and Villa Finale today for A Beginner’s Guide to Vermicomposting

15 Sep

9/15 – A Beginner’s Guide to Vermicomposting (10:30am-12:00pm)

122 Madison
San Antonio, TX 78204
(210) 223-9800

Vermicomposting is the natural process by which red worms process waste and convert it into an efficient natural fertilizer. In this program, Kyle Harrell of Texas Red Worms will show participants how they can take kitchen waste to create a wonderful fertilizer that will enrich their garden soils and plants, all with the help of worms! All paid participants will receive a sample of Villa Finale’s compost and a few red worms to get them started at home. Comfortable dress is recommended. Space is limited – please call Villa Finale Visitor Services to make your reservation.

For more information on Kyle’s work, visit www.Texasredworms.com

$15.00 members
$25.00 non-members

Tags: add beneficial microbes to your soil, buy red worms, diy worm bin, organic fertilizer, organic gardening, organic pest control, red wigglers, red worm farming, red worms for sale in texas, texas red worms, vermicomposting, vermiculture, worms for sale, worms for sale in texas

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Categories RedWorm Farming Tips, TexasRedWorms workshops

Grow bigger healthier vegetables w/ worm castings

11 May

Last Spring was the first time my parents used worm castings exclusively to fertilize their garden. My mom and dad claimed their best tomato crop they can remember. We used a handful of castings with each tomato seedling, and the results were terrific. Even in one of the driest and hottest years on record, the taste, yield, and size of the tomatoes were outstanding.

Worm castings or earthworm manure is the best all natural fertilizer you can get. Beyond Potassium and Nitrogen, worm castings are alive with beneficial microbes. Beneficial bacteria, nematodes, and other tiny beneficials that will add life to plants and soil. You can maximize your castings harvest by brewing compost tea. You will need an aquarium pump, water, castings, and some unsulfured molasses to amplify the effects. Worm castings are the only manure that can be directly absorbed by plants roots. They are perfectly pH balanced and won’t burn up plants like other high in Nitrogen manures.

Tags: add beneficial microbes to your soil, buy red worms, compost tea, earthworm castings, houston red worms, organic fertilizer, organic gardening, organic pest control, red wigglers, red worm farming, red worm farming tips, red worms, red worms for sale in houston, red worms for sale in texas, san antonio red worms, texas red worms, vermicompost, vermicomposting, worm castings, worms for sale in texas

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Categories RedWorm Farming Tips, Success Stories

RedWorm Composting: Thanks for your participation this past weekend.

25 Jul

Thank you to all who came out to the San Antonio Botanical Garden this weekend. I have included some links and attachments to dig a little deeper into some of the topics we covered on Saturday.
Worm Handout pdf

Links:

• Care of worms– what to do when you get your worms.

• Harnessing the Earthworm – by Thomas J. Barrett

• Adding worms to your raised bed

• In ground bin

•Harvesting Worm Castings- My harvester

• Compost Tea

Thanks again to all who participated and to Sasha Kodet and the San Antonio Botanical Garden. Let me know if you have any questions, or if I can give you some feedback on your set up.

KyleHarrell@hotmail.com
210-310-5046
http://www.TexasRedWorms.com

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Categories RedWorm Farming Tips, TexasRedWorms workshops

Red Worm Composting at Historic Preservation Site in San Antonio, TX

11 Apr

Orlando Cortinas, Landscape Maintenance Technician for Villa Finale in the historic King William district in San Antonio, TX is doing some tremendous work on the museum grounds. He is bringing this historic property back to life, and working on some exciting organic methods to gardening and landscaping. Orlando has built a beautiful worm composting pit, and another composting bin for leaves, yard clippings, and food waste.

On my tour of the grounds, Orlando showed me his plans for a greenhouse, and compost tea brewer. Thanks Orlando, and the National Trust For Historic Preservation for your purchase with TexasRedWorms.com and the tour of your impressive property.

The first National Trust Historic site in Texas, this former home of preservationist and civic leader Walter Mathis was purchased in 1967. This home originally built in 1876 is now a museum, and a nearly 2 acre showcase along the San Antonio River on former Alamo farm lands.

Tags: add beneficial microbes to your soil, buy red worms, compost, compost tea, composting, composting bins, diy worm bin, eisenia foetida, houston red worms, make your own worm bed, organic fertilizer, organic gardening, Organic Landscaping, organic pest control, outdoor worm pit, raising red worms, red wigglers, red worm bin, red worm farming tips, red worms for sale in houston, red worms for sale in texas, Red worms in the news, san antonio red worms, save money with red worm farming, texas red worms, vermicompost, vermicomposting, vermiculture, worm bin composting, worm pit, worms for sale in texas

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Categories Red Worms, RedWorm Farming Tips, Success Stories, TexasRedWorms workshops

Compost Tea Time

18 Mar

This afternoon I began brewing up about 70 gallons of compost tea with worm castings I recently harvested. In about 12 hours my brew will be ready to apply to my plants and yard. If you are in the San Antonio area, and can pick up, I’ll be giving a gallon of actively aerated vermicompost tea away with a TexasRedWorm.com purchase. An application of compost tea will add life to your soil with beneficial micro organisms that will fight disease and pests, as well as, boost your plants growth. Active aeration prevents harmful anaerobic bacteria and other non-beneficial microbial activity. Applying compost tea within a few hours is best, after a few hours the brew begins to go anearobic.

Here’s a link for a recipe.

Be aware of store bought compost tea products claims that are sitting on the shelf. These products will not be aerobic and will not contain many of the benefits (beneficial microbes that require Oxygen) that are associated with actively aerated compost tea.

Tags: add beneficial microbes to your soil, buy red worms, compost, compost tea, composting, eisenia foetida, houston red worms, make your own compost tea, organic fertilizer, organic gardening, organic pest control, raising red worms, red wigglers, red worm farming, red worm farming tips, red worms, red worms for sale in houston, red worms for sale in texas, san antonio red worms, save money with red worm farming, texas red worms, vermicomposting, vermiculture, worm casting tea, worm tea

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Categories Compost Tea Party, Worm Castings

Compost tea benefits: Get rid of termites, fleas, ticks, chiggers, and more naturally.

10 Oct

This weekend I took a visit to East Texas to work on some of our worm beds. While loading manure from some piles to start a new worm bed, I noticed some termites in some fence posts, as well as, some fire ant mounds. I have had success with compost tea applications before in controlling ants, grubs, and fleas. So I started a small batch of tea with finished compost and some redworm castings. I also did a little research to see if anyone had had any experience with termites and found this article. Microbes like nematodes and bacteria can be amplified with a quality finished compost and brewed into actively aerated compost tea. Beneficial predators that can control and eliminate many pests. So if you have a roach, ant, flea, tick, grub, cigger, termite or other problem chances are actively aerated compost tea can come to the rescue.

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Categories Compost Tea Party

Compost tea results

16 Aug

I had mentioned in my previous post that positive indicator for my compost tea application was to rid a section of our hay patch of ants. The spot of concern has been infested for a few years with “town ants” or Texas leaf cutter ants. Town ant hills were sprinkled throughout a 20 yard X 20 yard area. The operative word being “were” because two weeks later the ant hills are vacant.

Beneficial microbes in compost tea are parasites to ants, fire ants, fleas, ticks, and chiggers. I had had success in my lawn in getting rid of some of these pests with compost tea, but never on this scale. This alone is encouragement enough for us to continue compost tea applications, and we’re looking forward to the next batch.

Tags: add beneficial microbes to your soil, buy red worms, chiggers, compost, compost tea, compost tea and pests, fertilizing hay fields with compost tea, fire ants, fleas and tick control, get rid of ants organically, getting rid of ants in your yard, houston red worms, natural pest control, organic fertilizer, organic gardening, organic pest control, red wigglers, red worm bin, red worm farming, red worms, red worms for sale in texas, san antonio red worms, texas red worms, town ants, turning 500 gallon spray rig into compost tea maker, worm bin composting, worm casting tea, worm tea

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Categories Compost Tea Party

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