The Importance of Worms on the Plot

If you have a garden, allotment or grow in containers, you know the importance of soil quality. Adding organic matter will start the process of improvement by dramatically increasing the hugely beneficial and essential micro-organisms needed for successful plant growth, however the creatures that are often missing in this process are worms!

Worms feed on and digest this organic matter, and as it passes through their gut it is invaded by a myriad of beneficial bacteria, this is all excreted as worm casts. As these creatures travel through the earth they create burrows, allowing air and water to penetrate the soil, but most importantly they leave behind a trail of mucous and worm casts containing a magical mix of beneficial bacteria, fungii and micro-organisms that are essential for healthy earth.

If your soil is low in worms, until recently you would have had to buy them loose, then dig holes and place the creatures in them. This process actually submits your worms to quite a shock – they do not appreciate being handled and importantly, the soil is not familiar to them!

There are however now new products available to help eliminate the shock to the worm and save you having to handle them. For example, these invertebrates can be housed in a biodegradable container, the whole, unopened product is then planted in the soil, watered well and covered. The worms then make their way out, feeding on the container as they do so. This allows them to move out into the surrounding soil in their own time, adapting as they go, and after a while the product will decompose. One such product is Boxa Worms, with options suitable for compost or outdoors, from wormsdirectuk.co.uk

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