Worms in the pots - why not?

[Crow]

Pretty soon I'll have 5 - 10 gallon SMART POTS filled with Coast of Maine, Stonington Blend organic soil and some plants of course.

These growing in my 4' x 7.5' x just under 8' tall, indoor/outdoor shed under 600 watt LEDs. The shed has an open floor - boards spaced apart as with porch decking and open 2x4 rafters with screening between to keep out critters. The room has insulated walls but with the open floor, open rafter tails and uninsulated ceiling it is at best a May through December grow room - and that's one month generous on both ends given average conditions - without adding heat. Ain't gonna' happin'!

I already have crickets and spiders in my shed so I wondered - What would be the harm in throwing a handful of RED WIGGLERS in each pot? I think I would be able to keep reusing the soil after harvest, if I built a decent worm farm system and that during the grow, the worms in the pot could only benefit the effort.

Any comments?? Be fun to hear ya'

Crow

[Canuck147]

Would be good. Helps air circulate. Throw in a Praying Mantis and you won't have any pest problems.
Many growers make their own blends of 'tea' which include dry worm casings, bird guano and the like.
Good luck growing, kind of setup I like - still kinda outdoorsy.

[Crow]

Cool! One green thumb up.

[redbeard]

For sure I'm all in one 200gallon pot I put in bout 500. I'm doing notill. Finishing my first round love it so far.

[Crow]

Do you add any "food" for the critters or do they just eat what's in your organic soil?

[redbeard]

Not like my worm bin . All my leaves get trimmed into my bed. Along with other stuff like comfrey, alfalfa ,chickery,dandelions and such. I bought a book that tells u whats in what plants thats how i pick. Anythimg left behind when i make compost or any tea that i make. These last couple rounds the last being in supersoil. I've been using sprouted seed teas. Corn for veg switching more to alfalfa and malted barley In flower. Also greenhouse is rite on with the mulch I also do cover crop and it also gets trimmed back into ur bed. But just started it this round. Happy gardening

[Crow]

Thanks redbeard that's good info! Apparently yellow cornmeal is a favorite and I'm thinking, pretty innocuous to the grow.

[GreenhouseEffect]

Go for it crow.
Get your self some hay or straw mulch for the surface, worms and plants love that, and when you side dress, just put the material right under the mulch. The worms will congregate there, and break it down into food for your plants. The feeder roots will grow up there as well.
Earlier in vedge, a little manure is good nunder there, as you get closer to flower, stay off the high Nitrogen stuff, bat Guano, compost, and more earth worm castings are good foods for flowering.

If you think about it, this is a lot like a forest floor, a layer of leaves and what have you, with worms, microbes, and benificial fungi breaking it all down for the roots, and we all know what grows in a forest, TREES. So copy cat nature, and grow ya some POT trees!

[Crow]

Short pot trees or I'll be in to my lights and right through the roof - LOL.

Crow

[GreenhouseEffect]

Got one about 5' 8" right now, that I'm trying to flower naturally, with a ceiling height of 81".
Fimming, followed by topping, Lst, and Super Cropping! Need more space!

[Crow]

UPDATE - WHY NOT - because it doesn't work!!!

TODAY - November 18 -

I "harvested" 2 of 5 of my plants. After I trimmed the growth off the stems I decided to empty out my pots to check the condition of the worms. In spite of having retrieved 2 this morning from under my pots and returning them to the soil AND in spite of having been told by more than several sources (including the guy who sold me the worms) that my plan to add live worms to my grow pots was an idea that had merit - after carefully sifting through the soil of both pots I found NO WORMS - not one.

If you have been following other posts I have written on the subject of my grow this summer, I have been writing that my plants and worms are "thriving". I am hugely embarrassed to now report that though the plants have done very well, the worms that I have been seeing throughout the grow (all under the pots when I moved them) were just those trying to escape to better digs.
They were so active and wriggly that I just assumed that they were indicators of what was going on under the mulch layer in amidst the plant roots. Admittedly I did not dig through the soil to look for activity as I did not want to disturb the worms.

I can only assume that the worms were starving. After the fact I realize (again, in spite of encouragement from others, including from the vendor) that these red wrigglers are compost worms and need compost as an environment - not just soil. In fact I read on a vermiculture site today that composting worms don't need any soil. I might have had better luck with earth worms - but don't take my word for it. So much for keeping this worm/soil system active all through the winter to be reconditioned for use next grow. I obviously missed some fundamentals. Oh well...

Crow

[Rwise]

I have used earth worms in many potted plants, but what I use is already in the compost. What I just pulled from my compost area (about 2 acres of wood chips) is full of them! They will be another thing to care for to keep alive and well.
If they happen to die in the pot, I would not be concerned, the soil will eat them, and make nice nutrients for our buds.

[Crow]

Yes, I think that's it - worms in compost that become part of your potting soil is one thing. Adding "compost" worms to soil in a pot is backwards.
I learned a lesson.

[Redwasp]

Yes I use worms, ladybugs, praying mantis, lizards, toads and all kinds of natural predators and soil ammenders in certain grows. They are very beneficial and what was originally meant to be. So go for it and get yourself a worm bin and keep them well fed and they will give you great additives for whatever soil you use. Plus less you throw away and much faster than composting.

If your lazy they even make these neat little ones you can keep in your house. They have zero smell and pay you back tenfold. As a note they do not like onions. And dont give them meat. I just have to say that because I had a friend who did and ended up with worms and maggots. Lol Oh and it did smell.

[D.A.A.S.69]

The soil I use, has got at least 25worms in every shovelfull, at the end of the grow, I ain't never seen very many alive though, but they do keep the soil aerated ,an fertilzed very well though.

[GreenhouseEffect]

They will run off to greener pastures ( or try to), if they are not too happy with where they are at. One thing with the composting red worms/ red wrigglers/ Tiger worms, is that they do tend to eat a LOT, which makes them ideal for composting. They may have eaten themselves out of house and home, to some degree.
Think about a pot the size you have in your grow room, full of compost, with a weekly addition of food scraps, and then one of soil, with some mulch on top.The one with the soil, just has a lower "Carrying Capacity" for how many earth worms can live in it.
The ones that die in the pot, like Rwise said, will get eaten by the soil, and feed your plants. Some worms in your pots of pot, are still beneficial.
My thoughts on what happened, anyway!

Hope you got to harvest some good buds Crow!

[Crow]

I think you are right and some certainly have made it through to the end My buds look great! Thanks.