Comments on: Using Worm Bin Leachate http://www.redwormcomposting.com/reader-questions/using-worm-bin-leachate/ Red Wiggler Worms, European Nightcrawlers and loads of helpful Worm Composting Information Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:31:02 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Bentley http://www.redwormcomposting.com/reader-questions/using-worm-bin-leachate/comment-page-1/#comment-21898 Bentley Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:25:17 +0000 http://www.redwormcomposting.com/?p=877#comment-21898 Thanks for sharing all that, Richard! Very interesting stuff. Glad to hear that your tomato growth experiments have gone so well. 8) Thanks for sharing all that, Richard! Very interesting stuff. Glad to hear that your tomato growth experiments have gone so well.
8)

]]> By: Rich A. http://www.redwormcomposting.com/reader-questions/using-worm-bin-leachate/comment-page-1/#comment-21889 Rich A. Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:53:49 +0000 http://www.redwormcomposting.com/?p=877#comment-21889 I killed a flowering cactus with some leachate, so it can harm plants. I dilute it now, and haven't killed anything in an outdoor flower pot. I killed a flowering cactus with some leachate, so it can harm plants. I dilute it now, and haven’t killed anything in an outdoor flower pot.

]]> By: Richard Blalock http://www.redwormcomposting.com/reader-questions/using-worm-bin-leachate/comment-page-1/#comment-21880 Richard Blalock Sat, 18 Jul 2009 23:49:19 +0000 http://www.redwormcomposting.com/?p=877#comment-21880 When the original bedding in my wormbed had been processed (I say processed, but I think it probably could have gone a little longer without changing) for a period of about six or seven months-- (it's about 3' long, 2' wide, and with about 12-15 inches of bedding [I believe I've read that with a smaller system it only takes around 3 or so months to process when worm population is at capacity])-- I started to use the lechate as the only fertilizer for my beefsteak, pink brandywine, and grape roma tomatoes. It works excellently (however the soil they were/are in has been processed and amended with grass compost and other things for over a year); the tomatoes my brother and I have grown this year are better than we've ever grown. However, I've NEVER sprayed the lechate directly on the leaves, and I did mix .5 gallons of water to every 1.5 gallons of lechate. I started with a 1 gal. water-to-1 gal. lechate mix, but then decided to try 2/3 lechate and that worked a lot better (however, all bins and beds are different and I wouldn't advise going higher than a 1:1 ratio until you're sure that it's not hurting the plants). As Bentley said, though, be extremely careful when dabbling with the lechate. I know what it's like to have nice, healthy plants just go kaput after watching them grow to fruition (early blight is a terrible thing). If it caused the leaves to get yellow spots, it's probably best to apply at base of plant. However, to be on the safe side I would try it on plants that are a little more negligible to you. But the best thing I've done this year was to grow hot peppers in pots and mix worm-compost up in their soil. Hope this helps at least a little! =-) --R.L.B. When the original bedding in my wormbed had been processed (I say processed, but I think it probably could have gone a little longer without changing) for a period of about six or seven months– (it’s about 3′ long, 2′ wide, and with about 12-15 inches of bedding [I believe I've read that with a smaller system it only takes around 3 or so months to process when worm population is at capacity])– I started to use the lechate as the only fertilizer for my beefsteak, pink brandywine, and grape roma tomatoes. It works excellently (however the soil they were/are in has been processed and amended with grass compost and other things for over a year); the tomatoes my brother and I have grown this year are better than we’ve ever grown. However, I’ve NEVER sprayed the lechate directly on the leaves, and I did mix .5 gallons of water to every 1.5 gallons of lechate. I started with a 1 gal. water-to-1 gal. lechate mix, but then decided to try 2/3 lechate and that worked a lot better (however, all bins and beds are different and I wouldn’t advise going higher than a 1:1 ratio until you’re sure that it’s not hurting the plants). As Bentley said, though, be extremely careful when dabbling with the lechate. I know what it’s like to have nice, healthy plants just go kaput after watching them grow to fruition (early blight is a terrible thing). If it caused the leaves to get yellow spots, it’s probably best to apply at base of plant. However, to be on the safe side I would try it on plants that are a little more negligible to you. But the best thing I’ve done this year was to grow hot peppers in pots and mix worm-compost up in their soil. Hope this helps at least a little! =-)

–R.L.B.

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