We pride ourselves on our soil at Hawaiian Organic Noni. Nutrient-dense soil means that the
food grown in it will also be full of nutrients. So we take the health of our soil very
seriously. We’ve spend years nurturing
it, feeding it, and caring for it. But
we couldn’t have done it without our friends the worms.
What makes
up good soil?
Science is just beginning to understand the full complexity
of soil. There are so many factors that
go into determining the quality of soil:
- · Texture
- · Depth of topsoil
- · Water storage and drainage
- · Nutrient density (both macro and micronutrients)
- · Volume of air
- · Presence of living and decaying organic matter
- · (Aggregation) how well soil particles stick to each other.
You can improve the quality of your soil in some
surprisingly simple ways.
Composting
Returns Nutrients to the Soil
Composting improves soil’s texture, air flow, water storage,
and nutrient density.
The basic process is simple: Mix yard and kitchen scraps in
a big pile, soak it with water, and turn it frequently. The only problem is, composting takes a long
time, and turning the pile can be hard work.
Luckily, worms give us an easier way to make top-quality
compost.
Vermicomposting
for Soil Health
Worms are faster compost-makers than fungi and bacteria, and
their castings – called black gold – are one of the best soil additives created
by man or nature.
Vermicomposting is making compost using worms. Most people do this in worm bins – Google it
to get some idea of the many options – which keeps the worms from leaving,
provides them with the shade they love, and helps keep them moist.
You can either buy worms or collect them from your garden,
but we recommend using local varieties so they can fill their natural
ecological niches.
The only thing left to add is food for the worms!
Here are some likes:
- · Most fruit and vegetable scraps
- · Bread and pasta
- · Tea leaves/bags and coffee grounds (worms love grit!)
- · Crushed/ground eggshells
- · Hair, tissues, paper, shredded egg cartons, etc.
- · Small amounts of lawn clippings, weeds, etc.
- · Sawdust
And some dislikes:
- · Highly acidic fruits
- · Spicy or pungent vegetables
- · Meat and dairy products
- · Shiny paper
- · Fats and oils
Feed them a little bit at a time (no more than the same
volume of food as there are worms), only adding more food as it gets
eaten. Worms like to eat food that has
just started to decompose, but which isn’t really yucky yet.
As the worms eat, they convert food into black gold. Black gold looks like compost and should have
very little smell. Scatter the castings on
your garden, mix them with potting soil, use them as mulch or fertilizer. You can’t use too much – there’s no way for
the castings to damage plants.
How We Use
Worms
At Hawaiian Organic Noni, we keep indigenous earthworms in
an area that we call the “Worm Hotel,” busily turning kitchen scraps into black
gold.
We add the castings to our soil, where they deposit vital
nutrients in a form that is easy for plants to absorb. The noni trees love it, and produce more
nutrient-dense fruit as a result of the more nutritious soil.
How To Make
Your Garden Worm-Friendly
You can also work on making your garden more worm-friendly,
to naturally attract these hardworking creatures. The key to attracting wild worms is to create
a good habitat.
Here are some musts:
- · Create mulched areas, covered with leaves, grass clippings, or other materials
- · Keep the soil moist
- · Minimize the amount of digging and tilling you do
- · Keep your soil toxin-free
Wild worms will give your soil the same benefits as adding
vermicompost you make in a worm bin, just slower and less concentrated.
It’s definitely worth making the effort to attract worms to
your garden, and it’s even more beneficial to vermicompost in worm bins. We encourage you to give it a try!
Learn more about noni here.
You can use the coupon code: "BLOGGER15" and get 15 percent off your noni order on www.Real-Noni.com.
*Not Valid With Any Other Offer
*Limited Time Offer
Do you have any
questions about composting, vermicomposting, or soil health? Ask us in the
comments!
