Leachate is not worm tea!
In worm farming world, there are a few common misconceptions. Leachate being sold as worm tea is one of them! You may have heard “you can totally use the leachate in your garden. it’s worm tea!”
The answer is yes and no. Let me explain!
Worm Leachate
Worm leachate the run off your worm farm produces from water run off, decomposing food juices, and/or condensation produced over time. And...
- it is usually old and stagnant
- poor circulation means it is often anaerobic
- thus higher likelihood of harmful bacteria
Worm Tea
Worm tea is a compost tea brewed with chlorine free water and a bag of worm castings with a bubbler. This brew is always:
- fresh
- aerobic
- alive with helpful bacteria!
So yes, you can use leachate in your garden. (but I don't recommend it!)
If you must use it, use it with caution. Test a small area first to see how it responds.
Leachate is often collecting for long periods of time with little to no circulation. This can cause bad bacteria to grow! And unfortunately, you can’t always smell it if it’s gone fowl. So I honestly never use leachate in my garden because i would much rather use #wormtea
Worm Tea, however, is AMAZING!
Worm tea is a fun thing to brew and use in the garden! It can be sprayed on the leaves for direct cellular absorption of nutrients and also offers a protective flora boosting plant immunity and resilience to pests and disease. It can also be a two for one special - spraying the tea can also help spray off aphids and other unwanted pests It is amazing!
Ready to Brew Some Worm Tea?
I have a video showing how to brew and use worm tea on my youtube channel. Have you seen it?!
1 comment
I just wanted to say that your worm farming course is brilliant. So well structured, and complete, I didn’t feel I needed to go anywhere else to learn more about worms – it gave me the confidence to give it a go using some worms from my compost heap! Usually I need to research something to death before doing it but your course concisely covered all the info I needed. My worms have survived and thrived and I’ve just moved them to a bigger home. Thank you!