Worm Castings vs. Compost

The question I get a lot is "What’s the difference between worms casting and compost?"

This is a legitimate question because most people have plenty of compost and don’t see the point of messing around with getting worm casting.

Let's start by understanding what worm castings and compost are.

Compost is a very broad and basic definition of decayed or decaying organic matter that is used to improve the soil. This can range from a pile of leaves to a pile of manure. What is often overlooked is the age or how much the compost is broken down. Some material can take months or years to be beneficial to your garden.

This brings us to worm castings.

Worm castings are worm poop, plain and simple. The worm castings, unlike compost, are readily available to be taken up by garden plants. I compare this to someone taking a multivitamin as opposed to eating a buffet. Both have beneficial nutrients, but only one is immediately available.

So, what am I trying to say? Stop composting and only use worm casting?

Absolutely not! I say use both worm castings and compost together.

Worm casting have an abundance of beneficial microorganisms that when added to the soil or compost it accelerates the breakdown of the compost and releases the nutrients to the plants. You will be amazed how little amount of worm castings are needed in order to benefit your garden plants.