Vladimir's article on Earthworm castings for planted aquarium

[plantbrain]

Does anyone has the article by Vladimir on using Earthworm castings under sand?

I know it was popular in Brasil about 4-5 years ago.

 

Thank you,

Tom Barr

[babykhan]

Hi

 

 

 

Is this the one you are talking about?

The use of earthworm castings requires some prep-work but offers excellent results: lush, healthy plant growth.

 

Materials:

 

- A bucket for rinsing the castings

- Earthworm castings (without additives) - tap water

- a stove and pot for boiling the castings

 

Preparation: 1) Obtain 100% pure additive-free earthworm castings 2) Rinse the castings in your empty bucket - allow water to flow slowly thru. Turn the material over with your hand to distribute water throughout. Eliminate all that floats. 3) Boil the castings in a pot. There should be plenty of water so that the castings do not dry out. Boil 10-15 minutes, stirring occassionally. 4) Allow to cool. Deposit the castings back in your bucket, repeating step 2. Once again, eliminate all floating debris. 5) After thorough rinsing, the bucket water should become relatively clear. 6) Drain the bucket and place the castings in shallow pans or on sheets of cellophane in thin layers under the sun, allowing them to dry completely. The dried castings can be stored in ziplock bags for future use.

 

Usage: Earthworm castings should be used in moderation, and do not need to be completely dry for usage. They should be diluted with washed sand in a 50-50 ratio. The combination of earthworm castings and sand should approach 1kg of mixture for every 50 liters of aquarium water (for example, in an aquarium of 100 liters I recommend to use between 2 and 4 kg of earthworm castings). It is best to use the mixture as the first, bottom-most layer of your substrate. If you plan to build an extremely deep substrate, it can be used within the middle layers.

 

Around here lot's of people uses this fertile substrate too.

 

Are you thinking of using it together with your dry start method?

 

 

 

Regards

[plantbrain]

Not for myself, I already did it once back 5 years ago.

Some have rediscovered soil and Worm castings so I wanted to let them know that it was done, is still being done elsewhere.

They think they are the first ones to realize this and that it is useful:)

ADA aqua soil is similar, but cost more.

 

Thanks,

 

Tom Barr