Race of the Compost Worms

The garage composters are doing well, having had a few problems over the winter. In late 2006, I noticed groups of them attempting a mass exodus from the boxes. This was probably due to a lack of bedding material and excess of worm castings (ie. worm poop). I added some coconut coir and fluffed the boxes up a bit and the worms seem happy now.

Recently, I decided to do a little experiment with the worm castings. I am growing 2 containers of romaine lettuce, with 3 seedlings in each. One container contains pure worm compost end-product (contains worm castings and other decomposed organic material) and the other contains regular potting soil (which possibly may contain some granular fertilizer).

I am treating both containers the same, except that I put the container of worm media outside in -15 weather for a night to kill any remaining worms, just in case they might eat my lettuce roots. The seeds were planted March 3, and as you can see, the worm seedlings (on the left) are winning!!! I think this is a rather ironic endeavor: the garbage remnants of our food become worm food and now the worm excrement is growing my food!

Plants in my Basement Abound

The inevitable urge to start growing more varieties of seeds has taken hold for yet another year. I know I am not alone. I have heard of other gardeners who have the same problem. Well, it's only a problem so much as one tends to run out of room to house the little plants.


At the moment I am germinating some Viola "Sorbet Violet Ice" seeds (don't they sound so delicious?) as well as Digitalis mertonensis (Strawberry Foxglove), and a rock garden dianthus mix. In the little pots, I have Zinnias, annual Salvia splendens ("Salsa light purple"), Matthiola incana (Ten Week Stocks Cinderella Mix), and Arabis caucasica. As of yet, there are no aphids or gnats hovering around my plants, but I have the soap spray on hand just in case.

Speaking of aphids, the indoor cannas seem to have them (pot on the right), but because of the large leaves, it is easy to crush most of them and spray the rest. The cannas seem to like the new sunlight and warm temperatures in the bedroom bay window. I potted another banana plant (dwarf Musa Cavendish) in the center pot. I have 3 banana plants now, and several more new ones growing at the bases of the plants, if anyone should want one.

This last picture is of a water droplet on a small banana plant. I find these plants interesting because the water droplets form spontaneously on the leaves. Sometimes they coalesce and run down the leaves and make little wet spots on the floor. I know it's water and not some kind of sap because I've tasted it! I'm not sure why it does this, but it's rather pretty.

Basement Seedlings

Spring of 2007 is 22 days away! Of course, this doesn't mean much up here where we've had some 54 inches of snow so far this winter and it still sits in heaps along the roads. If we're lucky, I may see little green shoots peeking from beneath the snow towards the end of March. Dwarf irises are always first.


I have started the light garden growing again. Lettuce and various herbs are growing under the lights in my basement. Just like the outdoor experience last year, the dark green Paris Island Cos Romaine lettuce is growing the best of the lettuces. I harvested a few leaves for lunch today. It is a nice break from the nutrient-poor pale pathetic iceberg lettuce at the grocery store. Next on the agenda: starting annual and perennial flower seeds!