A Perfect Day for Vermicompost Mulch!

Woman spreads vermicompost around the base of a cherry tree.
Giselle spreads vermicompost around the roots of one of the mature cherry trees in the Ben Nobleman Park Community Orchard. Photo credit: Vermibec.

It was cool, overcast and, at times, downright rainy! But today was a perfect day to feed the fruit trees in Ben Nobleman Park with vermicompost!

Worm compost is a highly nutritious soil amendment that contains lots of microscopic organisms. These tiny creatures improve soil quality by actively processing organic matter. Through their hard work, they release large amounts of nutrients into the soil, which are then available for plants and trees to absorb.

So this year, we were excited to receive a donation of vermicompost from a company called Vermibec in Quebec. The company’s owner, Andrew Huxsel, came personally with his colleague Carl to drop off the compost and to help us get it onto the trees.

“This is a perfect day to use vermicompost,” he explained. “These organisms thrive in cool, overcast weather, and the rain will help them integrate into the soil.”

While it wasn’t an official stewardship day, Susan, Cliff, Gail, Brian, Giselle and Annie came to the park to meet Andrew and to spread out the vermicompost around the trees. We briefly had to shelter under Lynn’s front porch when the rain was quite heavy. But when it came time to do the work, the weather had cleared up.

From left to right: Brian, Giselle, Susan, Andrew from Vermibec, Annie and Cliff on vermicompost mulching day!

The Difference Between Vermicompost and Regular Compost

Now each year, we feed our fruit trees with “regular” compost. How is vermicompost different?

  • Vermicompost is created by using earthworms to break down organic materials, such as food scraps and yard waste. The worms eat the organic matter and their waste, known as castings, creates a nutrient-rich fertilizer.
  • Regular compost, on the other hand, is created by decomposing organic materials without the use of worms. Aerobic composting, involves mixing organic matter with air and water. Anaerobic composting involves breaking down organic matter in the absence of oxygen.
Woman weeding at the base of a plum tree.
Gail weeds around a plum tree before laying out the vermicompost.

Our goal is to keep an eye on the trees this year to see how they are reacting to this type of compost, compared to the regular compost we purchase each year for the trees.

Many of us picked up a bag or two of Vermibec’s Vermicompost to try at home for $25 a bag. If you’re interested, you can find more info about it on the Vermibec website.

It was a lovely morning. Thanks to all of the volunteers who came along to help!

Annie prepares to spread vermicompost around one of our apple trees.

Susan Poizner is the coordinator of The Ben Nobleman Park Community Orchard in Toronto and the author of the award-winning fruit tree care book Growing Urban Orchards. Susan teaches fruit tree care skills online at he fruit tree care training website OrchardPeople.com. Susan is also the host of The Urban Forestry Radio Show and Podcast, a show that explores topics relating to fruit trees, food forests, permaculture and arboriculture. She is also an ISA Certified arborist.