Everyone knows how useful earthworms are in the soil. They eat the dead organic plant material and loosen the soil by their constant digging. However, in the narrow flower pot worms bring more harm than good.
How do earthworms get into the flower pot and why do they harm the plants?
Earthworms are not normally found in flower pots. However, if you use garden soil or soil from the forest, earthworms or their eggs can be introduced.
Whereas in free terrain it loosely digs through the soil, eats dead plant fibers and spreads natural fertilizer with its droppings, it quickly becomes too crowded in the flower pot. It finds too little food and as a result attacks the tender roots of the potted plants. This damages the plant.
Control of earthworms in the flower pot.
To drive away earthworms is not necessary to use chemicals. Surely you have already observed in the garden after heavy rains that the earthworms leave the wet soil. Too much water will also expel worms from the soil of houseplants. Proceed as follows:
- Fill water into a bucket or tub.
- Take the flower pot and place it in the water. The soil should be completely under water.
- Wait for some time until the soil is soaked with water.
- The worms will leave their wet home and swim to the surface.
- Collect the worms.
- Relocate them to your garden where they can continue to do their useful work.
Flooding the infested flower pot is a good method, but often eggs or larvae remain in the pot. Therefore, the measure should be repeated after some time. To allow the houseplant to recover from the heavy watering, it should always drain well. Watering is not necessary in the near future.
