earthworms

Earthworms
Agriculture/Livestock News
Earthworms contribute to crop disease biocontrol
With the move towards less-intensive cultivation practices, some have asked whether it’s time to revisit the guidance and look at disease management from a different angle. A research team from SRUC and The University of Nottingham has studied whether dragging blades through soil is good for earthworms, which may have implications for crop diseases. Earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris) provide well-documented benefits to soil health. Yet, their role as a naturally occurring…
Earthworms
News
Earthworms as a nutrient supply could offset the use of synthetic fertilizers
Most gardeners value of the input of earthworms to their land, and new research released by University College Dublin (UCD) confirms that they are likely to do the same job as high-cost soil fertilisers. A School of Agriculture and Food Science study by Professor Olaf Schmidt has found that earthworms rapidly enrich soil and plants through nitrogen excreted in their mucus. Their ability to enrich soil has long been valued as…