Following up, I called Planet Turf to ask about the Castaway fert (https://planetturfusa.com/castaway-3-0-1/) and they're shipping me a 50lb bag. It cost me $50 plus shipping so depending on where you're at your mileage may vary if you don't happen to have a local distributor.

I spoke to Jim Connolly who was quite helpful. His contact info can be found here: https://planetturfusa.com/contact-us-sales/

 

Can't comment on US products as I'm in the UK but having used a tea seed soil conditioner before I can say it works very well. After application and rain or watering in, you will see worms all over the place. They don't like the saponin so come up out of the soil.

This time of year worms aren't an issue but worth having the option if worm casts get very bad in autumn.

Try not to kill them all 😂 as you say they have a positive benefit on soil health.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I'm glad to heat worked well for you. Were they dead or did you have to scoop them up?

I think if I eliminated 95% of them I'd still have plenty left. My back lawn is covered in pock marks. I'll try to update this post with results.

 

Most of them were dead, others were eaten by the birds. Wife wasn't pleased as you could not avoid stepping on them.

 

@Michael303 How many times per season you should apply? I am ordering the same. I have searched a long time for something that van help to get rid of worms untill I saw your post, thanks for the info.

 

@Michael303 How many times per season you should apply? I am ordering the same. I have searched a long time for something that van help to get rid of worms untill I saw your post, thanks for the info. :thumbup:

 

@Tassoty I applied once and didn't see a significant difference so I did another application a week or two later that had better results. In my experience I would just apply as needed. You don't really need to stay ahead of it and the results are fairly quick. Depending on how severe your problem is you may need to use it more frequently though. I would say 1-3 times per growing season.

Good luck.

 

Good info here. I've been searching for something like this. And I'm in Colorado also and glad to see it is working. Ordering some what did you pay for shipping?

 

@Polarjk you can pick it up localy. Milehighturfgrass.com
Call them great customer service.

 

Try not to kill them all 😂 as you say they have a positive benefit on soil health.

...........unless they are the invasive Asian earthworm. Red wiggly worms are beneficial.

 

@Tassoty I applied once and didn't see a significant difference so I did another application a week or two later that had better results. In my experience I would just apply as needed. You don't really need to stay ahead of it and the results are fairly quick. Depending on how severe your problem is you may need to use it more frequently though. I would say 1-3 times per growing season.

Good luck.

Thanks! I just got my delivered and the rep said in order to work make sure to irigate at least an inch after applying Castaway.

 

[/quote]
Thanks! I just got my delivered and the rep said in order to work make sure to irigate at least an inch after applying Castaway.
[/quote]

Just put down 10lbs per 1000 and I watered it in last night and this morning the worms where all taking dirt naps. Stuff works!

 

I thought watering w hot water to control the temperature of the soil was a wacky thread but...controlling earthworms?

The robins in my neighborhood trees are the earthworm enforcers.

 

I thought watering w hot water to control the temperature of the soil was a wacky thread but...controlling earthworms?

The robins in my neighborhood trees are the earthworm enforcers.

As mentioned in the original post, it's really only an issue when you start reel mowing. Golf courses deal with it too. If you're just using a regular mower you'll likely never see what they're doing.

 

I went to order some from Planet Turf and unfortunately prices have soared. As it seems with a lot of things right now they said freight costs from China and demand forced their prices to increase. Current cost is $100 per 50# bag plus $50 shipping. Double the price from a year ago

Also worth noting the re-named "Castaway" to "Tea Seed Meal" on their website. They said it's still the same stuff.
https://planetturfusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/tea-seed-meal-label-nov-2020.pdf

Has anyone found other alternatives?

 

Cleary 3336 at 4oz per 1k watered in. You can combine with Sevin SL 6oz per 1k. Make sure to apply when the soil is moist so the worms are active near the surface.

 

Cleary 3336 at 4oz per 1k watered in. You can combine with Sevin SL 6oz per 1k. Make sure to apply when the soil is moist so the worms are active near the surface.

Thanks for the info. I've been using Sevin SL (Carbaryl) with mixed results but I'll get some Clearys and see how that combo works.

 

I went to order some from Planet Turf and unfortunately prices have soared. As it seems with a lot of things right now they said freight costs from China and demand forced their prices to increase. Current cost is $100 per 50# bag plus $50 shipping. Double the price from a year ago

Also worth noting the re-named "Castaway" to "Tea Seed Meal" on their website. They said it's still the same stuff.
https://planetturfusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/tea-seed-meal-label-nov-2020.pdf

Has anyone found other alternatives?

There's just got to be some competitors somewhere. Where the heck do all the golf courses and baseball fields source it from?

 

I've been calling around to local golf courses here in Utah and not one of them uses tea seed meal or has earthworm castings problems. They suspect that they put down so much sand that the worms just don't surface through it.

Topdressing heavily with sand might be the only long term good solution against earthworm castings on short cut turf.

Otherwise you're just paying through the nose for very pricy tea seed meal these days.

If anyone else is located in Utah and wants to go in on a shipment of a number of bags of tea seed meal, maybe that's the best way to go at this point without putting sand down.

And if anyone wants to start a business selling the stuff in the U.S., there is a big opportunity here I think.

 

Anderson's has a new product coming out called Cast Away DG, here is the info here Turf Blog - The Andersons Plant Nutrient Group

 

Anderson's has a new product coming out called Cast Away DG, here is the info here Turf Blog - The Andersons Plant Nutrient Group

This is the most exciting news of the year! haha. Now the question is can I get it in Canada?

 

@desmorider804

https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/CAES/DOCUMENTS/Publications/Fact_Sheets/Entomology/Jumping-worms-in-Connecticut.pdf

Started seeing dead worms after the third application or so.

Tentatively, it also produced amazing results as a fertilizer from the late Spring and Summer apps by the time Fall rolled around. I've never seen such a green color before without iron, and it was sustained until well into Winter, unlike all other lawn areas and other lawns which went brown. Not sure if it was this fert that did it, but could have been since I only used it and urea and maybe an app of Milo once on the area.

3-6 lbs per thousand per month works pretty well. I start with the 6 lb rate in May to get a good buildup.

I would start in early April where you are. Or 55F sustained soil temps.

Wear a mask and goggles or good safety glasses...it's very irritating without.

 

@Green are you referring to the Andersons product?

 

No, just any tea seed meal in general. The stuff is irritating to mucous membranes; that is how it kills worms, by irritating them and cutting them, etc. First time I used it, I didn't wear PPE. My sinuses and eyes started burning right away from the dust, and I coughed a bit for 24 hours after. Use PPE with it.

 

@Green instead of trying to find a study, I thought I'd just ask. From your experience would you use tea seed meal as a preemptive treatment, or would you wait until you see signs of an issue before using it. What was the speed of the results after application? Thanks in advance.

 

If I had jumping worms (I do), I would definitely use it. Trying to keep them from moving to other areas and restrict the amount of soil damage. No need to use it if you don't have a problem...it's not a preventative. It will only kill worms if they are there.

Speed of results: I applied it in May, June, July, not in August due to my overseed, Sept., and in early Oct. I definitely saw dead worms starting in Sept, maybe earlier, but not in May or June from what I remember. I was mowing high before that, though. Usually a day or two after applying and getting rain, I'd see them (and they stink when they decompose, too).

See my journal for all the details on the applications in 2022. This year, I plan to keep applying in late October or early Nov. due to seeing another jumping worm alive in the area after Thanksgiving, despite it having been cold since Halloween or so. (Supposedly they die after the first few frosts, but not all did.)

 

I usually apply in April and late September, early October when there is moisture and temps that the worms like. Once you apply, soak the ground until you see them come up, how much water depends on your soil type and the granule size. You will know when to stop watering when the worms come out of the ground and make movements which look like they are in pain. I know worms are good for the soil and you won't get them all, so see this as population control (if you must do it).

It can get expensive to keep doing this, the prices here in the UK have doubled in less than 5 years for the tea seed.

 

If you want to try an alternative, the Earth Works Sea3 works really really well at suppressing worms and worm castings

 

@Green and @RCUK thanks for all the info. It's definitely something I am looking at doing this year. I didn't notice any issues in the spring/summer, but I had a real issue in the fall. It will be interesting to see if the issue arises at the same time this year, or if it becomes more of a full season problem. Unfortunately finding tea seed meal has been extremely hard here, I haven't had any luck. Hopefully this new Andersons product becomes available.



This is from your own experience? I am wondering what is in it that works? Of course the same problem as usual, can I get it up here in Ontario? Thanks for the info though!