Troy Heflin with worm castings as featured at the recent Wood County Home & Garden Show. (Photos: J.D. Pooley/Sentinel-Tribune)

Organic methods of gardening were always used centuries before the term "organic" became in
fashion. Nature took care of all the details.
In recent years, many gardeners are trying to minimize chemicals and return to the basics by gardening
organic.
In a natural environment, earthworms aerate the soil and also distribute nutrients as well as aerobic
bacteria and fungi through their waste.
At the recent Wood County Home and Garden Show held at the Wood County Fairgrounds, Troy Heflin was on
hand to showcase a new product which gives a boost to nature, while still maintaining organic practices.

Heflin, operator of Green Earth Solutions of Ohio based in St. Paris, offered his enhanced earthworm
castings and earthworm castings foliage spray.
According to Heflin, standard pesticides and chemicals disrupt the natural processes of a garden.
Castings are familiar to most gardeners, for those who don’t know castings are a friendly name for the
worm’s waste products.
What Heflin’s company offers is an enhanced casting using what he calls a "super accelerator."

He says they are the first in the world to offer this enhancement.
"No one else in the world is doing what we are doing," Heflin said.

Troy Heflin holds worm castings

He said tests have shown the minerals and natural product added to the castings and the spray enhances
the biology of the plant and multiplies the benefits of the castings "by trillions."
He also noted the soil in this area is naturally deficient in a vital mineral – calcium.
"We’ve found a way to introduce a calcium mixture that doesn’t wash away, while also providing a
much needed shot of phosphorus," he said.
"We accelerate the biology and the microbiology of the soil that has worked for years," Heflin
said.
The spray contains many of the same elements and can be sprayed directly on the plants and leaves.
The spray helps to minimize the problems with pests and disease due to the natural bacteria being
introduced providing necessary elements for the plants to feed themselves and avoid disease.
Heflin said it works much like an inoculation.
The castings also provide nitrogen, a necessary element for proper growth.
The products are available locally through Klotz Flower and Garden Center, Bowling Green.
For more information, call (937) 663-0133, or e-mail [email protected].
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www.greenearthsolutionsofohio.com
(The Web site is currently under construction)