Where Did WB Come From?
Worm Castings
Inspired by a youtube video, Sam & Gabe took months raising worms, testing castings, researching microbes, growing (and killing) plants, testing existing products, and talking to farmers.
They realized that high quality worm castings couldn’t do it all- not in a way that could reach potentially billions of people. Different batches of worm castings all had different levels of bacterial activity, and some were not safe for humans to touch with their bare hands!
Then came a year of testing different sterilization techniques to selectively keep the good bacteria and get rid of the bad and finally, we found a way to put those good microbes into a stasis while in the bottle that awaken as soon as they hit soil. That means there are microbes in every drop of Growth & Rescue!
Research, Testing Research.
Pest
Prevention
Soil
Health
Fertilization
& Nutrition
Founders Sam Baker & Gabe Degalia created WriggleBrew to solve an issue called Red Tide, aka toxic algae blooms that occur in rivers, lakes, and oceans due to our overuse of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers.
That issue sparked a bigger question: Can we make a fertilizer that includes everything a plant needs to grow better than a synthetic fertilizer, while improving soil health and preventing infestations?
Plants have very specific needs and right now people are buying 3 or more products just to meet them! (and many of those don't work)
Hollistic
Problem-Solving
Red Tide
Worms
Bacteria
Fungi
and...
Lobsters?
chitin
Gabe, a chemist with a strong interest and knowledge of biology, leaned into the research surrounding the symbiotic relationships between plants, bacteria, fungi, and even beneficial insects. He learned how plants have an immune system, just like us, that fights off diseases and pests to keep the plant healthy.
Gabe had solved the issue of complete nutrition and optimal soil health with worm castings & microbes. But what about protecting plants against pests and disease? After Sam spoke with some local worm farmers about the problem, it clicked- chitin! Lobster & crab chitin doesn’t set off human allergies, but it does boost the immune system of plants really well! So far it's proved effective against thrips, fungus gnats, mealy bugs, spider mites, and more!