Compost and vermiculture lab

We know that to grow delicious and nutrient-rich grapes, we need to start with the very best soil. Foundational to that is creating compost and vermicopost to build the microbes and fungi in the soil to feed the plant growth.

Our compost is made up of rich organic material, the result of gathering the leaves and tree ramial from the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro.

We have an expansive composting operation, that includes:
- Aerated static beds
- Johnson Su
- Windrows
- Vermicompost

Vermiculture Lab

UGF is home to a laboratory where our lead scientist works to figure out the needs of our vineyard soil. We use the vermicompost to produce microbial rich compost and liquid extracts to enrich the soil, with 60,000 red wriggler worms producing the richest compost possible and the foundation for our soil.

A high production extractor creates large volume of liquid biologic from worm compost, producing over 1,000 gallons an hour, with capacity for 8,000 gallons of volume.

Just like any other living thing, worms need food to do their jobs. We use locally donated food scraps from Cedar Ridge High School [read our blog] and Weaver Street Market to feed them weekly.

In just one week, worms can convert 40 pounds of food into about 200 pounds of compost! Vermicomposting food scraps instead of disposing of it in a landfill can help reduce the methane emissions associated with food waste.