In My Garden Blog
May 22, 2008
Northern & Central Midwest
By
Kate Jerome,
Pleasant Prairie, WI
These red wigglers are my daughter's pets and a boon to our kitchen compost.
Feeding My Worms
I have a new hobby. I just bought a worm composter for all our kitchen scraps. The family of worms can then produce that wonderful soil amendment -- worm castings.
The science of vermiculture (the root "vermi" comes from the Latin word "vermis," which means "worm") is a growing interest of home gardeners because it works so well in tandem with nature. Not to mention the fact that it handles all that food waste that can become so nasty when put in the bucket beneath the sink for later emptying on the compost pile.
The great thing about worm composting is that it requires very little work, is not expensive, and recycles much of the organic waste you create. You only need a bin to hold your worms, some bedding (newspapers work well), worms, and kitchen scraps. They will even eat egg cartons and junk mail -- my kind of composters!
What Size Worm Bin?
Although I'm new at this, let me share some of the tips I've found. First of all, the bins only need to be between 8 and 12 inches deep since worms feed on the surface. They are perfectly at home in a plastic bin that costs $5.00 from the hardware store. I decided to purchase specially made bins since I will be showing off my worms to students and children.
The bin needs a lid and small holes in the bottom for ventilation and drainage. The rule for deciding size is to allow 2 square feet of surface area per person or 1 square foot of surface area per pound of food waste per week. Since different people eat different amounts of vegetables and fruits, the second method is a bit more accurate.
Siting Your Bin
Worms are happiest and most efficient at room temperature and need shade to keep them from heating up too much. I'm going to keep my bin in a corner of the kitchen, but you can use the basement, garage, or back porch -- anywhere that doesn't get too hot or too cold.
Bedding Materials
Start with bedding materials as simple as shredded and moistened newspaper. Then it's simply a matter of adding worms and a couple of handfuls of soil for grit, and food scraps. The worms will eventually eat the soil, bedding, and food scraps and turn it into black worm castings.
Types of Worms
Most sources say that the best composters are red worms or red wigglers. They are different from standard earthworms, eating more rapidly, reproducing more rapidly, and happy in a confined area (how do we know when worms are happy?).
Using the Compost
This is the best part. The compost is an excellent soil amendment for houseplants and outdoor plants. It is filled with nutrients, and the physical act of passing through a worm's gut gives the compost enzymes that protect plants against disease. Who could ask for more than that?
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Comments on Feeding My Worms
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Tracey Graham
Congrats on starting your new venture! I'm sure you'll enjoy it as
much as I do! It's really fun, really easy and the castings are so
wonderful.
I've been vermicomposting for about 2 and 1/2 years now and am still
enchanted by the efficiency with which my lttle wigglers convert my
kitchen trash into wonderful-smelling rich plant food. I've had the
opportunity, as a K-State research and extension master gardener, to
go into a lot of classrooms to teach kids about recycling,
composting, gardening and the great circle of life, etc., and love
doing that too. I've taught worm composting to adult groups as
well. I wear a Tshirt that says "Some of my best friends are
worms".
I also use simple plastic storage containers that cost about $5.
Why not? It works!
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Dorothy Nelson
Holes in the bottom for ventilation and drainage--how is a mess from
the drainage taken care of?
You mentioned a hardware variety-is this the regular fisherman's
worm bucket? Can a person make their own and what are the
requirements? Where can one get the worms since regular garden earth
worms are not recommended?
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Faith Tennyson
Sounds like fun. What a great conversation starter. And talk about
getting a bang for your buck.....fun, natural, ecological,
economical and interesting.
My question is when you are ready to add the castings to your
garden, how do you separate them from the worms and the un-eaten
scraps? Or do you just dump the whole thing in the garden at some
point and start over?
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Kathe Garbrick
Tracy,
I'm at K-State too, a gardener and have been planning on getting
started with worms.Could you contact me with tips on getting the
right container and how/where to get the worms? I'm in the K-State
directory.
Thanks!
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Roberta Allman
If you keep the worm container in your kitchen, what do you do for
drainage? Do you put a pan underneath it to protect your floor from
the moisture and do you move it frequently?
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Kate
Tracy - thanks for the good word - I'm already enjoying by new best
friends!
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Kate
Hi, all -
My worm bucket has its own tray to collect drainage, and I keep it
in a utility sink just in case (my sink is flat-bottomed and at
floor height). Otherwise, for drainage, you could put any kind of
tray underneath. The worms don't really generate a lot of water, but
there is some.
To make a bin, I suggest the rectangular plastic storage containers
you can get at any discount store. You need a lid on the bin, but
you could use a second lid underneath for drainage. You just need to
check it once a week or so to empty it - great fertilizer for
houseplants.
Although I'm new to this, I've been told that when your compost is
ready you simply scoop it to one side of the bin and make a pile of
new bedding and new kitchen scraps on the other side of the bin. The
worms will migrate to the new food and within a few days you should
be able to take the castings/compost out to the garden. I'd rather
do this than put the worms in the garden since redworms are
different that our existing earthworms and may not survive.
To find the redworms that are the best for worm composting, check
the internet for redworms or red wigglers - may places carry them
now and you can simply purchase a pound and they'll be shipped to
you. I was also told that you could go to a bait shop and purchase
them, although I'm not sure the quality control is the same.
vermiculture.com is a good source
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