Composting
Worm Composting
Materials
• Bedding
• Feeding
• Harvesting
Worm composting or vermicomposting is a great way to compost food
scraps. It is suitable for apartment dwellers, homeowners and a great
classroom activity.
Worm bins can be made from plastic tubs by drilling air holes in the
tub. Plastic tub bins tend to get wetter than wooden bins. If the bin is
too wet, odor problems occur and worms die or leave the bin. Holes can
be drilled in the bottom of the tub. Set the bin on wooden blocks or
attach legs to the tub to increase circulation. Worm bins can also be
built from plywood; see the Cooperative Extension Service
fact sheets for building plans.
Materials Needed:
-
newsprint (limit color pages)
-
cool tap water
-
garden soil, about a cup (do not use potting soil; it may contain chemicals)
-
one crushed egg shell
-
worm bin (vented for good air flow)
-
red worms (Eisenia fetida)
Bedding
Moist bedding provides the medium that worms need to survive. Shredded
newspaper is the best bedding material because it is readily available,
provides excellent moisture retention, and preparation is simple and fun
for children.
Shred the newspaper by fully opening sheet, tearing it lengthwise down
the centerfold, gathering the two halves, tearing them lengthwise again,
and repeating the process until you have strips ranging from 1/4 to 1
inch wide. Put the shredded strips in bin.
Gradually mix the water, garden soil, and crushed egg shell with the
shredded paper. The bedding should be damp but not sopping wet (about as
wet as a wrung out sponge). Bedding should not be packed too tightly.
Add worms to the top of the bedding, leave top off of the container for
an hour or so. Add 1 pound of redworms or "Red Wigglers" (Eisenia
fetida) to the 2-foot-by-2-foot bin; and 2 pounds to the
2-foot-by-3-foot bin. Make sure you have good air circulation. Worms do
best at temperatures between 55-77 degrees Fahrenheit.
Feeding
Worms are really not picky eaters. They like most organic waste but
will not eat anything inorganic, like plastic. They will only eat hard
food after natural degradation softens it. Don't exclude these foods,
just do not be concerned if it takes awhile for them to disappear. It
does help if you break up or puree hard foods in a processor.
Red worms do not have teeth. Instead, they digest food material in
their gizzard. The gizzard needs a small amount of grit to grind food.
That is why you added the garden soil to your bin.
Many variables will affect how much your worms will eat. For example,
they are more active at room temperature than at 40 degrees. A general
rule is that worms will consume up to half their weight in food waste
per day under ideal conditions. If you start with 1/2 lb. of worms, you
can expect them to eat up to 1/4 lb. of food per day. Start with small
bits of food until the worm population increases. Do not overload the
system. Overfeeding can lead to odor problems.
Let's Eat !! --Suggested foods for your worm family:
| Apples |
Coffee filters |
Peas |
| Artichokes |
Corn meal |
Pie |
| Bananas |
Cucumber |
Peaches |
| Beans |
Egg shells |
Pizza |
| Beets |
Grapes |
Potatoes |
| Bran |
Grits |
Raisins |
| Bread |
Honeydew |
Rice |
| Broccoli |
Kiwi |
Spinach |
| Cabbage |
Lettuce |
Tea bags* |
| Cake |
Molasses |
Tomatoes |
| Cantaloupe |
Oatmeal |
Turnips |
| Carrots |
Onions |
Waffles |
| Celery |
Pears |
Watermelon |
| Cereal |
Pasta |
Zucchini |
| Corn |
Pancakes |
|
| Coffee grounds* |
Papaya |
|
| *Acidic Food: Feed in
small quantities only, may produce odors and attract undesirable
insects. |
Do Not Feed:
-
Heavily salted foods: Salted peanuts, potato chips, etc . . .
-
Manure from dogs, cats, or horses. Horse manure may contain wormers or
antibiotics that will kill your worms.
-
Animal feeds: They may also contain antibiotics.
Harvesting
Before long you will notice increasing amounts of worm castings,
usually 3 - 4 months after starting bin. Besides the educational
benefits, this is one natural reward for your composting efforts.
Casting compost is one of the best natural soil additives available. You
can compare plants and vegetables grown with castings to those grown
without as another educational opportunity that can be explored. It
completes the recycling loop and illustrates how important worms and
other organisms are to the balance of our ecosystem.
How to Harvest Castings
Dump and Sort Method
Materials Needed:
- 1 small plastic sheet
- Light source (either a lamp or bright overhead fluorescent)
- Prepare fresh bedding as described earlier.
- Empty the contents of your container onto the
- Add fresh bedding to the container.
- Position the light source over the casting pile. The worms will move
down into the castings.
- Carefully pick the castings from the pile in layers, working toward
the bottom center of the pile. Place castings in a separate container.
- Continue this procedure until there is only a small pile of castings
with worms beneath it.
- Add this pile and worms to the fresh bedding in your worm container.
- Use the harvested castings for a classroom horticulture project.
Split Harvesting Method:
Method #1
If the above method seems like too much trouble, you can simply add 2/3
of the castings (worms and all) directly to your garden. Add the
remaining 1/3 to your fresh bedding. This will inoculate the bedding and
provide some worms to get you going again, but it depletes your worm
population for a while.
Method #2
If you don't want to loose any of your redworms (they can be
expensive); try this method. Don't feed the worms for a few days. Move
all the decomposed bedding and worms to one side of the bin. Add fresh
bedding to the empty area, moisten the bedding, add some soil & egg
shells, and then bury food in the new bedding. The worms will start to
move to the new bedding to feed. In about a month you can remove the
worm castings and use them in your garden. When you remove them, you may
need to add some more bedding.
For a fun look at worms - check out the
Adventures of Herman. . . An autobiography of Squirmin' Herman the
worm.
Worm
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