Subscribe to RSS feedWorm Composting
Worms are effective decomposers and are especially appropriate for softer organic waste like food. If you live in a situation where the majority of your organic waste is food (or you just like worms!), consider worm composting (“Vermicompost”).
Building Your Worm Bin
1.) Obtain a 18-20 gallon solid color plastic bin with tight-sealing lid.
2.) Drill 1/4 inch holes in the upper sides of your plastic bin – four on each side and two on each end. These holes let air in & out of the bin. Do not drill holes on the bottom of your bin. You will want to collect the fluid at the bottom of your bin for a valuable nutrient to water your plants.
3.) Add your worms to the bottom of the bin – start with a pound of worms. Make sure they are “composting” worms! Our native worms don’t work in a worm box.
4.) Place food waste around or on top of the worms. Only fruit or vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, eggshells, tea bags, bread, pasta (without the sauce!), and house plant cuttings. Outside yard waste should not be added to your worm bin.
5.) The next step is important! Add a 3 or 4 inch layer of shredded paper. Hand shredded newspaper or office paper run through a shredder is OK. When you are done adding paper, add a small amount of water to make the paper moist, not wet.
6.) Put the lid back on the bin and you’re all done! Now place the bin outside in a shaded, protected location.
Taking Care of Your Worm Bin
1.) Every few days you should add food scraps by lifting the paper layer and placing food next to the worms. Put paper back or add more if needed. Make sure to keep the shredded paper moist.
2.) Watch the “castings” grow! Castings are what the worms produce when they eat the food scraps. The castings are dark brown and look like moist coffee grounds. After 4-6 months the castings will get a few inches deep in the bottom of the bin. Time to harvest!
3.) Harvest your castings by placing food scraps in one side or corner of the bin. Wait a month while the worms move to the food. You can now pull out the moist castings, place them on a newspaper in the sun to dry.
Once dry the castings can be used as a soil amendment or top-dressing around plants. Castings are high in nutrients and plants love them!
How to Get Compost Worms
The following business is good source for composting worms. Our native worms that you find in your yard or compost bin WILL NOT work in a worm box. They will not live in the shallow environment you create in your worm box so you will need "composting" worms (Eisenia Foetida) for your worm box. Another good source for free composting worms is a friend's worm box! Ask to grab a handful of worms that will become the "seed" population for your worm box. They will multiply quickly to a population appropriate for your box size and the amount of food you feed them. For additional information or assistance on worm box composting, call (925) 906-1801 ext. 306.
Local Worm Sources
Foothill Worm Ranch
7190 Foothill Road
Pleasanton, CA 94566-9702
Matt Abbruscato
(925) 484-4192
www.foothillwormranch.com
Monster Worms
PO Box 1211
Antioch, CA. 94509
Dave Anderson
(925) 890-5773
www.monsterworms.com
Please Note: CCCSWA is not associated with these companies and is only listing them as a resource only.