Astro Findings

Composting With Worms

Go Green with Composting!

Composting is a great way to Go Green. By composting, you recycle yard and kitchen wastes, which reduces the volume of garbage that would otherwise end up in landfills. And it’s easy to learn and use.

The concept is simple: set up your bin(s), throw in your compost materials, and let the microbes and/or worms work their magic.

Plant remains and other once-living materials slowly decompose to make an earthy, dark, crumbly substance that makes for the best fertilizer possible for your plants and garden!

For those living in apartments and condos, you can compost too. Set up a vermicomposting bin (worm farm) indoors. When done properly, it does not emit any smell or attract insects.

Follow these steps to set up your own worm farm:

1. Get a plastic bin or polystyrene box with a lid on top
puncture holes on the bottom to allow the liquid (worm wee) to drain

2. Use a second lid or box to collect the liquid

3. In the top bin, add a thick layer of bedding (shredded newspaper is best, with hay and/or leaves) and soak with water

4. Get some compost worms (Reds, Tigers or Blue) at a garden store or online

5. Add some soil to help the worms get started
let the worms settle for a few days as you start to collect food scraps

6. Add food in one corner of the bin, rotating through different corners each week

Red wiggler worms
What to feed the worms?

Worms can eat a variety of organic material. As they do not have teeth, it is best to cut up the compost materials into small pieces.

Worms like fruits and vegetables (except onions & citrus fruits), crushed egg shells, coffee grinds, tea bags, leaves, plant clippings, and grass.

Tips

Be careful to avoid overfeeding your worms. For a medium sized bin, 1 liter per week works well. By the time you rotate through the 4 corners, the food in the first corner should be pretty much decomposed.

Make sure to keep adding bedding to your compose bin on a fairly regular basis and that it is kept damp by regularly spraying with water.

Collect the worm wee in the bottom box or lid (a turkey baster works well for this). Add small amount to watering can when you water your plants – they will absolutely love it!

Collect the vermicast (the soil-like substance the worms create) from the bedding using a gardening trowel or your hands. The worms should wriggle away because of the light. Use vermicast as a fertilizer that you can sprinkle around your plants. Again, they will absolutely love it!

It is best to use composting worms rather then earth worms as they will breakdown the food quicker.

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Tags: Composting
Posted in Composting · March 14th, 2010 · Comments (0)

How To Compost With Red Wiggler Composting Worms

Composting with worms is really not that hard at all to do . Red wiggler worms ( manure worms , tiger worms etc etc . ),the most common type of composting worms , are available are very forgiving little creatures .Jeff at Lone Star Worms will help us out

We will want to begin our journey of compost , with the bin .
Worms are not picky like us. They will live in about any decent environment . I suggest for a beginner that the easiest route to take is to use a Rubbermaid style plastic tote either of the 10 or 18 gallon variety .The bin we will be making will be a simple one layer bin . I would advise that you choose one that is not clear , as the worms do not like light . If this is too hard to come by such things as 5 gallon buckets will work or wooden crates cut to size will work fine . really the main thing is to find something that is not clear and that the worms will have room . I would advise at least 6 inches in depth and if you are a typical beginner a square footage ( length x width ) of around 2-2.5 to begin . The reason I give this advice is that composting worms need surface area more than anything . Red wiggler do not need great depth like there garden worm cousin there more of a surface dweller .In general for every square foot of surface area you have you will need one pound of worms .

A step that you may want to take but is not absolutely need is to drill a hole on the bottom to allow drainage of moisture . Be sure to place it where the water ca drain easily and not get stuck . And since you have the drill out drilling some holes along the top under the rim of the tote will allow for air which will be helpful to the worms in making the compost .

Now that you have a bin ready you need bedding . The cheapest way to make bedding is to use newspaper or cardboard . Tear them into strips about a inch wide . If you have a paper shredder this may make the job a little easier . If you do not wish to use newspaper of cardboard , peat moss can be used as well as coconut coir . Wet the bedding , then wring it out it should be damp but not dripping wet . The best way to describe it is that it should be like a sponge . Layers this for a couple of inches . This will be the worms home . A word of advice. Do all this if possible at least a week before you get your worms. Everything you can do before the worms get there is going to help them out .

Well now we have our bedding ready and it is set to go , hopefully it has been waiting for the worms . Now we need worms . Do not unless you want a really smelly mess take the worms you find outside burrowing in the ground and place them in the bin . They will die sadly . The type of worm you will likely get is called a red wiggler worm . These are perfect for composting and they can live in your bin with no issues . They are readily available over the internet and possibly locally through a local worm farmer or friend who has some they can give . I recommend that you place the worms in the bin all together and here is the hard part try to leave them alone .This is especially important when you first get them .They may try to escape . A good way to prevent that from happening is to leave a light on in their area ( remember worms don’t like light Try not to over feed . A good rule of thumb is for every pound of worms you have they will eat about 3 pounds of food a week . The last step will give a list of good and bad worm foods .

So now we have a bin with bedding and worms in it . We have allowed them some time to adjust ( about 2-3 days if possible ) Now we feed them . Good news again worms eat about anything you will give them . Everything that is organic material they can eat . Some of those organic materials are better than others though . Here is a good list to follow .

Do Feed :
Vegetable scraps ( cut up if you can )
Fruit scraps ( be light on the citrus scraps )
Used coffee grounds and filters ( ask your local coffee shop for theirs for a good source of free food )
Newspaper and cardboard
Teabags
Leaves
Egg Shells ( good for grit )
Manure ( horse of rabbit is great for them )

Please do not feed the worms the following or be very careful with these.

Dairy and meat and fish ( these can be fed but…they stink )
Metal
Dog or cat or human feces
Wood ( it takes a long time to break down and be useful for them )

After you have fed them it is a good idea and practice to put additional layer of newspaper on top to act as a kind of filter .

Now what do we do after all is done ? Here is the beautiful part , let the worms make wonderful compost for you . Jeff says worms eat

“Have fun” , believe it or not you will come to “love” those squirming little fellas .

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Tags: Worms
Posted in Composting · January 17th, 2010 · Comments (0)