Vermiculture: Using Worms to Create a Fast, Clean, and Efficient Composting System

This edition of Sustainable Shopper is dedicated to exposing the composting community to a creative idea that can help make home composting neat, easy, and efficient. Many people find composting to be a great way to reduce the amount of waste their household ships out to local landfills each week. The nutrient-rich soil-matter produced by composting can be added to gardens. Composting can also help home gardeners reduce their dependence on commercially produced soils and fertilizers. That means saving time and money each year when it comes time to plant your garden. One of the most efficient ways to compost is to invite worms right into your kitchen!

The earth worm is a creature beloved by composters and gardeners alike. Worms living compost piles and garden help to naturally speed up the break down of organic matter and leave behind valuable fertilizer. Vermiculture takes the natural benefits offered by worms and brings them into the home. The idea of worms living in your house may sound suspicious at first, but as someone who has shared my kitchen with worms let me assure you that this method of composting is one of the best ones out there.

The worms are housed in a sealed container. You can purchase a ready made house for your worms, as well as the worms themselves, online. Or you can also save money by making your own. Any decent sized plastic bin with a lid will suffice. Simply drill or punch a number of holes in the top. You want to make sure that plenty of air can get into the container or your worms could suffocate. You should also make some holes at the bottom so to allow excessive moisture to drain out. Just be sure to place something underneath to catch the resulting leakage once your bin is set up inside you home. I would recommend making these holes no larger that 1/8 of an inch in diameter so that no worms escape the container.

Next, provide an initial habitat for your worms by pouring a base of soil into container. Add your worms into the mix. You don't need too many worms at the start as they will breed quickly when food is added. You can start adding small amounts of food immediately. When adding food it is important to remember to cover it with a thin layer of soil so that the worms can reach it more easily. Just take a scoop of soil from the container, or dig down a ways, place the food in and cover it. The worms will do the rest. You will be amazed at how fast they can compost food. As the size of your worm community grows you can add increasing amounts of food.

What should you feed your worms? The golden rule to follow is to avoid placing anything related to meat into the worm composting bin. This includes meat scrapes, juices, grease, and bones. Don't pour liquids into the container either. Most other food matter is a safe bet. Just keep in mind when adding then things like egg shells that it will take long to break them down.

When one of my roommates first proposed the idea of a worm composter in the house I thought they were crazy. But I was soon proven wrong, as no disturbing odors, worms, or soil voyaged beyond the walls of the worm container. In fact myy worries quickly turned to fascination as I watched the worms in action. A worm composter can provide a great learning opportunity for kids too. Inside that container is a microcosm of the natural world of soil, where organic matter is broken down and provides the basis for new plant life.

You can buy the best type of composting worms, red wrigglers, online at GardenZone.com. Vermiculture containers are available in a variety of different models at Composters.com.