A couple of questions: 1. Are red wigglers native to northeastern U.S? If not, would they be considered "invasive"? If they die when it gets too cold, what will happen if (when) the region gets warmer? 2. What earthworms are native to northeastern U.S.? (I have heard there are no native earthworms in the northeast - the one we have were brought over by the Europeans.) 3. Where will I be able to find your answers to these questions? Thank you.
In My Garden Blog:
New England
September 1, 2005
By
Kathy Bond Borie,
Richmond, Vermont
Worms will give you a steady supply of fertilizer in exchange for your food scraps.
As the Worm Turns
Worms are the best pets a gardener could ask for. They need no food other than scraps from the table, they make no noise, create no mess, take up little space, cost next to nothing for upkeep, and give us fertilizer for our plants. All you need is a worm bin for them to live in and a place to keep it that doesn't get too cold or too hot. Then instead of throwing away all those food scraps, you can recycle many of them in the worm bin. The worms benefit, you benefit, your plants benefit -- there's just no downside.
I occasionally get quizzical looks from people when I talk about keeping worms, but worm composting is no longer the fringe pastime it was back in 1982 when Mary Appelhof, a biologist and educator, started spreading the word about the enormous potential of the humble worm through her book, Worms Eat My Garbage. Over the years she got so many people hooked on the idea of using worms to recycle food waste that the book was reprinted 15 times and then revised by Mary seven years ago.
Now there are commercial worm composting (vermicomposting) enterprises that produce and sell worm compost, others that raise the worms for sale, and they are considered farming operations deserving of tax breaks in some states.
All the hubbub is because an earthworm can consume its weight in organic matter daily. Granted, a single worm doesn't weigh much, but a worm bin can hold several pounds of worms just waiting for leftovers. I don't weigh my worms or the quantity of food I give them; I just save food scraps from my family of four (no meat, bones, fish, or anything else smelly) and bury them in the worm bin every couple of days. I've never had any problems with odor, and I keep fruit flies from visiting by making sure the scraps are covered with worm bedding or a sprinkling of soil.
Redworms, also called red wigglers, are the best type of worm for composting in a worm bin. Eventually they will turn the leftovers into worm manure or "castings," rich in nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and calcium. Every three or four months or so, you need to separate this material from the bedding so you can mix it into potting soil or the garden. This is the only time-consuming routine of worm ownership, pretty nominal considering the only daily walk they require is the one you take to bring vegetable scraps to the basement or garage or wherever you locate your worm bin.
Numerous studies have demonstrated how the nutrients in worm castings improve plant growth, and in recent years they've turned up some other surprising effects. The castings apparently also contain microbes that can suppress diseases and increase plants' resistance to insects. We're sure to hear more about this benefit.
The Basics
To set up a worm composting system you need the following:
1. Red wiggler worms. You can order them by mail or harvest some from a friend's worm bin.
2. Bin. Many types are commercially available or you can fabricate your own. It needs to have drainage holes on the bottom.
3. Bedding. Shredded paper, coconut fiber, leaf mold.
4. Grit. Small amounts of soil or rock dust help the worms break down organic material.
5. Food. Most any fruit or vegetable, bread, cereal, coffee grounds, tea bags and leaves, eggshells. Avoid meat, bones, large amounts of citrus rinds, pet waste, and anything nonbiodegradable.
There are lots of ways to fine-tune the process but basically you place the bedding in the bin, add the worms, then feed them your food scraps regularly. The worms will digest the scraps along with some of the bedding material and produce castings. As the castings build up, you need to separate them out for mixing into potting soil or the garden or spreading on the surface of your container plants. Then add more bedding to the bin to keep the process going. Good bins have drainage spouts so you also can collect the liquid as it accumulates and use it to fertilize your plants.
I look at worm composting as a way to expand the recycling process that goes on outside in my compost piles. It's also the best option in winter when the outdoor pile is too frozen to bury scraps.
Mary Appelhof died last spring, but it's easy to imagine you're having a conversation with her when you read her book. She devoted 25 years to working with worms, and had enormous respect for the important role they play in recycling waste. Thanks to her, so do many of us.
Join the discussion!
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- Add a comment -
Sarah Barnett | December 1, 2007 | 9:59AM
lilly | December 3, 2007 | 1:08AM
I have a commerical worm bin in the garage. I found some small flies inside the bin. How can I get rid of them and how to prevent it happens again?
Kelly Cox | January 31, 2008 | 1:40PM
I have heard that all North American worms made it over here from Europe. But they aren't that bad.
californiamama | October 30, 2008 | 1:19PM
I received a pile of oakwood chips a year ago [pretty large pieces, 4' diameter x 2' high]. I am using it as my compost pile, burying kitchen scraps, adding a small amount of dirt and covering it w/the drier outer chips. It's hot in the middle, some compost is forming but still lots of rough stuff. Question: will this make good compost? Will the ph be right? Do I need to add anything else? Thank you - Barbara
Kathy Bond Borie | October 30, 2008 | 1:40PM
Barbara, Large wood chips will take a while to decompose and they will need lots of nitrogen in the process. Food scraps and fresh lawn clippings provide some nitrogen, but adding a nitrogen source such as alfalfa pellets or a nitrogen fertilizer will provide an extra boost. I'd also recommend adding leaves, which I think enhance any compost pile. The hotter the pile, the faster materials will decompose so encourage heat by turning the pile regularly. Also moisture is important. It's hard to say what pH you can expect so a pH test of the final compost would be a good idea. Good luck.
Elaine | October 30, 2008 | 4:39PM
Does anyone know ome or two good websites for information on this topic of composting and vermiculture? I am trying to work with some school children to get this project going and need some advice about how to build a worm compost bin. Maybe someone else has done this with a class and could share the experiences. I'm eager to hear about the good, the bad, and the "wormy" of your experiences.
Marilyn Kircus | October 30, 2008 | 9:08PM
I never did the worm composting with kids but did help some use them for a science project. I just used a storage box from Walmart for my own wormbed and drilled holes in the bottom and sides. I had the box with 2 flaps to form the top. I set it on 2X 4's to allow drainage and to have more air transfer. In the classroom, you would have to have a tray under the worm box with something to lift it off the tray a little so it would never stand in water. My box held about 6 sandpail sized servings of leftovers and peelings. By the time the 6th pail was in the box, there was room to start over. A really good substrate is the shredded paper from the front office. Moisten it until it is like a wet dishcloth. I never added grit to my worms but I see that now that is recommended. So I would keep a little coarse sand or some really finely ground rock - get at a gardening store - and add a handful each time you replace the substrate. As to good sites - just google redworm composting and you should get plenty of info. You may want to narrow it down with science projects + red worms or redworms + k-12 or something like that. Hope this gets you started. It is real easy and lends itself to lots of different investigations.
Gina M. Zoern | November 16, 2008 | 10:26AM
How do you separate the castings from the bedding? Does it
settle to the bottom of the tray?
Also, what size holes do you drill in the tray.
ed hardy | July 7, 2009 | 9:52PM
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Jane Austen | May 31, 2011 | 1:29PM
I've been doing some research for my mom about <a href="http://luckyduckwormfarm.com">red wiggler worms</a> and the rich compost they make. Thanks for putting the basics for starting one on your post! I was wondering what scraps were the best to give them. It could be a good excuse for me to eat vegetables more :)
Susan Littlefield | June 1, 2011 | 2:46PM
Red wrigglers will be happy with all sorts of vegetable and fruit scraps, but it's a good idea to use a variety of different ones rather than loading up the bin with one particular kind, especially citrus rinds. You are also less likely to have a problem with fruit flies if you stick to veggies and fruits rinds and peels; put larger pieces of fruit in an outdoor compost bin.
