How to worm compost
Worm composting is easy (remember, the worms have the hard part) and as inexpensive as you want to make it. You can start worm composting for free or spend up to $150 dollars for a great indoor worm bin and a few thousand red worms. You will need to make some decisions about what type of worm composting you need to do. This web page is dedicated to explaining different worm composting techniques to you and explaining which ones I use.
First, all worm composting involves three things: worms, food/material for the worms to eat, and a place to compost. This composting place can be indoors (worm bins) or outdoors (piles or composting bins). They can be huge or relatively small. If they are worm bins, and stackable, you can take up a very small amount of space.
Free worm composting (outdoors)
I have done this for years! It’s easy, inexpensive, and gets good results (I get rich, organic soil from this). The first free technique is a simple pile. For years, I piled my lawn clippings, leaves, branches, dead garden material, and some (dried!!) manure from a neighbors farm in a spot in my back yard. Worms love this. I would turn it a few times a year and water it occasionally. After a year, I rake back the top layers and dig out the thick, rich soil at the bottom. Until you do this type of free worm composting, you would not believe the size of worms you can find. I’ll try to post some photos when I dig it up next fall.
I would like to point out: when it rains really hard, our driveway, sidewalk, and street gets covered with numerous worms. Generally, they get run over by tires, eaten by birds, or dry up when the sun returns. My sons and I will often go out and pick up as many as we can, collecting them for our garden and composting pile. Completely free, and they will turn my lawn waste into worm castings which I reuse on my garden. Ah, the circle of life. Some of my favorite moments as a dad have been out in the rain with a son picking up worms. Just throwing this out as something to consider.
Free worm composting (outdoor) pros: It’s free! It’s easy! It works!
Free worm composting (outdoor) cons: Piles of lawn waste and any household leftovers can attract rodents and unwanted ‘guests’ like mice or skunks. I find that keeping a composting pile also seems to attract moles…they love feeding on worms and dig tunnels upsetting my lawn. Moles are part of the cycle, though, too, and help break up soil, so this is a give/take. Another con is the pile of lawn leftovers isn’t very appealing to look at and can smell in the heat.
One improvement on this is to build a outdoor composting bin. This can be wood, plastic, or chicken wire. The main concept for this composting bin is to allow the elements to work (rain wets the pile, worms work up the pile, etc). Just make sure you have a way to add new compost to the top, a means to turn the compost pile (a pitchfork works) and then harvest the compost soil annually.
Free worm composting (indoors)
Be adventurous and build your own worm bins. Composting is easy. You could use a large plastic container….fill it with some damp bedding (shredded news paper, cardboard, or leaves), pile in some food that worms eat (fruit rinds, salad remains, smashed egg shells, etc) and cover with a generous level of damp, shredded newspaper. Add worms and let them at it for a few months.
For more complex indoor worm composting bins, you could find plastic containers that stack on each other. Pokes holes every inch or so in the bottom (allowing worms to work their way up). Add food to the top layer and let the bottom bins sit while the worms work away eating the food and making worm castings. The holes need not be too big, remember, worms are used to fitting in tight places!
Free worm composting (indoor) pros: It’s free or really cheap. Allows you to reuse/recycle containers. Very do-able! It works!
Free worm composting (indoor) cons: Need to be handy and have a good idea of how to put things together. Need to understand what products work best…I understand that cedar can harm worms and if you use products that break down during the composting process, you might harm the worms.
I still use a composting pile in my back yard. So, I see the results of worm composting without paying anything for it.….
Purchasing an indoor worm composting bin
While free is great, I also purchased an indoor worm composting bin and am extremely happy with it. I got a unit that can stack up to 5 bins high. I put bedding and food in the bottom bin and then bedding in the next. I cover the top to keep everything dark and moist. Once the worms started working their way up, I add more food to the top bin and then leave the lower ones alone. Over about two months, the bottom one is finally ready for worm casting harvesting and then I remove it and add it to the top. So, it’s a constant cycle … the worms work their way up and I remove the bottom bin, harvest the worm castings, and put it on top again.
Purchasing an indoor worm composting bin pros: It’s easy! It’s proven to work without harming the worms and is setup perfectly for them to work their way up. You have an easy way to drain compost tea (depending on the model you purchase). It works! In fact, I find that my indoor worm composting bin works wonderfully. It’s easy to stack and unstack and I can easily demonstrate it to friends. It doesn’t take up much space nor do I ever smell anything from it (other than an earthy smell when I turn the composting stuff over to check progress).
Purchasing an indoor worm composting bin cons: It costs money. I purchased my unit for around 100 dollars and find myself highly recommending it to friends….so, although I list this as a ‘con’ it’s really been a great purchase for me. I suppose that because I’m now able to compost year round, and no longer need to purchase worm castings each spring, it’ll save me money over time.
How to worm compost? Just get started! It’s easy. It can be as inexpensive as you want it to be. And best of all, it works!