How to Make Your Own Organic Worm Compost System
An organic worm compost system provides many benefits to the home gardener. Earthworms turn kitchen and garden scraps into rich, fertile soil, avoiding waste and renewing your garden. The worms also multiply, providing a source of more earthworms to sell, keep, or use in the garden. Earthworms are highly prized by gardeners for the benefits to the soil, and can be added to gardens as well as kept in a worm compost system. Here's how to make your own organic worm compost system. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Buy or build a worm compost bin to house your earthworms. The bin should be shallow, about 12-18 inches high, made of untreated wood or plastic with drain holes.
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Spread bedding in the worm compost bin, filling it about halfway. Newspaper is a great worm bedding material and does not contain toxins, as many newspapers use soy and carbon as the ink on newsprint paper. Shredded cardboard, well-composted manure or shredded leaves are also good bedding choices.
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Dampen the bedding in your organic worm compost system by lightly misting water in a spray bottle or from a garden hose with light pressure. Don't soak the material, just moisten it. Make sure the water is not chlorinated; use well water or rain water for best results.
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Add a couple pounds of worms to the worm compost bin. Healthy earthworms may be purchased online or through specialty retailers, or collected from your own yard or compost pile over time. After placing the worms on top of the bedding, watch them move down through the bin.
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Place kitchen scraps, such as fruit peels and vegetable waste, to the top of the worm compost bin. A system with 10,000 worms will eat about five pounds of scraps a day.
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Tips & Warnings
Every few months, remove the worm castings and add it to your garden.
