| I attended a Composting Methods class at The Gardens at Brookdale, taught by Susan Fisher. In this class she briefly overviewed what she had taught about composting in a previous class, and then went into Vermiculture and making Worm Casting & Compost Tea. I have never been so excited about WORMS! |
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| What is Vermiculture? Vermiculture is the process of cultivating certain types of worms to decompose organic waste, turning it into nutrient-rich compost. This eco-friendly practice not only reduces landfill waste but also produces high-quality fertilizer for gardens and farms. With minimal setup, anyone can harness the power of worms to enhance soil health and promote sustainable agriculture, making vermiculture a simple yet impactful way to contribute to environmental conservation. |
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| Let’s Make a Worm Farm! |
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| Easy 3-bin Set-up |
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Susan showed us how to create an easy and inexpensive Worm Farm. You can use any size bins that fit your space.
- Leave the bottom bin intact.
- Drill holes all over the bottom of the middle bin spaced about 1.5 inches apart.
- Drill holes all over the bottom of the third (top) bin like the middle bin, and then also drill two rows of holes near the top.
- Leave the bottom bin empty. Its purpose is to contain the Worm Farm and to catch any liquid from above.
- In the middle bin add a layer of compost, grass, leaves, shredded cardboard, etc., about 1/4 full. Mist with water until moist.
- Add your red wiggler or night crawler worms.
- In the top bin, put about a 1/4 cup of chopped (or blended) up food for your worms like egg shells, fruit peels, watermelon rind, vegetable peels, etc. This is where your worms will leave their castings, which look a lot like coffee grounds!
- After about a week, check to see if the food has been replaced with castings. If not, don’t feed them again yet. If so, feed again as above.
| Put the lid on the top bin and keep your Worm Farm in a cool place like under a sink, in a garage, or in a basement. Worms can’t handle spaces that are too hot or too cold. The worms reproduce every 27 days! |
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| Worm Casting & Compost Tea If you are just using the castings, add about 1 Tablespoon to your plant every 2-3 weeks. But you can stretch those castings by making TEA! |
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- Take 1 Gallon of water and add about 1/2 a handful of compost and 1/2 a handful of castings.
- Shake vigorously every so often over the course of 24 hours.
- Take 1 cup of your new Dark Tea and add it to another Gallon of water. Now you have Light Tea. Pour this on your plants.
- Use all of your tea within 24 hours on top of a deep watering.
- Repeat every 2 weeks and your plants will THRIVE!
Here is a good video with similar directions as above.
