I am honored and excited to welcome my first guest writer, Bentley Christie of Red Worm Composting. Bentley is an expert composter and has graciously agreed to write an introduction to worm composting for Veggie Meal Plans. He authors Red Worm Composting, a site dedicated to vermicomposting, and can also be found at EcoSherpa, a sustainable living website.

For many people, the idea of sharing their living spaces with a writhing mass of worms and rotting food is about as appealing as a root canal.

It's all a matter of perspective I guess. As a vermicomposting fanatic, I now see worm bins as the ultimate lean, mean, waste processing machines - offering many advantages over traditional composting systems.

Here are just a few of the pros:

1. Ideal for indoors - even those who live in small apartments can create beautiful, rich compost. It also allows those living in cold climates to compost all year long.
2. Odor-free - when properly maintained (quite easy with a little practice) the odor associated with your bin should be similar to rich garden soil.
3. First class compost. Academic studies have shown time and time again that soil mixtures containing as little as 5-10% vermicompost (often referred to as "worm castings") can have a huge positive impact on plant growth and overall health.
4. Educational and fun!

In order to fully appreciate the process however, your worm bin does need to be working properly! All too often, vermicomposting newcomers are faced with serious troubles early on, leading them to give up before witnessing the beauty of a well-balanced system.

Here are some tips to help increase your chances of success:

Aging your bin - People often assume that composting worms (remember, regular gardening worms can't be used for vermicomposting) simply eat garbage, when in fact it is the microbial community that grows on organic wastes that is their most significant food source.

As such, I highly recommend you set up your bin and let it age for a week or so (a few days, if you are in a rush) before adding the worms. Not only will there be a thriving microbial buffet waiting for your worms when they arrive, but moisture levels will likely be much more evenly balanced throughout the bin as well.

Bedding is your friend – Remember this mantra! Ample use of carbon-rich bedding materials can help prevent/alleviate many (if not most) of the problems associated with smaller worm bins. It helps to balance the C:N ratio, soaks up excess moisture, provides refuge and food for your worms, allows for increased oxygen penetration, and can even help you suppress annoying populations of flying insects (such as fruit flies). Ideal bedding materials include shredded newspaper and/or cardboard, coir fibre (waste from coconut industry), peat moss (not the most environmentally responsible choice), or well aged compost/manure.

I highly recommend adding new bedding every time you add more waste to your bin.

Use a Kitchen Scrap Bucket – As mentioned, worms feed on the microbial communities associated with decomposing organic waste. Storing scraps in a separate container allows time for this colonization to occur. Other techniques for increasing the speed of microbial colonization include cooking (if raw), macerating, or freezing your scraps prior to adding to your bin.

Foods to be Careful With – While most veggie/fruit wastes are ideally suited for worm composting, some caution still needs to be exercised, especially with smaller systems.

• Highly acidic materials such as citrus fruit, pineapples, or tomatoes can throw your pH off kilter quite easily.
• Any food waste with irritating oils, like citrus peel, onions, and hot peppers should also be used only in moderation.
• Speaking of oils, any foods that are excessively oily, such as salad that’s been drenched in dressing, should be used only in moderation as well.
• Starchy materials such as bread, pasta, potatoes and rice can create anaerobic zones and fermentation

Keep in mind that these guidelines are primarily for small indoor bins. Larger systems tend to be much more forgiving.

Moderation – In my experience, worm composting works best when you err on the side of caution - especially when you are just starting out. Killing your worms with excess food is far easier than starving them to death, that’s for sure! I know how tempting it can be early on to “feed” your wiggly friends ever day (just like any other pet). Perhaps you’ve heard that worms will consume “half their weight” in waste per day. One thing to keep in mind is that all bins will go through a period of adjustment early on. Following the advice I’ve provided above should definitely help a great deal, but it’s still important to remember that your worms are in a new environment and need some time to get used to their surroundings.

Worm composting is an amazing process that converts ‘wastes’ into an incredible resource. While anyone can benefit from setting up their own worm bin, I think vegetarians and vegans will be especially well-suited for the endeavor (hint hint )! A large supply of veggie/fruit waste, combined with an appreciation for earth-friendly solutions can go a long way towards ensuring your vermi-success!

This article was written by Bentley Christie of Red Worm Composting, Copyright © 2007. To read more about vermicomposting, please visit Bentley's site at redwormcomposting.com or subscribe to the site's RSS feed. He can also be found at EcoSherpa, a sustainable living website.

Comments (7)

celine 

I love it. and I am rubbing my hands together like old Mr Burns of Simpsons fame would.

August 29, 2007 | website

BentleyC 

Hehe! Great to hear, Celine. :-) BTW - if anyone has any questions, please don't hesitate to post them! I'll be checking back periodically to make sure I haven't missed anything. Thanks again for the opportunity, Cassie! B.

August 29, 2007 | website

CassieYoung 

Thank you for a fantastic intro to vermicomposting! It really is an amazing process and also quite fun and fascinating - for kids and adults!

August 30, 2007 | website

Ashley 

Excellent post! I'm going to bookmark it.

September 03, 2007 | website

CassieYoung 

Wanted to add a note to let you know that Bentley recently launched another fabulous new site called Compost Guy!

March 02, 2008 | website

cannedam 

I have questions, questions, questions! Well, you answered a few with your excellent article. I wonder, how much compost would you say the average family home can produce from a vermicomposter (without gathering extra materials from starbucks or restaurants, that is.) I compost in my back yard, but there are two solid months when I cannot make the trek to the bins. (Incidentally, I do freeze our veggie scraps until I can get them into my composters.) So how much just from household waste. (Outside I make enough to cover roughly 350 square feet 1-2" deep, but there I also use leaves, newspaper, straw, garden waste, etc.) What temperature of room is ideal for this bin? Would under the kitchen sink be a good idea or not? Maybe the basement, away from heat sources? Do you need to water the bin? Oh, I bet I have more. I so want to do this this fall after I close the gardens. Off to visit your site, now...

July 23, 2008 | website

CassieYoung 

Hi cannedam, good questions! Not sure if Bentley will see them as he wrote the article for us last year, but definitely check out his composting sites and take a look around. He's got soooo much useful information and great tips he has shared. Here are the links: Red Worm Composting Compost Guy Thanks for dropping by!

July 24, 2008 | website

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