The Garden Gourmet Composter

Vermicomposting (worm composting), is an easy way to re-use your fruit and vegetable scraps right out of your kitchen and garden. All you need is a container filled with moistened bedding, worms and food scraps. Worm composting is also a fun way to make compost, can be done in small places and the best of all your kids will like it! Very easy do to but it takes a little more work than the basic composting way.

The first step – choose a bin

You can decide if you want to buy a bin or if you want to build one out of wood or plastic. The bin needs to be 10 to 16 inches deep; you must make holes in the bottom for ventilation, make a lid that fit on the bin. Do not make big hole otherwise rodents can get through the holes, a quarter of an inch or smaller will do. A bin of about 4 square feet will do for a household of two.

If you do not want to build one then you can buy one and there are several to choose from on the market.

The second step – pick your place for your bin

Your bin needs to be placed where it will not get the coldest or hottest place to let the worms do their work. Place it in your laundry room, garage, pantry or basement. If you place it in the garden or porch, remember to take it inside during the winter.

The third step – Make a bed for your worms

Use damp bedding like fall leaves that you shred, take an old newspaper and it into strips and fluff it up, spray the paper with water but do not let it get dripping wet. Use a variety of waste in the bedding to give the worms more nutrients that then deliver better compost. Lift the bedding gently to create air spaces. You can use the following too for bedding; shredded cardboard, leaves, and sawdust. You can put in a handful of soil in the worm bin.

The fourth step – place the worms in the bin

Red worms are best to worm composting because the like organic material. You can get your worms from a compost bin, purchase them or find a horse stable or farmer with an aged manure pile.

The fifth step – Feed the worms

Red worms eat kitchen scraps such as fruit /vegetable peels, egg shells, tea bags and coffee grounds. Please do not use meat, bones, fatty waste, dairy products, plastic, or tin foil in the worm composter. When you place in the scraps, take the bedding aside and put in the scraps, cover the scraps again with the bedding, it prevent fruit flies of bothering you.

Maintain your worm bin

You must always maintain 4- to 6-inch layer of fresh bedding over the worms in your bin. Make sure you give fresh bedding every couple of months to the bin and keep it moist but not dripping wet.

Enjoy your worm composting and feel free to visit The Garden Gourmet Composter for all other types of composters. For your all in one composting needs click here