Backyard Farming the Natural Way » Worm Composting – vermicomposting

New worm bin feeding experiment

admin — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 20:31:44 +0000

This post serves both as an update to the progress of one of my Easy Roll worm bins, and also, to show how well the composting worms have responded their new feeding regimen. I discuss it in this video, but basically, I have been partially composting my kitchen scraps in my outdoor bin – to which I have also been adding horse manure, gardening debris, etc. The worm population has probably doubled in a short period of time since doing this, and I also am getting a lot more worm casting production as a result.

Worm Compost Tea: New aeration technique

admin — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 13:27:56 +0000

In this video, I demonstrate a new aeration technique for making compost tea which does not involve suspending a filter bag of compost into the aeration container. This may be fine for using a very small amount of compost, but for larger amounts, I feel that there will be a dead zone (anaerobic) inside the suspended compost. It is best to allow maximum contact between the air and compost particles by letting it mix freely into the water. Anyhow, I have had good success with this simple air baffle, and demonstrate it in this two part video. I also discuss some of the recent research on compost tea that seems to counter some of its claims. My only regret is that I could not find my more powerful air pump for this experiment

Compost tea: Treating a plant problem

admin — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 02:37:52 +0000

My friend recently gave me an avocado tree grown from seed which had succumbed to some disease which had infected the leaves turning them brown and brittle. I researched on the net, and the closest problem that I could come up with was some sort of leaf scorch resulting from too much sun, not enough water etc. However, after reviewing the situation, I did not feel that any of these were likely causes in my case (in live in humid Florida, the soil was well watered and not saline etc.). There was also sooty mildew present, and though I tried treating with a fungicide, the plant was dying (I chalked it up to some sort of blight).

Easy Roll Worm Bin Composter demonstration

admin — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 21:34:42 +0000

Here is a further demonstration and discussion of the new easy roll worm bin composting system. I started developing and testing this over three years ago and have been very happy with the performance. I will be posting a links to the plans download here soon, but I am currently making a video complement to make the plans even easier to build.

New Worm Composting Bed – Pit

admin — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 17:21:22 +0000

The previous owners where I recently moved left a lot of cinder blocks in the back, and so I put them to good use making an outdoor worm bed. I have installed it under some large shade trees, and so that roots would not crowd up into the compost (and moles etc), I laid down some old plywood underneath (worms find their way to the bed nevertheless). I have been adding chopped leaves and grass, pieces of cardboard and some horse manure from a nearby stable.

I have also added section of oak log into the pile as I have noticed from my older worm bed that worms love to gather around these logs as they decay (I am guessing that they eat the fungus). Finally, we are in a very bad drought here in northeast Fl, and so I have had to keep the bed moist with a garden hose. I also imagine that when (if?) we finally get rain, more of these worms will find my bed – I have noticed that this species does their scouting in rain/wet weather.

As you can see, the native blue worm perionyx excavatus have already begun to move in and I am getting some whoppers! These guys do a remarkable job of composting, and though it is a challenge getting them to stay in a bin, they are great in an outdoor ‘wild’ worm bed. As this bed (or pit) develops and fills up, I plan on segmenting it into quarters, and I will harvest the older section first etc. I discussed in another post regarding a simple means I used in my old bed of removing and screening the finished compost

New Easy Roll worm bin composter

admin — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 17:40:47 +0000

I have finally completed the plans to what I feel is a revolutionary new way to compost worms. I have tested it thoroughly for about a year and it works like a champ. It eliminates the hassle of stackable worm bins, and makes harvesting the compost a snap. Once it’s ready to harvest, the bottom is rolled upside down and lifter off. The worms have moved out leaving finished compost. Remaining worms can be encouraged to move deeper by simply leaving the bottom off for a while. Not shown in video is a simple plastic container slid underneath to capture leachate. Ordering and details for the Easy Roll worm bin can be found here.

New Worm Composting Guide

admin — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 19:40:34 +0000

I have launched a new site off of this site which I will dedicate solely to the subject of worm composting. I will soon be posting an ebook on a revolutionary new vermicomposting bin which I have developed (compost harvest will be super easy!). For now, I have posted a guide on the basics of worm composting. Enjoy

Worm Composting Guide

Worm Bin Update

admin — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:15:28 +0000

As a result of moving, it’s been quite a while since I have posted an update concerning my composting worms. Fortunately, I was able to take the wooden worm bin that I constructed with me, and so far I have gotten many loads of worm castings from this setup. You can find the original plan sequence here DIY Stackable Worm Composter. Referring to the photo, I am reaching down just below the surface and you can see the substrate is absolutely full of worms.

In the top pic, the bottom of the bin is now full and so I have placed the top section on and am beginning to fill it up with kitchen scraps. Because I have been in a hurry lately, I have not spent the time to chop up the scraps like I should (to optimize worm food availability). Nevertheless, I am not too concerned at this point because until I move from my current rental into my new place, I currently have more vermicompost than I know what to do with!

Also, I think the worms really dig all the egg shells that I feed them. Because I don’t have many vermin around, I don’t wash the shells and I think the added protein is a nice touch to the other vegetative kitchen scraps (though the shells obviously need to be crushed better, but oh well).

When I finally get settled, I think I am going to implement an idea that I read about concerning using a cheap garbage disposal mounted to a board outside, and then having the outlet exit into a 5 gallon pail. By using this method, I think I could get twice the worm yield than I am currently getting with my lazy approach of placing the food in whole. Finally, I do add some occasional newspaper, cardboard egg containers, and certain leaves in for bedding. Till next time, ‘worms away!’

European Crawler Compost Worms

admin — Wed, 07 May 2008 19:01:26 +0000

I think these are the European Crawlers (Eisenia hortensis), but what is strange is that they were taken from my outdoor worm pit and are therefore, indigenous worms to my area. However, they look exactly like hortensis which I received from the worm farm (which I have in another bin). Anyhow, I have them mixed in with the excavatus and red wigglers and they seem to be reproducing and growing like crazy.

These are a few I picked out to photogragh, and some are probably 5″ long when outstretched. I had read that these are not as prolific as the Eisenia foetida (and certainly not the excavatus) but I am finding their numbers to be growing rapidly (if that is indeed what the fatter ones are). I would appreciate comments if anyone can tell.

Making Compost Tea

admin — Fri, 02 May 2008 15:11:19 +0000

I have previously discussed the many benefits of compost tea and have also provided information sources in my links section. You can use regular compost or vermicompost, but the latter will generally be richer in micro-organisms. Pictured on the left, I am using a very simple system which cost me a total of about $20. I purchased the pumps, tubing, and airstones (not pictured) at Walmart and am using the smallest size pump for one air hose and the next larger size for powering the other two. So here are the simple steps in a nutshell:

Attach three airstones to the ends of three airtubes and rest on the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket.
Hook the air tubes up to appropriate air pumps. If you don’t wish to use my exact setup, you can use one larger air pump if you like and use a gang valve such as is featured in this article.
Fill the bottom to about 1/3 full with rich fully matured compost. I use vermicompost because it is richer in beneficial micro-organisms. Also, the richer the composting materials that were used (manure etc.) the richer will be the “brew.” Make sure the compost is mature and if using vermicompost, remove all the worms as these can foul the brew.
Fill the container with water to within about 4-6″ from the top. Do not use tap water unless it has sat for awhile and is free of chlorine. I am using well water since the minerals should be beneficial etc.
While making sure that the air stones are resting solidly on the bottom, fire up the pumps. Now add approximately 1 oz of unsulfured molasses. This will provide food for the aerobic bacteria to thrive and greatly explode in numbers.
Continue this process for about 2.5 – 3 days and try to stir a couple of times daily (you may need to reposition the airstones). Stirring breaks up the particles and helps assure that air gets to all sections – we want complete aerobic bacteria dominance and no anaerobic sections to form. The mixture should smell pleasant, and if there is any garbage smell, something is wrong. Either the initial compost was not mature enough or else there is not sufficient air flow and circulation. Do not use a final product which does not smell fresh because the alchohol fermentation by-products and anaerobic organisms could be harmful to your plants!
When complete, allow the brew to settle to the bottom for about 15 minutes, and the resulting mixture can then be strained through a cheese cloth (or other suitable filter) into another bucket. Following this, the mixture can then be applied to your plant either via a sprayer and/or poured around the root zone. I plan to apply both a foliar spray and a root application. Just make sure that you use it all within about 2 hours or the bacteria will start dying off.

Compost tea which is prepared in this manner is beneficial for: 1) Providing plant nutrients in an efficient manner. 2) Building natural resistance back into plants which have been damaged from pesticide and chemical use. 3) Helping to fight pathogens in both the soil and on the plant surfaces. Also, the chitanase can help repel insects.

So are all these wonderful claims true? I suspect that disease prevention and treatment benefits have to do with the particular compost being used and also with the nature of the specific pathogen. However, I think that the nutrional benefits are more established and well understood. I have a few diseased plants which I am going to try this brew on and I will post both before and after pictures. If you have experience in using compost tea, please comment on your results!