Worm Farming

You’ll find people who don’t know how important worm farming is to the ecosystem. Worms just don’t crawl around in the dirt, they are necessary for the soil.

Worms were some of the very first creatures on earth. Worms composted the dinosaur waste and turned it into a rich soil eons ago. Today, worms are still the best composters.

Do you know the main reasons that worm farming is indeed critical to the natural environment? Worm farming is done for three main reasons; it’s used for composting, worm castings, fishing bait and to feed other animals and birds.

Many types of food scraps and some other biodegradable things are efficiently composted in worm farms. Some industrial organizations use worms farms to keep much of their waste materials away from landfills. Because of the worm farms, numerous objects are kept out of garbage dumps. Worms are so effective that even landfills utilize them to help compost a portion of the trash.

Even people who reside in condominiums and homeowners can manage a worm farm. It’s easy to place food scraps and paper products into the worm bin and have the worms compost it. This keeps even more items from trash dumps. There are a number of different sizes of worm farms that may be purchased. You can maintain a worm farm inside or outside according to space constraints and the outside temperature.

A number of the items which can be placed into a personal worm farm are: paper products, dampened cardboard, vegetables, fruits, cereal, bread, hair, egg shells and coffee grounds. The finished product is a wonderful rich soil that can be used in gardens and flower beds.

At this point, we can look at another reason for setting up a worm farm. Worm poop, also known as vermicompost or worm castings, is the substance that worms excrete. What you supply the worms will be broken down and turned into nutrient rich castings. These castings can be used as plant food and are an extremely powerful fertilizer for plants. If you would like an all-natural fertilizer then vermicompost is perfect for you.

There’s no need for synthetic chemical substances or chemical fertilizers when you use worm castings. One of the problems with artificial fertilizers is the fact that although it has a temporary quick effect, the soil itself is broken down and nutrients are destroyed. You would then need to use even more fertilizer to get the same effects. It doesn’t fix the problem-you still have to replace the nutrients in the soil.

Excessive use of synthetic fertilizers together with pesticides have destroyed some worm populations. If the earth is polluted the worms will often move to a chemical free area or they could actually die.

By using the organic and natural vermicompost you do not need any outside chemicals, therefore the land will not be polluted. You may also want to add some worms to a flower bed or garden to aerate and fertilize the soil.

A final reason for having a worm farm is to raise worms for fishing bait or to feed other animals. Birds, fish and a few other animals like to consume worms. These animal owners appreciate being able to obtain live worms which were organically raised and are much better for the animals.

Many fisherman are looking for an excellent source of live bait to use for their hobby or profession. The worms from your worm farm are provided with natural ingredients and can produce a fantastic bait.

As you can see, worm farming provides many benefits to the ecosystem. By starting a worm farm you can appreciate the importance of worms a little bit better. Feeding worms food and material that would have gone right into a landfill creates that rich compost that helps the garden soil and supports the planet.

Many schools are teaching their students about worm composting and worm farming.  Kids are encouraging their parents to set-up worm farms at home.  This recycling project is a great one that parents and children can do together.  Worm farming is simple to start, easy to maintain and it can be a very gratifying project for all.

Worm farming, unlike outdoor composting, does not require much space or work.  The worm bin can easily be kept in a garage, basement or kitchen.  The worm bin needs to be stored in a dark place that is between 50°-80°F,  and  ideally, 72°-75°F.

Worm Farm Composting Bin

The next step is to shred newspaper (black and white print only) and fill the worm bin about half way.  Dampen the paper and squeeze out any excess water.  Add a handful of dirt, a few kitchen scraps, the red wiggler worms (start with a ½ to 1 pound of red wigglers) and cover with another layer of moist shredded newspaper.  Don’t use earthworms!  The red wigglers are your best worms for composting household scraps.  You have just completed your worm farm.

To maintain your worm farm feed the worms every few days.  Foods that are not the worms’ favorites and should not be given to them are:  citrus, spicy foods, meats and dairy products. By eliminating these foods the worms will be content and will not try to escape the bin.  The worm bin should have an earthy smell to it.  If there are bad odors emanating from the worm composting bin you may be overfeeding the red wigglers or feeding them unsuitable foods, like meat and dairy which will rot in the bin.

It’s time now to sit back and let the worms do the work.  The worm castings will be available in a few months to be used for your plants, gardens and lawns. Then start the whole process over again.  Worm farming is not only an interesting project, it is a fun project that the whole family can enjoy.

Naturally composting waste, providing an organic matter that enriches soil and even supplying hobbyists and fisherman with live bait. These are all reasons for worm farming. Taking care of the worms in a worm farm is typically quite easy but there some guidelines to follow. Proper feeding is important for the health of the worms.

Worms are fed a variety of food items, and nonfood items, for composting. Some food items that can be offered are fruits, vegetables, greens, bread products, cereals, tea bags, coffee grounds and filters and egg shells. The worms will eat just about anything so it is imperative to know which foods are appropriate and why.

Fruits and vegetables are easily composted by the worms. The important thing to remember when serving fruits and vegetables is the size of the portions. Fruit pieces should be cut down to 1/2 inch pieces or slices. Smaller pieces will be consumed more quickly. Food blended up with water will also help the worms find the food and consume it faster.

Fruits and vegetables are highly nutritious. Worms that are fed an appropriate diet will in turn produce a nutrient rich substance that is beneficial to crops, gardens, flower beds and even indoor flower pots. Some nonfood items that can be offered to worms for composting are paper products, cotton rags, hair clippings, leaves and soaked cardboard. A pizza box that has been torn up and soaked is a wonderful treat for worms.

When offering leaves to a worm farm, be careful to only use products that have never been treated with chemicals. For the safety of the worms, grass clipping and other yard clippings should be avoided in case chemicals have been used.

While there are many foods that can be offered readily, there are also those that should be avoided. Care should always be taken with items that have been treated with chemicals, medications or other substances that may prove harmful.

Meats should never be offered to the worms in a worm farm. Being voracious eaters, the worms will gladly consume whatever meat is offered. The problem with meat is with the pests it will attract. Flies and maggots will be found in a worm farm that uses meat and the best way to eliminate these pests is to eliminate the use of meat.

Citrus fruits, onions and garlic should not be used either. The worms appear to find the smell of these items offensive. Most worms will try to escape the bin to get away from the smell. Dairy products will also attract unwanted guests into the worm farm. Another problematic issue with serving dairy products is the foul smell that is emitted as it rots.

Feeding worms is a pretty easy job. The key is to know which items are good and which are bad for the health of the worms. Another point to remember is to not over feed. New worms should be fed in small amounts when they are becoming established within the farm. Once settled, the amount can be increased over time.

Over feeding leads to problems such as foul smells and pests. Keep feeding down to a minimum, offering new food only when the old food supply is running low. Worms can eat over half their body weight in food per day. The worm population can double every few months. Overfeeding can cause a problem but keep an eye on the population as well to be sure that underfeeding isn’t an issue.

A well fed worm population is a happy worm population. Happy worms produce a lot of naturally composted, healthy worms castings for soil enrichment therefore keeping the worm farmer happy as well.

A worm farm is an excellent way to recycle leftover scraps and other household waste. Worm farming can be done by anyone. The worm castings (vermicast) that worms produce are a wonderfully rich soil that is used on gardens, lawn and plants.

Worm Factory 360

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Red Wiggler Composting Worms

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