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you could create your own worm molding to fertilize your garden works using this homemade worm tower . It ’s made from a pail inhume in the ground filled with leftover paper and food scrap suitable for composting dirt ball . I ’ll show you how it ’s done .
If you are concerned in other way to make manipulation of food for thought waste , seeComposting 101 : wearisome and Fast Methods .
Eisenia fetidaworm photo byHolger Casselmann– Own work,CC BY-SA 3.0,Link
What is a Worm Tower and Why Should I Have One?
I ’ve been wanting to try a worm tower ( worm townspeople , worm bucket , worm castle , worm hotel ) in my garden for a long time and I finally got around to adding one .
Much like domicile compost piles , a worm tower ( in this typesetter’s case , a 5 - gallon plastic bucket ) offers another way to make economic consumption of intellectual nourishment waste material to create a beneficial stain amendment . There is wad of inquiry confirming that worm cast ( the end production in this process ) both improve dirt and increases plant ontogenesis .
insect castings are not the same as other compost : they have unequaled properties that make N , K , phosphorus , Ca and atomic number 12 easier for plant to take up .
link : How to Compost Food Scraps
While regular compost piles heat up and can not lodge worm ( they would electrocute ) , indoor and in - ground insect tower are kept at moderate temperature and use cherry red worm ( ‘ composting worms ’ , not common earthworms ) to win over food for thought waste to castings .
I ’ll walk you through some insect compost basics .
If you want to jump right to the instructions , penetrate here : How to Make an In - Ground Worm Tower in a Bucket
Worm Dictionary
Get the Free PrintableThere ’s a free printable with this clause . Go toResources(below ) to get yours .
Composting Worms versus Soil Worms
The worm used in vermicomposting are not our common fishworm .
The fishing worm we are all familiar with here in North America includingLumbricus terrestrisare grease worms ( anecic worms ) . They care to tunnel late in the soil , enjoy cooler condition , and survive yr - orotund .
The louse used for converting food waste to worm castings ( vericomposting ) are epigeic worm include the red wiggler ( Eisenia fetida ) , red Panthera tigris ( Eisenia Andrei ) and African nighttime crawlers ( Eudrilus eugenae ) .
These are shallow - dwelling worms that live in rich constitutive stuff ( not deep in the stain ) and do best in warmer — but not hot — temperatures ( 15 - 25 ° ampere-second | 59 - 77 ° F ) . That ’s why you ca n’t use worms in a regular compost big bucks : it ’s too hot ! Worms also need darkness and croak in draw out sunlight .
While some red worms may be see here in the idle — horse manure can be a root — once temperatures sink below 50 ° F | 10 ° C , only the cocoons may come through our winter .
Related : Using Wood Ash in the Garden : Pros & Cons
Where to Buy Worms
If you desire to make a worm tower or indoor worm bin , you’re able to consecrate composting louse from a local cerise louse farmer ( best option for vivacious , healthy worm ) orget them on Amazonor other mail - order sources . They must not be an invasive speciesand must be composting reddened worms suited for a worm bin .
Worms| Amazon
To live on twelvemonth - round they will have to be protect from temperature vacillation .
One wise approximation would be to keep a large indoor dirt ball bin in a Rubbermaid bathtub , and , as they regurgitate , use your supererogatory worms to populate your outside bin .
How Vermicomposting Works
Composting with worms is unlike than our usual outdoor compost piles or binful ( thermophyllic composting ) which rely on high temperature to break down the constitutive topic ( a combination of carbon - plenteous and nitrogen - rich items ) into compost .
Worms can not hold up in these red-hot conditions and will croak from or go in any compost down that is ignite up .
With vermicomposting , we use ABA transit number or bucketful kept at moderate temperatures ( 15 - 30 C / 50 - 85 F ) to insure the worm are content to stick where they are and exchange our food scraps into ‘ gardener ’s Au ’ .
While this physical process could be done with food waste placed directly in the priming , using some sort of structure like a bucket will prevent mole , field mouse , rats , and mouse from feeding on the eatable contents . It also have it comfortable to pull everything out of the soil for any maintenance needed .
Related : Which Animal Manure is Best For Home Gardens ?
Each container is deck out with plenty of somewhat dampish ‘ bedding ’ and a modest amount of food combat to mimic the natural home ground of composting worms . Everything you need to make a worm tower is listed below .
While the louse incline to get all the credit in vermicomposting , inquiry indicate that microbes are adequate partners in this process . The microbes feast on the food scraps and the violent worms digest the microbe leftovers . The worms then expel their waste or castings ( poop ) and this is what we practice as garden fertiliser . So , hat - tip to microbes , the under - acknowledge heroes of the natural world!And , go worms , go !
How to Make an In-Ground Worm Tower in a Bucket
To make an out-of-door worm column , bore a bunch of holes in the side and bottom of a food - grade plastic bucket and swallow up it in the primer coat . The holes need to be braggy enough in diameter for worms to move in and out .
The lip of the bucketful is high enough above ground level to prevent supernumerary rain from pouring into it .
Inside the bucket , we create an ask round worm home ground .
If you are using composting worm , the pail will be filled almost entirely with slightly damp bedding material .
If you are hoping to pull soil worms , habituate a lot of compost animal manure .
The best placement for a dirt ball pillar ( bucket ) is next to or within a vegetable layer where ( theoretically ) the worms can move in and out of the bucket and deposit their castings .
The only tool needed is anelectric drillto put holes in the pail .
Materials
( 1 ) 5 gal / 19L food grade charge plate bucket with handle and lid . Many big box stores have them for around $ 5 .
Food Grade Bucket| Amazon
Use a Food Grade Bucket Not PVC Pipe
When this idea first started popping up about a decade ago in permaculture garden , some gardener used pvc pipe to create dirt ball towers .
But pvc pipe is not recommended for two reasons :
The charge plate bucket I ’m using is rated ‘ nutrient safe | nutrient level ’ and provides a fair amount of horizontal space .
Another option is to use a Rubbermaid bathtub ( just as you would habituate for compost insect indoors ) or a charge plate drum .
Whatever you opt , do some inquiry first to witness out what the token is made from and how it is value .
You want most of your bucket to be satiate with this stuff , so you ’ll need heaps . Once it is moist , it admit up much less space .
Everything should be pesticide ( or other -cides ) -free and finely chopped to help speed up up the mental process .
Experienced worm composters may also add grains , cereal , make rice , pasta , scratch , and potatoes but do n’t try this until your organization is work nicely .
stubble to keep temperature down and prevent flies in the container and insulate the exterior .
Composting dirt ball , also promise crimson worm . There are several species but worm farmers tend to maturate just one or two .
Do a Google search to get hold a louse vender in your domain . The word ‘ compost worm ’ or ‘ red fishworm ’ and your positioning should do the trick .
They are often sold by the pound and one pound is the maximum you would want in a standard 8 congius / 30L Rubbermaid lug .
Some dirt ball sellers offer pick - up and others also have mail - order .
you may alsoget them on Amazonbut be sure they are a cerise worm coinage desirable for compost — not sickly worm used for come-on .
It is important to get the tower / habitat quick first and permit a calendar week for the microbes to initiate the party before bestow your worms .
Worm Tower Assembly Steps
utilise a3/8 - in drill spade bitto practice holes in bottom and all around sides of bucket . Remove or sand off any rough charge card bit .
Dig hole in garden nearly as deep as bucket is marvelous . reserve the lip of the bucket to sit a few column inch above dry land level to prevent flooding .
Fill bucket with lots of bedding ( see list above ) , just a handful of finely chop food fight , and a stratum of straw on top .
Everything should be slightly moist . I find it easier to fill the bucket out of the earth and then let down it in when I ’ve filled it .
insect Farmer say two fault newbies make are not using enough bedding and overfeeding the insect . So , go nuts with the bedding and take up with a small amount of food ( what fits in your hand is oodles ) .
My bucket will have extra manure because I am first assure to see if soil worm will be attracted to the bucket . If you ’re using composting worms , you want a clear , fluffier bedding and lot of it .
position bucket in ground . Backfill soil all around the outer face of the bucket for prosperous louse travelling . untroubled lid .
If you are adding compost worms , wait a week for the bedding to settle and the bug to congregate .
Your worms should be place in the bucket on the bedding but below the top straw .
Maintenance
Seasonal Notes
What to Expect
An indoor worm composter can commute food scraps into worm castings in 4 - 6 calendar month . If temperatures stay in optimum range ( 15 - 25 ° C | 59 - 77 ° F ) , it is fair to anticipate the same with an outdoor worm composter .
For mine , I am first testing to see if any common earthworms will find out their way into the bin and/or whether the solid food scraps will moulder into good compost ( or not ) .
It ’s so unlike from blistering composting , and I am not adding red worms yet , so I really do n’t know what to expect . I could just stop up with what I start out with !
I do specify to add worm in the time to come though so persist tuned for more adventures in the worm palace .
If you get your own composter with red worms , I ’d jazz to hear how it goes .
Unexpectedly , the local dew worm in my stain seemed to find the pillar in adept time and knew just what to do .
My insect pillar ended up being a succeeder just as it was .
I routinely added food for thought scraps and leaves and made sure everything remain moderately moist .
I was happy to see everything break up quite rapidly into vulgar compost — so nicely that no additional worm were required . This was welcome intelligence because I ’d much rather just use the local dirt ball rather than risk introducing other species — even aboriginal ones — into the garden .
Related : Compost Versus Compost Tea : Which is Better ?
Resources
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DIY In - Ground Worm Composter
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