Vermicomposting using a Worm Bin

Vermicomposting is the process of making compost from kitchen scraps by using worms to make a heterogeneous mixture of worm casting and  tea for use in the garden. Worm tea and casting provide an amazing supply of nutrients while helping to build a healthy soil profile.

This worm bin is my neighbors, I help with kitchen scraps and then I am rewarded with worm tea. It is a dark liquid that I dilute to the color of weak tea, then poured into the soil or sprayed onto the leaves of my plants. The bin is the well house, a room that stays cool in the summer and warm in the winter, with the use of a heat lamp. If you keep the area somewhere between 60-80 degrees and the feeding balance right, it is usually odorless. If the bin should get to wet simply add shredded non-glossy paper or dried leaves. It is excess moisture that will create any unpleasant odors. 

This bin is kept inside the kitchen. It is under a table and is easily maintained. It has no smell, and provides about 1 to 2 quarts of tea a month. The owner cleans and checks regularly and makes sure it stays on the dry side. 

Worm tea and casting have an amazing nutrient package that when added to soils; carry a diverse population of microbial life. Adding casting will increase diversity of beneficial organisms in soils, promote soil structure and aid in disease and pest suppression. Nutrients from worms casting are highly soluble which means they are broken down by water. With a liquid application the plant can benefit quickly and continually with the readily available nutrients that won’t burn roots. Applying casting 2 to 3 times a year will fortify soils for continued use and health in the garden.  

Worm casting are naturally 5 times higher nitrogen, 7 times richer in phosphorus, 3 times richer in, magnesium, 11 times richer in potassium and 1.5 times richer in calcium.