Harvesting your castings: Part 3 of 3

After about six weeks, you will see worm castings (soil-like material that has moved through the worms' digestive tract.)  These castings are what gives the soil a boost in nutrition and makes your plants so happy!

After 3 to 4 months, it will be time to harvest all of your castings.  If you have kids, they'll love this part and want to help.  This is how you do it:

Empty the contents of your bin onto a plastic sheet / shower curtain outside on a sunny day.  Wait about 20 to 30 minutes.  All of the worms will be burrowing themselves deeper and deeper to avoid the light.  Scrape off the top layer of compost and put into a separate bucket.  Wait another 20 minutes or so and repeat again.  After several scraping, you will eventually come to clusters of worms.  Gently place them back into the bin with fresh bedding.  You may also come across "worm eggs" that are lemon shaped and the size of a match head.  Be careful - one of these eggs can have up to twenty baby worms in them, so put them back into the bin as well.  Be sure to put plenty of fresh bedding and new food scraps in your bin to have it "start again."

Mix the compost you have scraped off and collected into a bucket with potting soil or use as top dressing for your plants (indoors or outdoors) or in your garden. 

Keep in mind that your county's local extension office and /or Master Gardener has a wealth of knowledge regarding composting.  Feel free to contact them as well for additional advice.  Their contact information should be in your phone book or you can Google it as well. 

Get composting and make your plants happy!!

TroubleShooting: Compost Bin: Part 2 of 3

This is the second part of my "Compost Bin" series and today I'm going to address any potential problems that may occur and how to fix those problems.

Bin Smells:

1. Overfeeding:  stop feeding for 2 weeks
2. Non-compostable scraps present:  removal of these scraps
3. Food scraps exposed:  bury food completely
4. Bin too wet:  mix in dry bedding; leave lid off
5. Not enough air:  fluff bedding; drill more holes in lid

Bin attracts flies:

1. Food scraps exposed:  bury food completely
2. Rotten food:  avoid putting rotten food in bin; remove any
3. Too much food (especially citrus):  don't overfeed worms

Worms are Dying:

1. Bin too wet:  mix in dry bedding; leave lid off
2. Bin too dry:  thoroughly dampen bedding
3. Extreme temperatures:  move bin where temp is between 55 and 77 degrees F
4. Not enough air:  fluff bedding;  drill more holes in lid
5. Not enough food:  add more bedding and more food scraps

Worms crawling away:

1. Bin conditions are not right:  leave lid off and worms will burrow back into bedding

Mold forming:

1. Conditions are too acidic:  cut back on citrus fruits

Bedding drying out:

1. Too much ventilation:  dampen bedding; keep lid on

Water collecting in bottom:

1. Poor ventilation:  leave lid off for a couple of days; add dry bedding
2. Feeding too much watery scraps:  cut back on coffee grounds and scraps with high water content

The problems listed above are the most common and simple ones you may have with your compost bin.  However, if you are having other types of issues, there are lots of websites out there that talk about "vermicomposting" so I would suggest looking at those.

Upcoming post:  Part 3 of 3   Harvesting your castings for compost

Starting a Compost Bin: Part 1 of 3

Instead of discarding your food scraps, you can recycle them with the help of worms to produce nutritious soil for your plants.  When you add worm compost to the soil, it boosts the nutrients available to the plants as well as enhances drainage.  This is also a great educational activity for your kids to help you with at home. 

The materials you need to start worm composting are simple and inexpensive:

• rubber bin 10-15 gallon
• air vents (see link)
• bedding
• worms
• water
• soil
• food scraps

This is how to set up your own worm composting bin.

1.  Start with a 10-15 gallon opaque plastic tub.  I would choose a dark color since you want to copy a natural "underground" habitat for the worms. 

Next, you need to create ventilation.  I bought these two inch vents here.   To install them, trace the vent with a marker onto opposite sides of the bin near the top.  Then, with a box cutting knife, cut an opening for the vents to slide through.

You can also drill holes in the lid and top portions of the side to provide oxygen to the worms and also to prevent any odors. 

2.  Next, you need worms.  Be sure to only get "redworms" (Eisenia foetida) - not night crawlers or any other type of worms.  You can obtain these from a bait shop, nurseries or an online commercial worm grower.  A good ratio would be 1 pound of worms to a 2 foot by 2 foot bin. 

3.  Add about a handful or two of soil to add micro-organisms.

4.  The next step is adding the bedding.  This can be shredded newspaper or shredded cardboard.  It can also be shredded, brown decaying leaves.  Soak the bedding in water and then wring it out so its moist but not dripping wet.

shredded newspaper

adding water

wring out newspaper and fluff

add to bin on top of worms and soil

Note: Keep an eye on your bedding to make sure it stays moist.  You can spray it with a spray bottle full of water. Also, replace bedding as it disappears.  Be sure to always cover your food with a couple inches of moist bedding to discourage fruit flies and mold. 

5.  The last step is to add your food scraps. 

Worms love: breads and grains / dry cereal / coffee grounds & filter (not hot) / fruit peels & rinds / tea bags / vegetables / eggs and their shells

Worms hate: dairy products / fats / meat or bones / oils / fish / tobacco or pet manure

 kiwi peels and egg shells

apple core and pieces of tomato

I keep my bin in my laundry room since the worms like the temperature between 55 and 77 degrees.  The bin has little to no odor. With having a plastic bin, you do not want to store it outside because the worms will not tolerate the heat or cold and will die.  Also, if the bin is left out in the elements, rain could seep in through any ventilation holes drilled into the lid and drown the worms.

Keep in mind, a worm can consume about half of its weight daily.  For example, if your food waste averages half a pound daily, you will need one pound of worms or a 2:1 ratio.  The worms do multiply quickly, so adjust the amount of food scraps you need to feed them accordingly. 

add fresh bedding as needed

a completely set up worm bin

Upcoming posts:  Part 2 of 3   TroubleShooting

                             Part 3 of 3   Harvesting your worm Castings for compost

Flowers

I have to brag on my hubby this morning.

Yesterday evening, he came home,

filthy and tired

as usual from the farm -

he honestly is the hardest working man I've ever met.

And he's been through so much with

his health this past summer

(if you haven't been reading my blog for long, he had a benign tumor

removed from his head last month).

Anyway,

so here he comes through the back door,

"DADDY!" yell the boys -

and he walks up to me and holds out these...

Beautiful zinnias!

The garden had already been plowed over for the year

and these precious little ones decided to grow one more time.

He had spotted them and knows

how I love them.

My husband is a great guy.

Truly a keeper!