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Worm Composting Outdoors In Winter

A few thoughts on worm composting in winter with red wiggler worms. I have been raising and selling red worms in the Santa Fe area for over 20 years and I have found that the winter survival of the worms is a non-issue if a few critical criteria are attended to:

1. Feeding and watering of the worm bin during the cold is a must. The internal warmth of the system depends on these inputs. An active pile is a warm pile. In my experience, those piles that lose their worms during the winter are almost exclusively in bins whose keepers withheld water fearing adding such would cause the bin to freeze. A dry bin will be less active and, thus, colder than a properly moistened one. Furthermore, worms will leave a dry bin as they require moisture to breathe. Additionally, mice will soon find, and nest in, dry worm bedding. Another mistake in terms of water management is to construct a bin with pallets or wire which allow for far too much airflow and drying of the bedding. Straw bales and solid wood walls minimize water loss while still “breathing”. The worm composting bin, absolutely, needs less water in the cold months, but maintenance of the moisture level is absolutely critical.

2. Bin volume is critical to retention of warmth. And by “bin volume” I am really referring to the volume of bedding, as the bedding is really doing the work, rather than the bin itself. I build wooden boxes that are approximately 3 feet square (volume approx. 200 gallons) and I have never had one freeze beyond a few inches from the surface. It should be noted that I experimented with a much smaller commercially-available plastic worm composting bin that, amazingly, the worms survived a week or so of -15 F temps during the winter of 2011. The volume of that bin is on the order of 50 to 75 gallons and, due to the small volume, required much more attention as it dried out very rapidly as compared to a bin of larger volume. In my opinion, a bin of this type and size nearly guarantees failure for the beginning composter. Larger bins are easier to maintain. Also worth noting, high summer temperatures and solar exposure are serious challenges for the worms, and larger bins excel here, as well.

3. Regular additions of coarse bulking materials (bedding) is crucial. I find success in all seasons depends on an abundance of bedding. Red wigglers thrive in moistened straw and other materials like leaves and shredded paper. The more bedding the better. A very thick layer of bedding on top insulates, slows water-loss, and keeps flies and scavengers alike from finding the buried layer of food scraps. For all of these reasons, the worm bin should be kept full of bedding. For those who are experienced with building “conventional” bacteria-based compost piles, this method may seem odd at first, given that It seems strange to fill a worm composting bin with carbon, initially, with little to no nitrogen. However, once you see the worms thriving within the large volume of moistened bedding, and watch them quickly consume any additions of nitrogen-rich materials buried within the bedding, it will begin to make sense. The bedding provides both an energy-rich source of food -carbon- but, critically, also serves as the “house”. Nitrogen added over time suits the worms perfectly. As the bedding decomposes, the level of the pile falls, making room for additional layers of bedding and nitrogen. Finished worm castings -worm compost- builds from the bottom of the bin. In my experience, a 3’x3’x3′ bin will take about a year for an average household to fill. Bins made of bales can be any size, keeping in mind the fact that increasing the surface area relative to the overall volume, will increase water-loss. I find the cube shape to be ideal.

4. Additional considerations. During the cold months, a small bit of mixing or light turning of the bedding when adding food scraps and water will stimulate microbial activity and produce warmth without harming the worms. As well, the additional heat from a layer of manure can be helpful. Layers of nitrogen-rich materials may, temporarily, become too hot for the worms, but they successfully retreat to the cooler confines of the bin, returning to the soon-cooled layer.

Over the years at my booth at the Santa Fe Farmers Market, I have been amazed to meet many successful vermi-composters from climates with much colder winters than ours. I hope these recommendations will help keeping your worms happy all winter long!

This article on worm composting in winter time was written by the owner of Do It With Worms, Sam McCarthy. The original article appeared on the New Mexico Health Soil Working Group’s website located here:

Outdoor Worm Composting In Winter
Winter-hardy vermicomposting binPhoto by Sam McCarthy.
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Worm Composting Indoors

How to create and maintain and indoor worm composting bin.

Article originally posted on epa.gov. Click here for full article.

A worm composting bin, known as a vermicomposter, can be fairly inexpensive and easy to maintain. There are several ways to vermicompost. Below are instructions on how to build one kind of worm composting bin designed to be used inside. It is also possible to purchase worm composting bins. You will want to put your bin in an indoor space as you do not want the red wigglers to freeze in the winter or get too warm in the summer. Additionally, you may want to put the bin in a basement or other out-of-the-way space since you will be producing organic compost via worm castings and worm “tea” in the worm bin.

Read full article…

 

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Vermicomposting 101

Vermicomposting: The Dirty Truth

 

Vermicomposting (a.k.a. worm composting) is the proverbial win-win situation. It gives you a convenient way to dispose of organic waste, such as vegetable peelings. It saves space in the county landfill, which is good for the environment. It gives worms a happy home and all the free “eats” that they could want. For those that have gardens or even potted plants, homegrown worm castings compost is a great way to feed and nurture plants.

Read the full article on Planet Natural —

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National Institutes of Health

Microbial diversity of vermicompost bacteria that exhibit useful agricultural traits and waste management potential.

Jayakumar Pathma and Natarajan Sakthivel

From an article posted on the National Institutes of health. See full article here or download the pdf file here.

Vermicomposting is a non-thermophilic, boioxidative process that involves earthworms and associated microbes. This biological organic waste decomposition process yields the biofertilizer namely the vermicompost. Vermicompost is a finely divided, peat like material with high porosity, good aeration, drainage, water holding capacity, microbial activity, excellent nutrient status and buffering capacity thereby resulting the required physiochemical characters congenial for soil fertility and plant growth. Vermicompost enhances soil biodiversity by promoting the beneficial microbes which inturn enhances plant growth directly by production of plant growth-regulating hormones and enzymes and indirectly by controlling plant pathogens, nematodes and other pests, thereby enhancing plant health and minimizing the yield loss. Due to its innate biological, biochemical and physiochemical properties, vermicompost may be used to promote sustainable agriculture and also for the safe management of agricultural, industrial, domestic and hospital wastes which may otherwise pose serious threat to life and environment.

Keywords: Vermicompost, Earthworms, Beneficial bacteria, Organic waste management, Pathogen suppression, Plant-growth promotion, Biofertilizer

Introduction

Soil, is the soul of infinite life that promotes diverse microflora. Soil bacteria viz., Bacillus, Pseudomonas and Streptomyces etc., are prolific producers of secondary metabolites which act against numerous co-existing phytopathogeic fungi and human pathogenic bacteria (Pathma et al. 2011b). Earthworms are popularly known as the “farmer’s friend” or “nature’s plowman”. Earthworm influences microbial community, physical and chemical properties of soil. They breakdown large soil particles and leaf litter and thereby increase the availability of organic matter for microbial degradation and transforms organic wastes into valuable vermicomposts by grinding and digesting them with the help of aerobic and anaerobic microbes (Maboeta and Van Rensburg 2003). Earthworms activity is found to enhance the beneficial microflora and suppress harmful pathogenic microbes. Soil wormcasts are rich source of micro and macro-nutrients, and microbial enzymes (Lavelle and Martin 1992). Vermicomposting is an efficient nutrient recycling process that involves harnessing earthworms as versatile natural bioreactors for organic matter decomposition. Due to richness in nutrient availability and microbial activity vermicomposts increase soil fertility, enhance plant growth and suppress the population of plant pathogens and pests. This review paper describes the bacterial biodiversity and nutrient status of vermicomposts and their importance in agriculture and waste management.

See full article here or download the pdf file here.

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Vermicomposting For Beginners

This article is an excerpt from Rodale Institute’s “A Simple Guide to Vermicomposting.” Click here to download the full guide.

Solid waste generation in the United States continues to rise at a steady rate. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, Americans generated about 254 million tons of trash in 2013, which is the equivalent of 4.40 pounds per person per day.

Yard debris and food waste combined account for nearly 30% of the materials disposed in US landfills. These materials can be easily composted in municipal and backyard composting systems and fortunately, composting collection programs have been increasing with increasing waste generation. However, backyard composting may not be an option for many individuals that wish to divert their materials from the landfill because they lack yard space, time or energy or else live in a rental unit; therefore, vermicomposting becomes an attractive alternative. What’s more, vermicomposting can be a powerful educational tool for teaching children about decomposition, microbiology, earthworms and the importance of managing organic residuals such as food waste at home.

Why Vermicompost?

Vermicompost is the product of earthworm digestion and aerobic decomposition using the activities of micro- and macroorganisms at room temperature. Vermicomposting, or worm composting, produces a rich organic soil amendment containing a diversity of plant nutrients and beneficial microorganisms.

There are several benefits for vermicomposting but the two most popular are (1) diverting organic residuals from the landfill and reducing trash collection fees and (2) creating resources from waste materials.

Vermicomposting can be a fun activity for school children, and vermicompost can be utilized in gardens to promote plant growth. Vermicompost can be mixed with potting media at a rate of 10% by volume or else added directly into your soil; both options will provide plants with valuable organic matter, nutrients, and a diversity of beneficial microbes.

Earthworm Biology

Typical earthworms that you find in your garden are not suitable for vermicomposting. These are soil-dwelling worms that do not process large amounts of food waste and don’t reproduce well in confined spaces. Instead, worms commonly known as redworms or red wigglers are preferred because they reproduce rapidly, are communal and tend to remain on the surface while feeding.

There are several species of vermicomposting worms but the most common are Eisenia fetida and E. andrei. Red wigglers are hermaphrodites having both male and female reproductive parts; however, it still requires two worms to mate with each worm donating sperm to the other worm.

Under ideal conditions, a worm bin population can double about every 2 months (4-6 weeks from cocoon to emergence and 6-8 weeks from emergence to maturity). The “band” around a worm, known as the clitellum, indicates maturity and is reproductively active. Cocoons are about the size of a match stick head, turning pearly white to brown as they develop until one to several baby worms hatch.

Red wigglers require similar conditions as humans for growth – they prefer room temperature (55-85°F) and adequate moisture. The population of a worm bin is controlled through nutrient/food availability and space requirements.

For the full guide click here.

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International Journal of Recycling

Vermicomposting of different organic materials using the epigeic earthworm Eisenia foetida

  • Yvonne Indrani Ramnarain,
  • Abdullah Adil Ansari&
  • Lydia Ori

International Journal of Recycling of Organic Waste in Agriculture volume 8pages23–36 (2019)

See full article here or download .pdf file here.

PURPOSE

The present research was conducted with the objective of exploring the vermicomposting process, which involves different stages such as building of a vermicompost station; import of a compost earthworm (Eisenia foetida); and production of vermicompost using dry grass clippings, rice straw and cow manure. The vermicompost produced can be of significant value to the end users like farmers for replacement of chemical fertilizers and procuring better prices for the organic produce using such composting material locally available at much lower cost.

PURPOSE

Vermicomposting was done using Eisenia foetida with three treatments [T1 (Rice straw), T2 (Rice straw + grass) and T3 (Grass)]. Temperature, humidity and pH were measured during the process. The population of earthworms, the production of vermicompost, and the chemical and microbial characteristics of the vermicompost were recorded after sixty (60) days and hundred twenty (120) days. The data were analyzed statistically using Sigma Plot 12.0.

RESULTS

Results indicated that for all the three treatments the temperature was in the range of 0–35 °C, the humidity was between 80 and 100% and the pH fluctuated in the range of 5.5–7.0 and stabilized to near neutral on the 60th day. The combination of rice straw and grass had the highest rate of vermicompost production of 105 kg/m2 followed by grass and rice straw with 102.5 kg/m2 and 87 kg/m2, respectively, at the end of 120 days.

CONCLUSION

The harvested vermicompost had an excellent nutrient status, confirmed by the chemical analyses, and contained all the essential macro- and micronutrients. See full article here or download .pdf file here.