by Sandrine Nouvel

Created on: May 09, 2009

Pedagogic and fun, worm farming is a way to cut household waste by 25 to 40%, while producing your own high quality natural fertilizer. On a small scale it requires very little space and work and can even be done on a balcony. So what is actually worm farming and how should you do it?

History

In 1906, Dr George Sheffield Oliver, inventor of the steel plow, started farming earthworms in his farm, in Texas, and using them in his garden. Rapidly, he noticed a sharp improvement in the quality and the health of his trees, flowers, fruits and vegetables.

Worm farming really started in the USA in the 1930s. In 1947, Hugh Carter, cousin of the former president, started to farm earthworms in a coffin! 25 years later he was providing 15 million worms a year to hunting and fishing retailers.
Today which ecological preoccupations more and more in the foreground, worm farming is becoming increasingly popular.

Why farm worms?

Unlike traditional composting (the garden heap), recycling ones domestic waste in a worm farm doesn't require watering or turning over: the worms do all the hard work.

Quick, easy, worm farming is also naturally odorless because, thanks to the enzymes in their intestines, the worms suppress the decomposing smell of the waste.

The worms eat half of their body weight in waste daily. If we consider that the average person produces some 1kg of waste per day, and that worms can eat 40% of the domestic waste, 500g of worms can eliminate 400g of waste in a day, which amounts to 12kg in a month, or 144kg a year.

Once the waste digested by the worms, one obtains a solid substance, which has the aspect of a good quality soil: the castings. 5 times richer in nutrients than the best soil, the castings is one of the best and one of the safest fertilizers.

The odorless liquid that runs out of the castings, the "worm tea", is also an excellent fertilizer and a natural pest repellent. It can also be obtained by letting the castings soak in water.

How to proceed?

*build your own farm

It is possible to buy a worm farm from providers such as Full Cycle, Wiggler magic worms, Wizzard worms, or Organic Solutions. Those farms are usually practical in that they have removable panels, which makes them easier to use. But it is possible, and easy, to make your own low-cost farm.

You will need:
- a plastic container with a lid (a storage box, a dustbin, etc.)
- a tap inserted in the bottom of the container
- a tray to be placed under the container for the for leachate runoff or

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>