Worm Me Up, Scotty

"Scotty, give me all the compost you can muster, mister!" my inner Capt. Kirk voice has been telling me. So I researched and researched different composting methods and options. Boy, can making rich dirt be expensive ... and labor intensive (gotta turn that soil-in-training in order to let it cook ... can't have too much carbon to nitrogen, just the right mix, gotta keep the critters away). Okay, let's be realistic; with everything else we've got going on, turning the veggie scraps pile just isn't gonna rate high on our list of to-do's. So, I opted for the best method for the small gardener looking to have no labor involved. Yep, it's time to bring in the worms.

Vermicomposting is the answer for us. My Uncle Jim used to use worms in his compost pile, and he gardened in beds too as I remember. Both of which combined for a gang-busters garden. Also he always had a ready supply of fish bait. I feel like I've been channeling my Unc' Jim to a degree.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Yvonne has, for the record, proclaimed that she will have nothing to do with the feeding, comfort, moving around and/or harvesting of worms or vermicompost from this day forward.

So I made a "worm box" as I call it. I opted for pressure-treated pine boards and panelling, and made a 3-foot by 3-foot box. Yvonne suggested I use casters, which I thought was just a brilliant idea. And, she also suggested a handle for the top. I already knew we had to get hinges on the thing. Unfortunately for me, I had the fella at Home Depot cut the panelling at 3-feet square, thinking it'd match up to my 3-foot long sides. I forgot to add on 2 inches on either side because of the thickness of the side lumber. Doh! Anyway, I just used some more nails, some twine as clamps and lots of wood glue, along with a little saw, to rip out the perfect length pieces out of my leftover scrap and put the bottom and top extensions into place. And man, can I drive some nails. I actually got really good at driving 3-inch nails in all the way in only three whacks (or less!).

Then it was time for ventillation. I opted to ventillate the crap outta the sides and bottom, and leave the top solid, in case Yvonne tells me to get that dang box off of the carport and into the yard. I just drilled lots and lots of 1/8-inch holes all over the place. Wikipedia's how-to website suggested that size. Seemed to be perfect sized: big enough for air, small enough to keep the worms from slippin' through. Also, with ventillation holes only on the sides and bottom and a covered top, rain gettin' into the box won't be a problem. Hopefully I drilled enough holes all into the thing to allow for drainage so I don't drown my worms, as well as ventillation so I don't cook 'em either. (That's gotta be one nasty smell.)

I'm planning on using shredded newspaper for bedding, and to utilize the "migration method" to harvest my compost worm-free. Basically you lay a bed on one side, feed the worms on that one side, and when they've broken it down all good and rich, lay a bed on the other side of the box and start feeding that side. Eventually the worms will migrate over to the new side, leaving behind their rich composted castings.

Hopefully this'll yield lots of black gold offa the tons of veggie scraps and yard waste Y & I generate. I'm pretty excited at the prospect of "nothing wasted". Garden, yard and kitchen wastes turned into black gold. We'll see.

~T