Some important details about creating compost and using worms to create garden soil.

1. Composting in the
home garden-
Closing the loop.
Bart Renner, North Carolina
Cooperative Extension
July 8th, 2014

2. What is vermicomposting???
• The process of composting with worms.

3. Why compost?
• Last year we threw away about 133 billion
pounds of food.
• At least 12% of municipal waste is food.
• Spend $1 billion to dispose of food waste
• The average American throws away 209-
245lbs of food per year.
• If we wasted 5% less each year we could feed
4,000,000 Americans.
• Landfills account for about 1/3 of all
methane emissions in the air.
Source: http://atozsolutions.com/21-shocking-u-s-food-waste-facts-statistics-infographic/
http://endhunger.org/food_waste.htm

4. • We are throwing out a
valuable resource!!!
Why compost?
http://www.thelovelyplants.com/how-to-prepare-your-own-garden-

5. Compost first if you can
• 3’X3’X3” minimum size pile
• Need balance for proper chemistry: 2/3
brown, 1/3 green, air, water.

6. Composting basics
• Make sure compost is not near house/ wood
structure
• Good drainage- don’t want anaerobic
conditions
• Good Structure
• Layers 4-6” thick carbons and nitrogen
• Plenty of moisture

7. • Minimum of 131 degrees for 3 days
• Stir every 7 days
Compost first if you can

8. Stirring= a lot of work! Be careful
and use good form!
http://home.comcast.net/~morasch-mix/morasch/gmorasch.htm

9. Benefits of using worms
• Divert food waste from the landfill
• Create a rich planting material
• Reduce pathogen/ bacterial load in compost
• Worth $25-30/ lb
• Fishing bait!
• Chicken food
• Great educational project for kids

10. Which worm to use?
• There are over 6,000
species of earthworms,
ranging in size from half
an inch to 22 feet long.
• seven species have been
identified as suitable for
vermicomposting.
• One species, Eisenia fetida,
is used by most people
throughout the world.

11. • Eats about 50% its body weight every day
• Sucking mouth parts with crop and gizzrd
• Breath through skin
• Sensitive to light
• Not tunnelers (like ground worms).

14. Finding the right worm bin

15. Worms need a good home!

17. What should I feed them?
http://www.naturesfootprint.com/what-to-feed-worms
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ1FnOUyqECYX1QmgaMFFVfuB9LYHtssun6USSVLlW8k6dlVnpL

18. Worm castings
http://www.worm-composting-help.com/harvest-worm-castings.html

19. Worm
Casting tea

20. Be careful!
• Wet yard clippings, manure with hay, too
much food waste can heat up too much.
• Non ruminant manures are not
recommended directly into the bin.
• No meat
• Citrus, pasta, bread, onion, garlic, black
walnut, eucalyptus

21. Taking care of your worms
• Make sure they are actively eating what you’ve
already added before adding more.
• Needs about a foot of material, but no more
than a inch of scraps
• Between 60-85 degrees.
• 70-80% moisture in material
• 30:1 C:N ratio

22. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Eekiv/sandbox/Urban_Adamah#mediavie

23. Master Gardeners can help!!!

24. Tips
• Plan ahead! Do your research!
• Where are you going to put them?
• How will you keep them warm/ cool?
• Who is going to take care of them?
• Dive in! Do it!

25. Get involved!
• Great project for parents and
kids at home.
• Great project for camps
• Schools
• Municipal waste project?
• Where else?

26. Find worms locally from a
professional:
• http://www.bae.ncsu.edu/topic/vermicompos
ting/vermiculture/nc.html

27. Join us July 26th at 1:00
• Using black soldier flies to compost at home with
Karl Warkomski of Prota Culture