Vermicomposting is the process of using earthworms to compost food scraps and organic materials. Here at CCAT red worms (Eisenia foetida), more commonly known as red wigglers, are used to compost pre-consumer food waste from dinning halls and other on-campus locations. Composting is a natural form of recycling, that occurs in nature anywhere that plants grow. Vermicomposting is simply using this natural process in a controlled environment to turn everyday food wastes into a nutrient rich fertilizer that will literally make soil come alive. This fertilizer is made up of worm castings (poop) and is commonly called Vermicompost. It can be used by home gardeners, and is widely used by organic farmers. Some like to think of it as black gold. The Vermicomposter at CCAT, called the Worm Wig-Wam, is a 16 foot long, 5 foot wide, 4 foot tall box that is raised a foot off the ground. The bottom of the box is made up of a steel grate that can support up to 4 tons. Just above the grate is a single blade which slides back and forth across the bottom of the bin to harvest the castings (drop them out the bottom). The blade is operated during harvesting by two 110 volt motors that take turns pulling the blade from one end of the Wig-Wam to the other. Harvesting can be done as often as once a day, and as much as 50-100 lbs. of castings can be produced. The Worm Wig-Wam was manufactured by EPM Inc. in Cottage Grove, Oregon. It was purchased by the Campus Recycling Program with a grant from the California Integrated Waste Management Board and funding from the HSU University Center. It is operated and maintained by students and staff from the Campus Recycling Program with help from CCAT. The official model number for our Worm Wig-Wam is "EPM Model 5-16 Flow through Vermicomposting System."
Red worms love to eat, and they're not too picky about what you feed them. Almost any decaying organic matter will cheer them up. Here is a list to give you a better idea of what they like:
A stable environment within the Worm Wig-Wam is a must to sustain the worms and to keep them eating. It is ideal for the temperature inside the bin to be between 55† and 80† while never going below 40† or above 90†. The worms also love plenty of water and oxygen. An aerobic environment (one with plenty of oxygen) is needed for the worms to breathe, to help the food decay, and to keep out unwanted odors. A moisture level of 75-90% is also important because the worms breathe through there skin, so water is usually added during feeding. The Campus Recycling Program chose the Worm Wig-Wam over other worm bins and composting methods because it is designed to compost large quantities of food quickly. Red Worms love to eat food scraps and there is no limit to the size of a worm bin. Both of these factors were important in the decision because our dinning hall and other sources produce 10 to 12 fifty five gallon barrels of food waste per week. When our Worm Wig-Wam environment is right, 100lbs of worms can eat 100lbs of food per day and produce 50-100lbs. of castings per day.
Composting vs. Vermicomposting Composting and vermicomposting are both great ways to reduce waste and effectively reuse food scraps and yard clippings. There are many different composting and vermicomposting methods. Picking the right one depends on how much waste you produce and how much time you can devote to your compost.
Vermicomposting can be done with much simpler and smaller systems then the Worm Wig-Wam here at CCAT. Simple bins with air holes, layered bins with a spigot at the bottom, and smaller less complicated flow through boxes like the Worm Wig-Wam can all do the trick. Some vermicomposters don't need to be fed and harvested every day which can also make them easier to integrate into your routine. The advantages to vermicomposting are that it is a quick way to compost food wastes, it produces fertilizer which has been shown to produce larger plants then other composts and chemical fertilizers, and the castings won't pollute groundwater like chemical fertilizers. Vermicomposting will cost a little more to start up and it will require more labor, but it will handle a larger volume of scraps and a bin full of worms makes a great topic of conversation with visitors.
References and More Information
This page was created by Aaron Waxman e-mail: afw9@humboldt.edu |
