I've Got Worms! would love to teach you how to join the vermicomposting revolution!
Not only is starting your own vermicompost bin easy, but it's great for the environment! You can recycle paper, cardboard, and food scraps right in your own home, creating incredible vermicompost fertilizer in the process. Many homeowners have some kind of home
composting system in operation. However, people living in condominiums,
apartments and other residences don’t have a suitable place to start a
compost pile. These people feel left out on a worthwhile cause, and
need alternative ways to be part of the composting program.
There is a solution! Kitchen wastes can be converted to a rich humus
with the help of redworms. Children find worms fascinating. They are
very well behaved "pets," and also help with household chores! Kids can be responsible for the whole system with very little guidance!
The Worm Bin
You can buy worm bins from most home & garden stores or online. Most bins are around $100 for a small standard unit. We offer our own bins starting at just $25! They aren't quite as fancy to look at, but they get the job done beautifully.
The Bedding
Once you have a bin, you need to provide bedding for your worms. This is where the worms will live and do their magic. The more interesting your bedding mix, the better your end-result compost will be. Types of materials that work well in vermicompost bedding include:
- shredded paper (however, bleached office paper should be used sparingly)
- shredded newspaper
- shredded cardboard
- dry grass
- dry leaves
The Worms (Eisenia Foetida are the best composting worms)
How many worms you need depends on what your goals are. If you are using vermicompost primarily to recycle paper and food wastes, then you need one pound of worms for every 1/2 pound of food waste you produce, per day. In other words, one pound of worms will eat about 3.5 pounds of food per week. If you have too much food, and not enough worms, then you could develop problems with smell, fruit flies, etc. On the other hand, too many worms and not enough food is less of a problem, because the worms will adjust to the food level by not reproducing as quickly and by eating their bedding. In general, most households prefer to start their systems with one to two pounds of worms. We offer one pound of mixed worms and bedding (mostly worms, some bedding, all ages so that they have less shock when starting out in a new bin and will start adjusting and reproducing faster) for just $29.99.
Frequently Asked Questions
(from the Whatham County Agriculture website)
Can they see?
No, worms don’t have eyes. However, they must have some kind of light sensor. They are very sensitive to bright light. They will try to hide as soon as exposed. It’s odd that anglers use a flashlight to catch night crawlers, since they retract in their burrows if you shine lights on them. Worms are less sensitive to red light. You can observe worms with red light. Placing a red cellophane between the light source and the worm box allows you to watch the worms.
Where is the mouth?
The worm’s mouth is in the first anterior segment. There is a small protruding lip just over the mouth, called prostomium. When the worm is foraging, this lip is stretching out. The prostomium is for sensing food.
Do they have teeth?
Worms have no teeth for chewing food. They grind food in their gizzard by muscle action
How do they grind food?
Worms can only take small particles in their small mouths. Microorganisms soften the food before worms will eat it. Worms have a muscular gizzard. Small parts of food mixed with some grinding material such as sand, topsoil or limestone is ingested. The contractions from the muscles in the gizzard compress those particles against each other, mix it with fluid, and grind it to smaller pieces.
What happens to food once it leaves the gizzard?
The ground up food is mixed with enzymes in the worm’s intestine. This mixture breaks down the food, molecules pass through the intestine wall into the bloodstream for use where needed. Undigested material, including sand soil, bacterial and plant residues passes out of the worm as a worm casting.
If a worm is cut in to, will it grow back?
It depends on where the cut took place. If a worm is cut at the posterior end, sometimes a new tail will grow back on. Sometimes a second tail will appear next to a damaged tail. However, the posterior half of the worm can’t grow a new anterior (head.)
Do worms die in the box?
It’s hard to find dead worms in a worm box, but they do die in the box. Dead worm bodies decompose very quickly, because their bodies are between 75%-90% water. If you find many dead worms you should find out the cause. High heat (above 84 degrees) is fatal to them. Too much salt or acidic food waste can kill them. It’s best to change the bedding with fresh materials to solve the problem. Sometimes, partially replacing bedding may solve the problem.
How long do worms live?
Often, worms live and die in the same year. They are exposed to hazards, dryness, too hot or too cold weather. Eisenia foetida can live for as long as four years.
Do worms need air?
Worms need oxygen to live. The oxygen diffuses across the moist tissue of their skin, from the region of greater concentration of oxygen (air) to that of lower concentration (inside the worm.) Carbon dioxide produced by the bodily processes of the worm also diffuses through skin. Moving from higher concentration to lesser concentration, carbon dioxide moves from the inside of the worm’s body out into the surrounding bedding. A constant supply of fresh air throughout the bedding helps this desirable exchange take place. Sierra Vista redworms, vermicomposting in Sierra Vista, Arizona red worms, vermicompost, Fort Huachuca, Arizona vermicompost, Sierra Vista worms, red wrigglers for vermicomposting in Sierra Vista, AZ, sierra vista arizona worms, I've Got Worms serving Sierra Vista, AZ near Fort Huachuca, near Tuson, AZ.
