WormsThe humble worm will chomp its way through material many times its own weight and process it into rich castings. Having your own worm farm and producing these castings is called vermiculture. Worms are a good alternative to composting if you live in a unit or townhouse and produce mostly kitchen scraps. Worms will enjoy a diet of former plant material. Fruit and vegetable peelings, cereal, coffee grounds and tea bags are all things your worms will eat.
Vermiculture is different from composting, although the result is similar. A compost bin works by generating its own heat (up to 65C) and breaks down quite large volumes of material quickly. Vermiculture works at a much lower temperature (20C) by allowing worms to eat the decaying material and process castings. A kilo of worms will eat up to twice its weight in waste every day if kept in optimal conditions. Rubbish will generate its own heat if piled too high, so make sure the layer put into your worm farm is a thin, manageable one. I've tried a couple of different ways to build a worm farm but it's alway a hassle getting the finished material separated from the new. I finally just bought one and have been really impressed with the results. They're not expensive and they last forever. Worm tea anyone?Worm farms come in a few different varieties, from very small to full-on commercial constructions. They're brilliant and have the added feature of a tap for accessing the 'worm tea' that gathers at the bottom of the trays. As well as worm tea, here's some more delicious liquid fertiliser ideas for your plants. The other great benefit is that the worms multiply. At the end of a few months, you should be able to remove a few handfuls of worms and just scatter them in your garden. It is really surprising the beneficial effect this can have over a short period of time.
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