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Composting is the age old method of turning waste materials into humus, which will lighten and enrich your soil. Sir Albert Howard, doing research in India, developed the Indore method of layered composting. This type of composting uses both methods of composting as described below in different stages of the process.
Using the outdoor large bulk pile method, it is suggested;
- a bottom layer of brush for drainage
- a 6" layer of green matter
- a 2" layer of manure
- a thin layer of topsoil (contributes micro-organisms) powdered limestone (to counter-act acidity)
Continue layers until the heap is 4 feet wide, 6 feet long, and 5 feet high. Turn every six weeks and compost will be ready to apply in two to three months.
There are two processes that take place in a compost environment;
Aerobic and Anaerobic.
Aerobic is the system utilizing oxygen. This method is the most simplistic and successful, even though the minimal loss of nitrogen through free elements into the atmosphere is present. This is the process that you want in your worm bin.
Anaerobic composting requires storage tanks and other systems to keep oxygen from invading the anaerobic decay process. Much heat generated. This process is harmful to worms. You can tell if you have this process going in your wormbin if heat and/or smell is being generated. This method also takes longer to complete and manufactures methane gas as a by-product. The odor is disagreeable, the gas itself is flammable, and should be vented off periodically. It is generally ill suited for the home composter. Some form of anaerobic composting can take place in your worm bin.
Earthworms however, are an excellent addition to the composting process. Earthworms will carefully breakdown the anaerobic microbes.
Composting is basic to the breakdown of organic materials and can be practiced on either large or small scales. The waste a family generates can be turned into nutrient rich earthworm castings for your plants, flower beds, and garden plot.
Composting involving earthworms is both aerobic and advantageous. The worms process the material, creating a micro-biological decay cycle of approximately sixty days. Home composting can include everything from kitchen waste to yard waste, but attention must be paid to what is used on your yard plantings and lawn, (pesticides, weed killers), many of which are harmful to earthworms. Many substances cannot be digested by earthworms, or are harmful to the earthworm, and it may avoid the area altogether.
It is best to introduce worms from the outside of the compost heap, giving them time to identify substances or areas of the heap that could be avoided. The internal temperatures generated in a compost heap can reach 160° F, which earthworms will avoid at all costs. Earthworms survive best in temperatures ranging from 50° F to 75° F, which is the approximate temperature of a cooled compost heap. It is easy to harvest the castings in your compost heap. Take compost from the outer edges until worms appear. Wait 30 minutes. The worms will retreat as light causes pain to their skin. Repeat the first step as many times as it takes to get a compact mass of worms in the center of the bottom of the heap. If the first outer "scalp" is not fully composted, set it aside to become the first layer of the new heap. The castings can be used immediately, or set aside for use at a later time.
Earthworms are important contributors to soil health; tilling, keeping a porous quality to the soil, allowing plants to take nutrients freely. This, combined with the auxins and cytokinins (plant growth stimulators) in earthworm castings, provides an ideal medium for plant growth and health.
Red worms are different from the common field worm, or angle worm. Red worms feed primarily on decomposing organic material at the surface level. This is why the Worm Factory works so well with the Red Wiggler (Eisenia Fotida). Field worms feed primarily on earth and bacteria contained with soil. Red worms also reproduce at a faster rate than field worms, processing and providing a larger amount of castings for your garden.
The soil, i.e. your garden, yard, or ornamentals must be amended with organic material for any worms to thrive there. Adding nitrogen fertilizers can create an acid condition in the soil that all worms may avoid. Most pesticides are toxic to earthworms and may harm beneficial insects as well.
The nutritional value of earthworm castings is best realized when mixed with soil. Even with sufficient organic matter at hand, all species of earthworms consume some soil, creating a rich humus when castings and soil are combined. The texture becomes ideal for plant growth, as many types of bacteria are consumed then neutralized by earthworms. Castings have a pH level of 7.0 (neutral). Large numbers of earthworms in your garden will combat both acid and alkali conditions in the soil. Earthworm tunneling increases water absorption and retention along with creating passages for water and air to filter through to lower levels of the soil. Most red worms are sold in bed- run form. Bed- run contains all ages and sizes from cocoon to bait size, and adapt to a new environment easier
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