Thursday, July 15, 2010

our worm farm




We acquired a worm farm!!


Vermicompost is the practice of using worms to turn organic waste into nutrient-laden fertilizer. It is nutritionally more beneficial than plant compost due to the addition of worm excrement, called worm casting.

Vermicomposting is less labor-intensive than traditional plant composting because the worms do almost all of the work. All compost mixes microorganisms, organic matter and nutrients.Worm castings hold beneficial microorganisms longer then traditional compost. Worms can eat up to half of their body weight per day and--under optimal conditions--reproduce quickly, making vermiculture a self-sustaining business. Plus, worms are fun to watch for both kids and




In the United Kingdom, worms are used for vermification, or treating sewage. Unlike traditional sewage treatment plants, worms do not produce biohazardous waste products and save money. Worms studied by Dr. Rajiv Sinha in India and Australia have been shown to remove heavy metals from soil, which he termed vermiremediation.


Besides housing beneficial microorganisms, worm castings protect your plants. Root diseases are reduced; due to the diversity of organisms present, none of them become populous enough to cause damage.

Our worm farm comes in form of three tiered black plastic bins


The middle bin is lined with chicken wire and shredded paper, and a layer of organic waste.The bottom bin is mainly for collecting the "worm wee" and a tape is fitted to it for easy collection of the liquid.we use the top bin when harvesting the "castings" and it also works as a cover for the middle bin with the worms.


We are feeding them most of the kitchen waste except onions,citrus fruits,tomatoes and chillies.We had recently started to add old cow dung as their feed(advised by Nolitha skenjana-Duhne agric research centre Entomologist)


we add 2lt of water 3 times per week into the bin which collects into the bottom of the bin and harvested as "worm wee"-great liquid fertilizer!.We then dillute it to the colour of weak tea and water it to our plants directly.


We are looking forward to have one of the best wormery/vermiculture in the country.

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