Worm composting bins can be placed nearby recycle bins at a cool place outdoors in hot Summer. Always remember 3Rs + 1R: reuse, recycle, reduce, plus renew with composting – vermicomposting on-site. Burnaby Red Wigglers and Kuna Red Wigglers, Idaho are grateful to share this activity in creating living soil for the community using red wigglers, reuse or recycle woods, and resource organic wastes: kitchen waste, garden waste, and farm waste.
The size of the bin is at least 1 X 0.5 X 0.75 meter in order to create heat at the peak of the Winter. Tarp is needed during the wet season, also watering during the dry Summer. The minimum temperature inside the bedding should be around 0°C during the winter and maximum 30°C during the Summer. Some organic wastes rich in carbon source can create heat at the peak of the Winter while the outdoor temperature is around -15°C. Insulation may be needed during the harsh Winter.
The density of the red wigglers in the bin can be started with 4 or 6 handfuls, or about 1000 – 1500 bed run worms; a mix of baby, juvenile, and adult size worms. Regular compost and shredded paper can be placed at the bottom of the bin at about 10cm depth. Feeding the worms with kitchen scraps, farm wastes, and selected wastes for example brewery waste. Former home of the red wigglers or worm castings (vermicompost) is needed as a microbe’s starter to cover the organic waste and speed-up the process of decomposition by the red wigglers and their friend’s decomposer.
This type of worm composting bin has been tested over the last Winter while the outdoor temperature was about -19°C. It is challenging to keep cool inside the bin in this hot Summer above 35°C. The photo can be zoomed to see ventilation in detail.
I have just received good news that our hard worker red wigglers can survive well during the harsh Winter and hot Summer in the unpredictable prairies weather; with the range of the temperature can be 2 digits different in a day. They are thriving and producing the high quality of fresh worm castings for any plants. Moreover, their worm casting teas (after diluting the worm castings in the aerated water) are amazing for germination, transplanting plants, and make the plants more productive.
-Bintoro Gunadi
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