Worm Farming: A How-To Guide

Often times when someone hears about worm farming for the first time they think about how it could easily generate revenue with little effort.  Perhaps the thought of having a personal supply of nutrient rich soil for the garden or flower beds sounds appealing.  Either way, it's important to know how to set up a proper worm farm your specific reasons. 

To understand how to set up a worm farm, the benefits worms provide must first be established.  Worm farming provides nutrient rich soil yielding a higher growth rate for vegetables, flowers and other plants.  A natural technique for composting with worms is beneficial to the environment as it helps eliminate the over filling of landfills.  Some worm farms are established for the purpose of providing live bait to fishermen, exotic pet owners and even aquarium fish owners. 

With the purpose of the worm farm in mind, the set up can begin.  Worm bins are readily available for purchase on the Internet.  Various sizes, shapes, and colors add to the selection.  Current large scale worm farmers will often sell small set ups for a comparable price. 

Other than purchasing a unit online or through a commercial worm farmer, set ups can be made at home out of a number of household items.  Plastic tubs or large wooden boxes can be altered and provide a perfect home for these working worms. 

Multiple layers are needed to provide a space for the liquid at the bottom.  The liquid will run off the soil above and can be drained via a tap or hole at the bottom of the container.  Within the upper layer of soil, the worms can move about towards the material to be composted.

The numerous models that can be purchased are also available for indoor use for those with limited or no outdoor space.  Worm bins can typically be stacked for adding more worms later on. 

Appropriate bedding will need to be provided for the worms to ensure a healthy life style.  Peat moss or coconut fiber containing a small amount of compost material is well accepted.  Bedding should always be moist for worms.  Many prepackaged worm bins come complete with bedding and set up instructions.

Location of the bin is important as well.  Worms are unable to tolerate extremes in temperature.  A location where temperature can be controlled between 72 - 75 degrees Fahrenheit, or choosing a fully insulated system, will help keep the worms healthy and happy.  The level of moisture within the bin can be affected by location too.

When a unit is chosen and prepared, the worms will need to be added to start the farm.  Various worms are readily available.  Red Wigglers are the best choice for composting farms while European Night Crawlers are best for live bait. 

When worms are purchased, they typically come with acclimation instructions. An important step is to be sure the bedding and unit are fully prepared before the worms arrive for placement within the farm. 

Feeding the worms is the fun part.  They can consume any number of items to be used as compost including fruit and vegetable scraps, egg shells, paper products, cotton rags, soaked cardboard boxes, leaves, dirt and hair.  Items should be cut down to manageable sizes.  Fruits should be sliced into strips for easier consumption by the worms. 

Provide a layer of items to be consumed on the top layer of the soil.  To avoid over feeding, only add more food when most of previously fed food has been eaten. 

Worm castings can be found in the bottom layer of the soil.  This natural fertilizer can be added directly to flower beds and gardens.  A liquid fertilizer can be made by adding water to castings for plants and flowers that prefer to be fed directly at the roots. 

Worm farming is relatively low maintenance.  If the habitat is less than desirable, the worms will often simply crawl away in search of better living conditions.  Keeping the temperature constant, moisture at an appropriate level and food readily available will help ensure a healthy and happy supply of working worms. 

Worm Farming is a Fisherman's Friend

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeRed worms, red wigglers, or manure worms are said to be best for composting.  They're also known as fishing worms.  You can find them in leaf litter, manure piles, and bait shops.

The ability to produce fast makes these worms appealing for worm farmers and fishermen.

You can start your red fishing-worm farm in a small, cheap plastic container such as a margarine dish or cool whip container.  Start with a small collection, say....under a dozen, just to get a feel for the journey ahead and decide if you want to invest further.  Add at least one big spoonful of dirt or compost, some thin strips of notebook paper or newspaper (not glossy), a cup of water (you want moisture, not soggy contents), fine sand or crumbled eggshells, and a little cereal or fruit.  (The worms aren't as partial to citrus fruits because of the acid content.)

You'll have to punch holes in the sides and the lid, at least a dozen in each.   There must be oxygen flow and drainage.  Worms can't survive without oxygen.  And you may have noticed that they rise to the top of the ground after a hard rain.

Your worms will eat many things that you would normally throw away.  Almost any food scrap will do, but there are some that are discouraged.  Meat scraps, citrus scraps, garlic, onion, and hot peppers or really spicy foods are not good choices. You should be careful about exposing your worms to pesticide residues used on food or contained in manures.  Although the fishermen's friend will eat cardboard because it's a wood product, make sure the cardboard is not contaminated with any poisonous residues.  You have to feed them at least three times a week.  Bury the food under the bedding for the best results.

You can check out bait shops to get an idea of how much to price your worms if you plan to sell them.  You don't want to be too high or too low compared to other worms sold in the area for fishing bait.  You can, of course, just grow them for your own fishing excursions.  Also, consider the area where you live.  If you live in a small area, there may not be enough market for a large worm farm to earn enough profit unless you sell over the internet or ship to other places.  You want to make sure you don't invest too much too soon.

If you live near a lake, you may do very well with your worm farm business.  People do like convenience.  Even avid fishermen can run out of bait or forget to buy it, although they may not like to readily admit it!  There are plenty of people who prefer to use natural bait, too.  Of course, this means customers will be knocking on your door on weekends and after normal work hours.  So, you may do better to post your office away from your living area and make sure your hours are compatible, but not overwhelming for you.  Post them plainly and large enough for those early rising fishermen/women to readily see them.