Worm Composting: Care for Your Red Wiggler Worms

So you already gone out to buy worms and have had your worm composting system up and working for some time already. You have set up a really good worm composting system and some really sturdy and dependable compost tumbler. So far you are enjoying the benefits of vermicomposting and have had an abundant supply of organic fertilizers to enrich the plant life in your garden.

So organic gardening has really proven itself as one of the best methods of gardening. But something can only go so much by itself. At some point you will have to do something to make it go further and make it run smoother. Your worm composting system will have to be maintained and taken care of by you. So what do you have you have to do to maintain your successful worm composting system? Here are some tips to get you going. 

Harvest worm castings every four months. Your Red Wiggler worms will be working hard and chomping on your organic material for a few months after your worm composting system has started. To make the job a little easier for them, you can harvest their compost at a regular rate (every four months) to take a little paperwork away from their desktops.

Doing this is very easy; all it takes is some light digging. First of all, spread out a plastic sheet that is big enough to include eight (8) piles of worm compost, cone shaped in its area. After dividing the worm compost into eight cone-shaped piles, you will see that the worms will retreat from the glare of the sun by burying themselves deeper into the soil. After a period of ten (10) minutes you can scoop off the top portion of the piles. Repeat this process until the piles are small enough as to be just enough to house the worms. You now have excellent topsoil for your garden! You can return your worm bins and start worm composting again.

Only add water to your worm composting system if large parts of the bedding material lack water. Some people think that adding generous amounts of water is good for red worms since moisture is very essential to their skin. This is true up to some point. Yes worms do like moisture and they do like their beddings moist. But they do drown too. And adding too much water into your compost bins increases the risk of that happening. Your Red worms need air to live and they cannot have enough of that if the compost bin is filled with water.

Having said that, it is advisable that you only water the compost bins every other day to avoid flooding the compost bin. Also be sure that you have proper drainage in your compost bins to reduce even more the risk of flooding.

Always check to see if the temperature inside the composting bin is pleasant for your worms. This is very important as worms have very sensitive skin and are very susceptible to heat. With the talks of global warming and abnormal weather changes coming about, checking the temperature will be a good thing to do as to avoid risking the lives of your worms. Weather changes can affect the environment of your compost bin severely. That is why you should check the temperature regularly to avoid frying your worms inside your compost bin.

> These are all very important details to remember about worm composting. Do these things and you can be assured that your worm composting system will produce many organic fertilizers for your home garden