Vermicomposting | Crazy About Compost

Worm Inn mods!

Yes, this simple modification to the Worm Inn was worth posting about. Well, how many Worm Inn owners hang up theirs underneath the steps using a couple screws (with threading exposed)? Probably next to none of you (if you do, leave a comment!). I decided to extend the life of the loops (made of a tough fabric) by threading keyrings onto each, shifting the weight to the metal rings. So if you're attaching/detaching the Inn often, or it's hanging one something other than the stand kit, try some keyrings!

Worm Wonderings #1: can you compost waxed paper?

For fun, I decided to add some wax paper items to my worm composting bin: I decided to add a Jimmy John's sandwich wrapper and some little blueberry muffin cake things left over from Thanksgiving I forgot about. Seriously messed up on that one- my mom makes killer food. Sorry mom! I'll let you know if the worms like it (they did, but not the wax paper). Oh- did you know that the majority of "paper" cups you see contain a plastic liner in them? If your finished worm castings seem to have bits of shiny plastic in them, and you put a paper cup or two in the worm bin, chances are the remnants are what's left from the cups. Vermicomposting is fun, but I always go back to…

How to Screen Worm Compost (video)

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtEIYdDmyZQ Here's a neat video on how to screen worm compost. Cassandra keeps it simple in this video and has some nice results. I do pretty much the same thing, except my screen is a repurposed basket with a piece of wire mesh placed in the bottom. She makes mention of running a fan over the top of the castings when you first harvest them...it's true- when you first remove your castings and put the worms back, the stuff is so gooey that a screen doesn't work so well. Drying them out just a bit will help, although I wouldn't want to dry them too much and risk losing some of their benefit.