page_title: Vermicompost
section_title: Small scale
hierarchical_section_title: Vermicompost / Design considerations / Small scale
caption_attribution_description: English: Worm bin display at community garden
context_page_description: Vermicompost is the product of the decomposition process using various species of worms, usually red wigglers, white worms, and other earthworms, to create a mixture of decomposing vegetable or food waste, bedding materials, and vermicast. This process is called vermicomposting, while the rearing of worms for this purpose is called vermiculture.
  Vermicast is the end-product of the breakdown of organic matter by earthworms. These castings have been shown to contain reduced levels of contaminants and a higher saturation of nutrients than the organic materials before vermicomposting.
  Vermicompost contains water-soluble nutrients and is an excellent, nutrient-rich organic fertilizer and soil conditioner. It is used in farming and small scale sustainable, organic farming.
  Vermicomposting can also be applied for treatment of sewage. A variation of the process is vermifiltration which is used to remove organic matter, pathogens and oxygen demand from wastewater or directly from blackwater of flush toilets.
context_section_description: For vermicomposting at home, a large variety of bins are commercially available, or a variety of adapted containers may be used. They may be made of old plastic containers, wood, Styrofoam, or metal containers. The design of a small bin usually depends on where an individual wishes to store the bin and how they wish to feed the worms.
  Some materials are less desirable than others in worm bin construction. Metal containers often conduct heat too readily, are prone to rusting, and may release heavy metals into the vermicompost. Styrofoam containers may release chemicals into the organic material. Some cedars, yellow cedar, and redwood contain resinous oils that may harm worms, although western red cedar has excellent longevity in composting conditions. Hemlock is another inexpensive and fairly rot-resistant wood species that may be used to build worm bins.
  Bins need holes or mesh for aeration. Some people add a spout or holes in the bottom for excess liquid to drain into a tray for collection. The most common materials used are plastic: recycled polyethylene and polypropylene and wood. Worm compost bins made from plastic are ideal, but require more drainage than wooden ones because they are non-absorbent. However, wooden bins will eventually decay and need to be replaced.
  Small-scale vermicomposting is well-suited to turn kitchen waste into high-quality soil amendments, where space is limited. Worms can decompose organic matter without the additional human physical effort (turning the bin) that bin composting requires.
  Composting worms which are detritivorous (eaters of trash), such as the red wiggler Eisenia fetida, are epigeic (surface dwellers) and together with symbiotic associated microbes are the ideal vectors for decomposing food waste. Common earthworms such as Lumbricus terrestris are anecic (deep burrowing) species and hence unsuitable for use in a closed system. Other soil species that contribute include insects, other worms and molds.
caption: Demonstration home scale worm bin at a community garden site (painted plywood)
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