The Components of a Redworm Vermicomposter
It is easy to compost your kitchen veggie scraps with redworms (Eisenia fetida)... which will make worm castings that is an excellent fertilizer for your garden soil. READ THIS NOTE: As of the making of this video (9-13-15), I was relatively new to this and in the video... in my hasty enthusiasm... I incorrectly refer to what is correctly known as leachate... by calling it "worm compost tea". I have since learned that "worm compost tea" is produced by way of a process that infuses the worm castings in aerated water... thus creating a TEA. Further... I also recommend using the leachate in your gardens as a soil amendment and I have since learned that this is not always wise as the leachate has not been fully digested by the worms and likely contains toxins (if it smells bad) not good for plants. You can safely use the leachate if it does not smell bad. Just let it sit in a bucket and after a while... days... weeks... the bad smell will evaporate off. When it doesn't smell bad anymore, dilute it, as it is concentrated, and experiment with using it on some plants you don't mind potentially losing until you know what you are doing. SO... rather than take the video down and make a new one with my updated knowledge, I will let this remain as I believe the design of my vermicomposter is a good design. I will, however make another video sometime updating what I have learned.
Say hi to your redworms for me, my fellow Steemians!
Hi, I’m Huy from https://thelittlewormfarm.com/, it’s nice to see another worm farmer on Steemit.
May I give you some suggestions on the setup?
In the video you are using a sheet to create shade for the worm bin. If you make a wooden frame that is a little bit taller, you could stretch the sheet around the frame, this will create a gap between the sheet and the bin which will provide circulation of cool air around the bin. It is more effective than covering the bin directly.
As for the leachate, I suggest to ditch the stinky one and only use fresh ones that have not sat for a while. The more it sit, the more oxygen will be consumed by the microorganisms and this will lead to more anaerobic conditions.
Even better, try to not produce any leachate by adding new dry bedding material under each feed. Shredded corrugated cardboard makes excellent bedding material, it adds bulkiness thanks to the flutes and this provide better aération additionally to absorbing excess moisture from the food scraps.
When starting a new bin, add a thick layer of bedding material, 15cm is possible in the bin you use I think. If you ever accidentally feed too much and there is a heat wave, your worms will be able to find a cooler area in the bedding to retreat to until things settle down.
I’m following you and looking forward to reading more from you.