Do you need an easy, convenient (and fun!) way to get rid of biodegradable waste without having it end up in the landfill? One environmentally friendly way is to turn it into compost. This not only keeps biodegradable waste out of the landfill, but allows you to return rich organic matter to the soil, enhancing the growth and health of your plants. If you don't have the space to include an outdoor compost pile in your landscape plan or don't want to commit to the upkeep of an outdoor compost pile, you can still recycle your biodegradable waste into rich organic matter that you can use to amend your soil by composting with worms. This process is called vermiposting. Even if you live in an apartment, you should have enough space for a "worm bin" and you can use the compost to enrich the soil when repotting your houseplants. An added benefit of vermiposting is that it still works in the winter when traditional compost piles have closed for the season.

To get started, you will need a container ("worm bin"), bedding material, worms, and biodegradable materials that you would like to turn into a rich, organic soil amendment. You can use almost anything as a container for making your worm bin, and you can make it as simple or as elaborate as you like. You can purchase large plastic storage bins, recycle wooden crates, or even reuse old dresser drawers that you find at a garage sale or the junkyard. The size of the bin will depend on the amount of compostable waste you generate.

Just like with outdoor composting, you will need to keep your composting materials moist. It is very important that the decomposing waste not be too wet, so drill several drainage holes in the bottom of your bin to allow any excess water to drain out. To enhance drainage, you can put the bin up on bricks or cement blocks and place a tray underneath to catch any excess water that drains out of the bin. If you keep your worm bin indoors year-round, it should be covered with a fine-mesh screen, burlap sack, or similar material that will allow for ventilation yet provide a dark environment that is preferred by the worms. If you put your bin outdoors during warm weather, it should have ventilation holes in the sides and a solid lid to prevent rain and curious critters from getting into the bin. Alternatively, you could use a ventilated lid, as with an indoor bin, and keep the bin in an area that is protected from rain and unwanted pests. The worms will be healthiest and most productive if kept at temperatures ranging between 40 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit, so it is important to bring the worm bin inside or make sure it is well insulated when temperatures dip below 40 degrees. It is equally important to protect an outside bin from direct sunlight on hot days to prevent overheating, unless you have a very large bin.

For bedding material, you can use dead leaves, shredded paper, shredded paperboard, compost, or aged manure. To avoid over-wetting, it is a good idea to moisten the bedding before putting it into the worm bin. The moisture level should be similar to that of a wrung-out sponge. Fill the bin about three-quarters full with moistened bedding material. Now, you are ready for the worms.

Red wigglers are the worm of choice for vermiposting. They are available from commercial growers or most stores that sell fishing bait. The proper ratio of worms to waste is approximately one to two pounds of worms for each one pound of waste generated per day. If you start with fewer worms decrease the amount of waste added each day until your worm population gets established.

Appropriate wastes to add to the worm bin include fruit and vegetable scraps, crushed egg shells, tea bags, coffee grounds and filters, bread, dryer lint, and garden or houseplant debris. To speed up the composting process, tear or chop the waste into small pieces. Do not add meat, dairy products, bones, mayonnaise, salad dressing, or vegetable oil to your vermiposting bin (or, for that matter, to your outdoor compost bin). When adding waste to the bin, make a trench down the middle of the bedding, or make one or more holes in the bedding. Add the waste to the trench or holes, and then cover the waste back up with the bedding that was pulled aside. If the proper ratio of food scraps and worms is maintained, and if the bedding is not too wet, your worm bin should not have an unpleasant odor. If you detect a rancid odor, the bedding may be too wet or compacted. Try turning the bedding and adding some dry materials such as dead leaves, shredded paper, or shredded cardboard.

Depending on the size of your bin, the number of worms you have, and the amount of waste you "feed" to the worms, you should have finished compost in about two to three months. You will know your compost is ready to be "harvested" when the amount of bedding is substantially reduced and the original bedding is no longer recognizable, but rather appears dark brown and earthy. There are several methods you can use to harvest your compost. You can spread the compost out on a large tarp or cloth and hand pick the worms out of the compost, placing them back in the bin with fresh bedding. Alternatively, you can move the compost to one side of the bin and put new bedding in the space created. If you only add food waste to the area with new bedding, over the course of several weeks the worms will crawl into the area where the "food supply" is, and the finished compost can be harvested. You can place the bin under a bright light, which will cause the worms to move downward in the compost, and harvest the finished compost in layers without harvesting your worms. You can also use the compost, worms and all, and then buy new worms to start your next vermiposting cycle.

There are many uses for your finished worm compost. It can be mixed with potting soil and used for house plants and outdoor potted plants; it can be used directly in the garden, either incorporated into the soil or used as mulch; it can be sprinkled on the lawn to condition the soil; and it can be added to the holes when transplanting seedlings or mature plants.

Remember, with vermiposting, we are taking the worms out of their natural environment and using them for our own benefit. Therefore we have a responsibility to provide the worms with a happy, healthy environment in which they will thrive.

Q: When adding leaves to my compost pile, is it better to leave them whole or shred them first?

A: It is better to use whole leaves, rather than chopped or shredded leaves, for composting. Chopped or shredded leaves are more likely to get packed down in the compost pile, reducing the circulation of oxygen in the pile. If there is not enough oxygen in the compost pile - either because it is packed down too tightly or it is too wet - the decomposition process will occur much more slowly and is likely to produce a foul odor.

Q: My herb garden is doing great this year and I'm planning to dry many of the herbs for use in the winter. Do you have any tips for storing the dried herbs to preserve their quality and flavor?

A: When storing dried herbs it is very important that the plants are completely dry before placing them in the storage containers to prevent mold development during storage. Dried herbs will maintain their quality and flavor longer if stored in airtight containers in a cool dry place, out of direct light. Whole herbs will retain their flavor longer in storage than crushed herbs. With proper drying and storage conditions, your herbs should retain maximum quality for up to one year.

Q: My neighbor recently mentioned he was going to renovate his lawn. What did he mean by that?

A: Lawn renovation involves killing the existing grass and replacing it with new grass without turning over the soil or altering the grade of the turf area (as would normally occur when establishing a new lawn). The entire lawn may be renovated or partial renovation may take place. Partial renovation may include introducing an improved variety of the same species into an existing lawn, or introducing a different species with similar growth and maintenance requirements as the existing species. The main reasons for renovating a lawn include replacement of an old variety of grass with a newer variety with better disease resistance, drought tolerance, or other desirable characteristic; or replacing areas of the lawn that are unhealthy due to disease, insect damage or drought stress, or if the turf area has become increasingly shady as nearby trees have grown larger.

Don't be the fall guy-or gal, when it comes to treating your apple trees for crown rot. A fall treatment of copper sulfate to the base of the tree may correct discoloration of tissue which can be described as a "chocolate ice cream swirl". Over watering is often a major factor causing this dark brown coloration under the bark.

Leaf you alone? Fall has an abundance of leaves which can be recycled into compost. Use a three feet by three feet bin for optimal oxygen circulation, add nitrogen in the form of fertilizer or fresh grass clippings and keep the leaves as consistently moist as a wet sponge.

Kentucky bluegrass lawns may be singing the blues if they have thinned out due to insects, diseases, or increasingly shady conditions. Mid-September is the optimal time for seeding cool-season grasses, like Kentucky bluegrass. Seeding warm season grasses, like buffalograss, is not recommended after July.

Snakes in the grass! In the fall, both nonvenomous and venomous snakes may seek a residence that is cool and damp for winter hibernating. Nonvenemous snakes may simply frighten, but venomous snakes may bite people or pets. For more information on identifying Colorado snakes, please see The Colorado Herpetological Society web site: www.coloherp.org/geo/

The authors have received training through Colorado State University Cooperative Extension's Master Gardener program and is a Master Gardener volunteer for Larimer County.

Gardening and Insect Fact Sheets are available on-line by clicking HERE.

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This page updated:  October 4, 2004