How To Start Your Own Vermicomposting Bin (And Get Incredible Soil Out Of It)

Want to give your food scraps and organic waste a new life? Worms can help with that. If you can get over the initial shock of keeping worms as pets, vermicomposting is an amazing way to repurpose waste and turn trash into nutrient-dense soil. Here's everything you need to know about getting started with the technique.

Vermicomposting, also known as worm composting, is a type of composting that has worms eat natural material, such as vegetable and fruit peels, and then break them down through digestion.

Once the scraps pass through their system, they excrete it in what's known as worm castings. Before you get grossed out, know that those castings are a rich, nutrient-dense material that can turn soil into a paradise for plants. (It's often referred to as black gold!)

Vermicomposting and composting are similar in the sense that their goal is to break down organic matter into a nutrient-rich soil amendment that you can add to your garden.

The differences lie in the amount of time the two processes take, how and where they're done, and what their end results are.

"One of the biggest advantages of vermicomposting is that worm compost often has a much higher nutrient content than traditional compost," adds Matt Eddleston, a gardener with over 20 years of experience and founder of Gardening Vibe.

Composting also requires more physical activity because you need to layer the compost pile and turn it often, about once a week. It usually needs to be done outside and can be difficult when the weather turns in colder months.

Vermicomposting has more flexibility when it comes to weather and space requirements. You can keep your worm bin anywhere where temperatures aren't too extreme, indoors or outdoors.

"You can do it indoors in an apartment, even when you don't have a lot of space," says Eddleston. "A worm bin fits easily in the corner of a room."

RELATED READ: 6 Best Worm Composters For Easy Vermicomposting At Home

Creating vermicompost is a way to repurpose organic waste instead of tossing it out. Food waste currently makes up nearly 25% of landfills in the U.S.1 (where it emits harmful greenhouse gases), so finding other uses for it is essential.

By returning food and plant scraps to the earth, you're creating a closed-loop system of organic nutrients, and the resulting natural fertilizer is super beneficial for plants and microorganisms.

Chemical fertilizers or pesticides can be detrimental to soil health and wildlife. Worm castings are a safe and natural way to revitalize areas where soil has been overused or lost nutrients.

You can either buy a pre-constructed vermicompost bin or make your own using the following easy and inexpensive technique.

Although it may be tempting to dig around in your backyard and look for worms yourself, not all worm species are suitable for composting.

"Purchase the appropriate species from a supplier for your area rather than collect worms from your yard," Angelo Randaci, Earth's Ally master gardener and horticulture expert, suggests. Yes, worm suppliers exist!

The type of worm you buy from them will largely depend on your climate, but here are a few good options to look into:

Red wigglers are one of the most popular worms for vermicomposting. "Because they are tolerant of a wide range of temperatures, they are a good choice for many parts of the country," says Randaci.

If you live in a colder region, you may want to go with European nightcrawler worms. "They prefer cooler temperatures and are found slightly deeper in the soil," he says, adding that "they reproduce more slowly than the red wiggler worms but produce greater biomass (finished material)," he adds.

You can also look into Indian blue worms and African nightcrawlers "but they are better suited to tropical environments," says Randaci. 

If you're wondering if it's possible to combine different worm species in one bin, the quick answer is yes—but there can be caveats. According to Randaci, over time one type of worm may dominate. "If conditions are better for one species than another, that species will multiply faster," he says. 

To get the process started, all you need to do is fill the worm's bin with a mix of food scraps (green and brown) and "bedding" such as shredded paper, cardboard, straw, hay, dry leaves, dirt, or wood chips.

Feeding worms is one of the most important parts of the process, but you'll need to pay attention to what and how much you're offering them.

Worms can eat a variety of organic materials including fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, and tea bags. But you'll want to avoid citrus fruits and peels since they're acidic and worms have a difficult time digesting them. You shouldn't add any animal or dairy products to the bin, either. 

In addition to food waste, your worms will also eat their bedding. "Your worm bedding is also food for worms. You want to have a higher content of bedding than food waste," says Randaci.

When you buy your worms, you should get information on how much they eat. Follow it closely; the key to maintaining your bed is making sure it has the right amount of food (and therefore, moisture) at all times. When the system is out of balance, you'll be able to tell pretty quickly.

"If you overfeed [the worms], then the excess will rot, causing a bad smell," explains Eddleston. "Rotting and heat buildup can occur and even kill the worms," adds Randaci. 

Moisture can also build when you overfeed. According to Randaci, "You add moisture every time you add food waste because of the high water (80% or more) content of the vegetable."

If you notice that food isn't being eaten by the worms or the bin has a bad odor, you'll want to hold off on adding more scraps.

Here, Randaci and Eddleston share their top tips for anyone who's just getting started with vermicomposting:

While it does take some trial and error, starting a vermicompost bin is a rewarding way to watch nature at work and become more involved in your environment. Equipped with this know-how, you'll be harvesting your own black gold in no time that you can add to your productive garden.