VERMICOMPOSTING

THINK ABOUT THIS

HOW CAN I CHANGE FROM

WASTE-FUL TO BEING WASTE-FREE?
INTRODUCTION

Vermicomposting is a technology of composting various

forms of biodegradable wastes with the help of
earthworms.
This compost is perfectly balanced and good in plants
nutrients.
 OVERVIEW

Vermicomposting is a special type of composting which uses

certain earth worms
Vermicomposting is already being used worlwide for treatment of
organic waste, sewage sludge, manure, kitchen waste etc.
Vermicomposting can also be used to treat faeces (e.G. Faeces
collected from UDD toilets), in order to make faeces into a valuable
product
 Vermiculture - the culture of the worm
Vermicomposting - the use of worms for composting organic material
Vermicompost the product of vermicomposting containing worm
castings, bedding material as well as organing matter in various
stages of decomposting
Vermiculturist the person who farms, breeds, and cares for worms
WHY DO IT
Ecologically responsible
Reduce waste in landfills and sewage treatment
plants
Provides valuable additives for your plants
Saves you money
Worms for fishing
TYPES OF ACTION OF THE EARTHWORMS

Physical/mechanical:
Substrate aeration and mixing due to the movement of the
worms inside the substrate as well as actual grinding
Keeps organic waste constantly aerated and achieves cooling
Saves costs on mechanical process units for mixing used
in conventional (hot) composting
Biochemical:
Microbial decomposition of the substrate in the intestines of
the earthworms
WHAT DO THE EARTHWORMS
DO?
Maintain aerobic conditions in the mixture
Ingest solids
Convert a portion of the organics into worm biomass and to
respiration products
Expel the remaining partially stabilized matter as discrete material
(earthworm faeces or castings)
Worms and aerobic mesophilic microorganisms act symbiotically to
accelerate and enhance the decomposition of the organic matter
PROPERTIES OF END PRODUCT FROM
VERMICOMPOSTING
Very finely structured, uniform, stable and aggregated particles of humified organic
material
Excellent porosity, aeration and water holding capacity
Rich in available plant nutrients, hormones, enzymes and (benign) microbial
populations
Mostly pathogen-free:
Plant and human pathogens are killed during passage of the earthworm gut
Earth-like, soil building substance that forms a beneficial growing environment for
plant roots
Valuable and marketable product
DEGREE OF ORGANIC MATTER
DEGRADATION DEPENDS ON:

Portion of the waste that is degradable

Maintenance of aerobic conditions
Absence of toxic compounds
 PROS AND CONS
PROS CONS
Tends to be somewhat less labor-intensive - no
Wont kill seeds (and although there is a fair amount of evidence
turning/aerating necessary (worm activity helps to mix,
to indicate pathogen destruction, more research is required
fragment and aerate materials)
More space required to process similar amounts as hot
Cooler temperatures help to conserve nitrogen composting - need to be careful with amount added (since
excess heat will kill worms)
Higher moisture contents not an issue (and actually
preferred) Outdoor systems much more limited by cold weather
Worms need to be separated from compost
Materials can be constantly added (no need to stock pile in
preparation for next batch) Worms (although quite resilient) do require some attention and
proper care.
Size of system unimportant - ideally suited for both indoors
and outdoors

Considerable evidence to indicate that vermicomposts

have beneficial properties not found in hot composts

Under ideal conditions, wastes can be processed very

quickly