I’m Officially a Rancher, Now!

A Red Wiggler Worm Rancher

Apparently this is what I have become.

The first residents of the Buttervale Worm Ranch arrived today , about a half-pound of red wigglers, and they are officially moved into their new VermiHut.

For those unfamiliar with it, vermicomposting is basically composting with a workforce. Instead of waiting for a traditional compost pile to break down, red wiggler worms and the microorganisms living with them process kitchen scraps, cardboard and other organic material and turn it into incredibly rich worm castings.

Worm poop.

We’re harvesting worm poop.

And I’m surprisingly excited about it.

Move-In Day

Instead of sending all of that material out with the trash to the landfill, we’re going to try closing the loop a little bit:

Kitchen scraps → worms → worm castings → garden → food → kitchen scraps

The new VermiHut has several stacking trays. I’ve loaded the lower trays with damp shredded cardboard to start breaking down and becoming biologically active, while our first half-pound of red wigglers gets established in the working tray at the top.

Eventually, as one tray fills with castings, we’ll start feeding in the next one and let the worms migrate through the system.

At least that’s the theory. I saw it on YouTube so it has to work, right?

For now my primary responsibility as a newly minted worm rancher appears to be keeping 500-ish worms comfortable and resisting the urge to feed them everything in the compost bin.

Their first meal, an apple core, some cucumber ends, coffee grounds and crushed egg shells.

Like most ranching, it takes care and patience.

If this works the way I hope, we’ll reduce some household waste, create a steady supply of excellent soil amendment for the gardens, and learn another little piece of building a more productive and sustainable Buttervale.