Vermicompost Right in Your Garden - Make a Worm Bucket (2024)

I am a big fan of vermicomposting. It can be done indoors or out, and it's still fun, even after all the time I've been composting with worms, to watch my apple cores and coffee grounds turn into amazing, nutrient-rich vermicompost. If you're looking for an even easier way to compost with worms, consider installing a worm bucket right in your garden bed.One of the more work-intensive parts of keeping a worm bin (depending on the style of bin you have) is harvesting the vermicompost. For example, the bin I have is just that: a bin. There are no levels for the worms to move to. When I want to harvest the vermicompost, I can either move the fresh food and bedding to one side of the bin and wait for the worms to make their way over and out of the finished vermicompost, or I can dump the whole thing out on a tarp and sort through it by hand.

But if you use this method, you're essentially cutting out that middle step, because your worms will be doing their composting work right in your vegetable or flower garden bed. Here's how to do it.

Making a Worm Bucket for Your Garden

  • Get a plastic 5 gallon bucket with a lid. These are cheap at most home centers. If you have a bucket from cat litter or laundry detergent, these will work well too.
  • Cut the bottom out of your bucket, and, if you have a large drill bit, drill several 3/4" to 1" holes all around the bottom quarter of your bucket. Doing these two things allows your worms to come and go as they please -- which is exactly what you want. If you aren't able to drill holes, it will still work, so don't let that stop you.
  • Place your bucket in your garden bed, sinking the bottom quarter of it down into the soil. Now you can start filling the bucket with kitchen scraps, coffee grounds, tea bags, crumble egg shells -- anything you'd add to a traditional worm bin. Put the lid on, and you're done.

There are two ways to handle how you're going to get worms to do the work in your bucket vermicomposter. You can install it and wait for the worms that are already in your garden to find it and get to work. This is what I do, and it works really well.

The other thing you can do is order some red wigglers and put them in the bucket with the food scraps. If you use this method, you can add more food scraps, because you'll have more worms to feed. Keep in mind, though, that if you live in an area that freezes, your red wigglers most likely won't make it through the winter, and you'll have to order more next year.

What's the Point?

The whole point of this particular composter is to take work off of you, the gardener. You add your food scraps to the bucket, keep it covered, and end up with better, more fertile soil, thanks to the worms. They make their way into your bucket to eat, then head back out into your garden bed where they deposit castings, adding nutrients to your garden and improving the soil. Anything that improves my soil and turns waste into something useful, with no work on my behalf, is a win in my book (lazivores, unite!)

Vermicompost Right in Your Garden - Make a Worm Bucket (2024)

FAQs

Vermicompost Right in Your Garden - Make a Worm Bucket? ›

Prepare bedding for the worms by shredding Newspaper into 1 inch strips. Worms need bedding that is moist but not soggy. Moisten the newspaper by soaking it in water and then squeezing out the excess water. Cover the bottom of the bin with 3-4 inches of moist newspaper, fluffed up.

How to use vermicompost in a garden? ›

How to use Vermicompost
  1. Does depends on the age of the plant.
  2. Make a 6-7 inch deep ring round the plant.
  3. Apply a thin layer of dry cow-dung & bone meal with 2-5 kilograms Vermicompost.
  4. Cover this with a thin layer of soil.
  5. Mulch this ring with organic matter.
  6. Light spray of water.

How do you make homemade worm bedding? ›

Prepare bedding for the worms by shredding Newspaper into 1 inch strips. Worms need bedding that is moist but not soggy. Moisten the newspaper by soaking it in water and then squeezing out the excess water. Cover the bottom of the bin with 3-4 inches of moist newspaper, fluffed up.

Can you just put red wigglers in your garden? ›

Can I Put Red Wigglers in My Garden? Yes! Red wigglers are a great earthworm option for your garden or raised bed and are the best worm to add to most gardens. Red wigglers are a hardy worm that can survive in a wide range of climates and temperature ranges, and they are active composters and breeders.

How many worms do I need for a 5 gallon bucket? ›

A 5 gallon bucket can comfortably support 1 pound of red wiggler worms, which is equivalent to roughly 1,000 worms. It's important to remember that red wigglers live in the top 2-3 inches of soil, so surface area is more important than depth in determining how many worms can live in a 5 gallon bucket.

How long will worms live in a bucket? ›

Harvest your worms at least once a month.

Place the worms in a covered container, taking care to keep the majority of the soil in the worm box. Either take the worms fishing immediately or store them in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Should vermicompost be wet or dry? ›

Vermicomposting is high maintenance. The feed has to be added periodically and care should be taken that the worms are not flooded with too much to eat. The bin should not be too dry or too wet. The moisture levels need to be monitored periodically.

How long does it take for vermicompost to work? ›

It will take your worms 6-8 weeks to produce a noticeable amount of vermicompost. The castings appear as small, dark, clumps that easily break apart.

Do I need to water my vermicompost? ›

The worms need 80% moisture, especially in the top four inches of the bedding inside the bin. Rhonda says some worm bin manufacturers must not understand the needs of worms because they put holes in the lid for air, but keeping the moisture in is the most important thing to do.

Are coffee grounds good for worm bedding? ›

Coffee grounds are highly suitable for worm farms by providing a natural pesticide to ward off pests such as snails, slugs and ants. Since worms have no teeth, the fine particle size of the grounds helps make it easier to consume and provides a gritty substance in their guts which helps them grind and break down food.

What is the best bedding for a worm bin? ›

Your best bet is a mixture of several types of bedding. For example, coconut coir, peat moss and shredded newspaper. Or, mix composted autumn leaves and shredded brown corrugated cardboard. Add water and stir until the mixture has the consistency of a wrung-out sponge.

Can you put too many worms in your garden? ›

However, it's important to remember that earthworms are self-replicating and will naturally increase in number over time, so you don't need to worry about adding too many all at once.

Do red wigglers like grass clippings? ›

A hefty serving of grass clippings seems like all the food a herd of red wigglers should need in a week. But, alas, that just won't do. A fresh pile of grass clippings soon begins anaerobic decomposition in a worm bin creating heat and foul odors.

Will red wigglers eat my plant roots? ›

Red Wigglers' Diet

One of the most important things to know about red wiggler worms is their diet, which consists primarily of decaying organic matter. They do not eat plant roots or any other living plants but instead feed off debris that bacteria and fungi have broken down over time.

How to keep worms alive in a bucket DIY? ›

Cut a 5-inch- diameter circle of tule or mesh and glue or tape it to the underside of the lid hole, ensuring that there are no gaps where worms could escape. If you are lucky enough to get a bucket lid that has a spout, you can use this as your ventilation hole. 5. Line the inner bucket bottom with shredded cardboard.

What to use for worm farm bedding? ›

You will need to fill your worm farm about three quarters full with worm bedding for the worms to live in. Items such as potting mix, soil, hay, compost, dead leaves, pet bedding, coconut fiber or shredded cardboard or paper can be used as the bedding. The bedding needs to be porous and moist.

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