How Earthworms Grow Spectacular Plants and Flowers While Helping the Environment

Earthworms are not just for scaring your sister anymore. They are used to make organic fertilizer, fishing bait and to keep waste from reaching city landfills. Earthworms have become an income source for commercial farmers, home gardeners and worm hobbyists wanting to make a few extra bucks.

Many people will tell you that the earthworm's real value comes from their composting abilities. These worms can reduce a large pile of kitchen waste into a small heap of the best organic fertilizer you can get your hands on. Now lets take a look at whet you need to get started worm composting.

Starting an earthworm bin.

Earthworms have certain needs that must be met. The first thing you'll need is a container the earthworms can call home. A wooden box or plastic container may be used. Or if you prefer you can buy worm-composting bins from the web. The container must have hole on the top, sides and bottom. The holes should 1/8 of inch and no larger.

Earth Bedding material:

The next thing you'll need is a quality bedding material. There are plenty of options available including newspaper, cardboard, leaves, manure and peat moss to name a few. Keep in mind the material should be able to hold moisture, yet be "airy" so the worms can more and take in air easily. The bedding material must be kept moist, not soggy.

So what kinds of worms are best used for composting? They are either red worms (Eisenia foetida) or red earthworms (Lumbricus rubellus). Red worms are said to be the most prolific composting worm on earth. The red worms will multiple like rabbits under ideal conditions. A bin of 1000 red worms can double in size in a 2-3 month period.

What to feed the red worms

Red worms will eat almost anything that was once living or breathing. For example, coffee grounds, tea bags, paper, cardboard, eggshells, watermelon rinds, grass clipping, shrub trimmings, seaweed and on and on. Do not feed them meats or pet manure. The feed schedule for the worms depends on how much waste your household produces. As a guideline, 2000 worms will need a pound of food a week to keep them healthy.

Steve Habib is a active gardener and researcher on growing and caring for a variety of plants. You can find more insights and free reports on how to become a better gardener at the: [http://www.different-kinds-of-plants.com/index.html]HOME PAGE To discover more about [http://www.different-kinds-of-plants.com/earthworms.html]EARTHWORMS visit here.

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