Читать книгу Down to the River and Up to the Trees: Discover the hidden nature on your doorstep - Sue Belfrage - Страница 17

My friend Bill has fallen in love with his pet worms. They live in a wormery in his shed, are no bother and eat up leftovers. To make your own wormery and create compost for flowerbeds or plant pots you will need:

A large plastic or wooden box with a lid, approximately 46 cm wide by 35 cm high (18 × 14 in).

A drill with a 12 mm (½ in) drill bit.

Bricks or blocks to stand the wormery on.

A tray or bucket.

A couple of sheets of newspaper and a piece of cardboard.

Worm bedding such as old compost or coir.

300–400 composting worms such as tiger, brandling, manure or red worms, available online and from fishing tackle shops or manure heaps (not earthworms, as these live in soil, not compost).

Drill 15–20 holes in the bottom of the box to let in enough air for the worms and to allow any liquid to drain out. Drill a few more air holes in the lid and at the very top of the box’s sides.

Stand the box on the bricks or blocks in a sheltered spot where the wormery won’t get too hot or cold. Place a tray or bucket underneath to catch any liquid, which can be used as a fertilizer when diluted with 10 parts water.

Cover the bottom of the box with a layer of newspaper or cardboard, and cover this with about 8 cm (3¼ in) of moist bedding material that the worms can burrow down into.

Introduce the worms to their new home – the good news is that you don’t have to name them individually – and cover them with about 9 cm (3½ in) of kitchen waste. This can include any raw vegetables (apart from onions, garlic and leeks) and fruit (except citrus peel, which is too acidic). They’re also partial to cooked vegetables, a bit of bread or pasta, tea bags and coffee grounds, egg shells, small amounts of garden greenery and a few shreds of newspaper – but not glossy magazines.

Cover the food layer with a sheet of cardboard or a damp cloth to keep the worms happy in the dark. Close the lid on the box, and leave them to settle in for about a week.

Don’t overfeed your pet worms or they will start to smell. If the food layer doesn’t appear to be going down, remove some of it and leave them to work their way through the rest. Feeding them little and often is best. And please don’t allow the box to become waterlogged as the worms need to breathe; only add water if the wormery begins to look too dry.

It should take about eight to twelve months for the wormery to fill up. Separate out the worms before using any compost, and start the wormery again with the top 20 cm (8 in). Enjoy the many benefits of your wriggly pets.