When someone says worms, what do you think of? I assume you would think of them as a pest, superfluous, wriggling creatures that home in our gardens. But do you know just how important they are in keeping the earth alive? Well for one, they are certainly not superfluous.
Worms actually eat and recycle organic matter in our soil to keep it healthy. This act regenerates nutrients in the dirt, especially if it has been dry. In my garden, we have a worm farm, to get rid of our food waste and use our very own liquid fertiliser for plants.
Worm farms have been around for 102 years, and work just like this: We create a safe house for the worms, and in return, they digest our food waste, that would ordinarily go in the bin. Also, their wee is a fabulous fertilizer, that greatly impacts the growth of your garden.
In my home, we feed our worms once a week, to ensure they stay healthy. Originally, you start out with approximately 1000 worms, although over time, that number will begin to differ depending on how much you feed them and their health.
Worms are purely feed off fruit and vegetable waste (as well as the occasional newspaper) but here are the few exceptions that these critters cannot eat.
- Garlic
- Onion
- Ginger
- Any citrus
- Chilli
I encourage you to buy your own worm farm. You can repurpose your food waste, fertilise your plants with your own fertiliser and have a thousand new pets!
