DO'S AND DON'TS OF WORM FEEDING DO FEED YOUR WORMS: DON'T FEED THEM Vegetable scraps Meat Grains Fish Fruit rinds and peels Cheese Breads Oily foods Coffee grounds, filters Butter Tea bags Pet wastes SO Operating your worm By ‘This bin is designed to compost food wastes (see chart) using red worms. Red worms are first “bedded” in the bin with shredded and moistened newspaper, card- board, peat moss or brown leaves. Food wastes are then buried in the bedding, and the worms turn it all into a high- quality compost suitable for use on house plants, seedlings or general garden use. Every 6 to 8 months compost should be moved to one side of the bin and new bedding added to the empty half. At this point, bury food wastes into the new bed- ding only. Within two months, most of the worms will have migrated into the new bedding. Finished compost can then be harvested, the newly emptied half of the bin rebedded, and the process repeated. For more information on worm composting, see Mary Appelhofs book, Worms Eat My Garbage, (available at most libraries) or Snohomish County's ‘Composting Food & Pet Wastes brochure. For more information on Snohomish County's 388-3425 Pees eS eer eee szve-888/902 10286 vM ‘Neen enuany e10uie) O86 uo!siaiq jeweBeuey 21S PI|OS ‘SOM ayGNA AyuNoD YysTWOYoUS WM 11333. 222 ON LINEA aivd 3OVLSOd ‘S'N avy 41Nng You Can Build A Worm Compost Bin . Food was: can make a smelly mess in your garbage, draw rodents to an open compost pile, and add to water pollution problems when ground in a garbage disposal. So what can you do with food wastes? This brochure shows you how to make and use a worm bin for com- posting most of your food wastes... You can build a worm bin and let worms eat your food “garbage”! In the process, the worms will provide you with one of the best soil amendments available— worm castings. Worm castings are very expensive to purchase, but your worms will turn food wastes into an abundance of castings for your plants.Starting «worms ‘This bin can be built for about $25 using new wood and hardware. Worm bins can also be made from recycled wooden boxes or other containers. Any worm bin must have drainage in the bottom and a tight- fitting lid to keep moisture in and pests out. Astarter batch of worms can be dug out of a friend’s worm bin or from an existing manure or compost pile, or can be purchased at some locations. If you need help locating worms for your worm bin, call the Solid Waste Management Division at 388-3425. Construction vetars Measure and cut plywood as indicated in drawing. To make the base, cut the 14° 2x¢ into five pieces: two 48" and three 20" long. The remaining 12" piece will be used to make the sides. Nail the 2x4s together on edge with two 16d nails at each joint as illustrated in the BASE FRAME dia- gram. Nail the plywood base piece onto the the 2x4 frame using the 4d nails. To build the box, cut three 12" pieces from the 16’ 2x4. Place a one-foot 2x4 un- der the end of each side panel so that the ‘2x4 is flush with the top and side edges of the plywood and nail the boards in place. Nail the side pieces onto the base frame. To complete the box, nail the ends conto the base and sides. To reinforce the box, place a nail at least every 3 inches wherever plywood and 2x4s meet. Drill twelve 1/2” holes through the bottom of the box for drainage. To build the lid, c the 16' 2x4 into two 51 27" pieces. Cut lap joints the remainder of sngths and two n the corners, Directions for Building Your Worm Composting Bin BASE FRAME 2x4s ON EDGE ee — END VIEW OF 2x4 LAP JOINT uD | 2x4 FRAME Bit with r r a ery DRAWINGS NOT TO SCALE a then glue and nail the frame together. Center the plywood onto the 2x4 frame and nail with 4d nails. Lay the top on the ground with the plywood side touching ground, Attach hinges to the top and back using the short screws on the top and the long screw on the back. Position hinges so the screws go through plywood to 2x4s. You can coat your bin with clear poly- urethane, varnish, or paint to protect it from weathering. Use eye and ear protection.