Redworms perform an important function in our composting operations. They eat the decaying organic material and turn it into worm castings (manure) that is rich in plant food. If you are going to use redworms in your outside compost pile, all you need to do is get the pile started and put the worms in and let them go to work for you. They multiply at a fast rate. During warm weather when the moisture is right and there is plenty of organic matter for them to feed on, they will double their population about every 60 days. You want the compost pile to be moist, but not soaking wet. The dampness of a wrung out sponge is correct. In the desert southwest you may need to water the pile to keep it damp. It usually takes a few months for a pile to become compost. By this time, the worms will have multiplied to the point that there will be a good supply in the pile. A good way to get worms into a new pile when you are ready to use your compost is to bury fresh fruit peels, melon rinds and cooked vegetables near the top of the pile. Wait two or three days for the worms to gather at the top to eat the material you added. Take the top 4 or 5 inches off the pile and put it aside to start a new pile. The removed material will contain most of the worms. Don't worry about the worms remaining in the compost Use the compost, worms and all, in your garden, flower beds or wherever else you need it. If your garden is well mulched and kept damp, the worms will probably survive, If the garden becomes dry, the worms will most likely die and become plant food themselves.

If you want to start a small worm bin for use indoors, there are several different sizes available. I personally like the 10 gallon plastic tub made by Rubbermaid. You will need to provide for ventilation and drainage. I drill 1/16 inch holes in about a 2 inch circle at the center of the bottom and a series of holes near the top around where the handles are.

Now you are ready for about 3 inches of bedding material. There are several things that can be used as bedding. I like a mixture of Growcoir (a medium similar to peat moss made from the husks of coconuts) and Colorado peat moss. The Growcoir is excellent for moisture retention and is a renewable resource. The Colorado peat moss provides some food value for the worms. There are other types of bedding material that can be used. Aged animal manure is good but care must be used to assure it isn't fresh enough to kill the worms. Shredded cardboard or paper can be used. If you use either shredded paper or cardboard a couple of handfuls of garden soil should be added so the worms will have grit for their gizzards. Shredded paper can be newsprint, packing paper, paper bags, xerographic copy paper, computer printouts and several others. The paper to stay away from is glossy paper such as magazines. The ink used on glossy paper often has a petroleum base and wouldn't be too good. Wet the bedding until it is damp, but not soaking wet. If you can squeeze water from a handful it's too wet.

Add the worms, about 1000 for a 10 gallon bin, and you are ready to start adding your vegetable waste. Almost any type of vegetable, fruit, melon rinds, coffee grinds, etc. is O.K.. Go easy on citrus fruit because of the acid. The preferred way to add food is to chop the waste material until it is fine, if it is blended until it is pulverized that's better. Make a trough at one end of the bin and add the waste and cover with bedding. In a day or two, add waste to the other end in the same manner, Alternate between ends as the worms eat the food and continue until the bin is full. At some point in time the bedding may become too wet because of the moisture in the food you are feeding the worms. If this happens, add some dry material to absorb the excess moisture.

When the bin is full and you are ready to use your compost, there are a couple of ways to do this. The easy way is to put food at one end of the bin and wait a day or two. Most of the worms will come to end that has the food. Take about 3/4 of the compost from the other end and spread the remaining 1/4 in the bin and you are ready to start over. There will be a few worms in the removed material but don't worry about them, there will be plenty left in the bin. Another way to harvest the worms if you want to use all the compost and start with new bedding material is to make small piles on a flat well-lit surface and wait about 1/2 hour and rake the compost off the top of the pile down to where the worms are, then wait again and repeat the process. After doing this about 3 times you will have removed the compost and all that is left is a ball of worms at the bottom of the pile.

This has been a brief description of how to use redworms for composting. Hope it is of some help.

Good luck!