How to Build a Wormery

A wormery can be fun to make and watch. Plus, you can feed the worms your kitchen and garden waste! A small wormery, such as in a jar, is an educational project you can work on with kids. A big wormery, like a bin with 100 or more worms, is a way for gardeners to make large amounts of fertilizer, called vermicompost. Whichever size wormery you choose, you will need to maintain it by keeping it moist and feeding the worms regularly. Worms like a variety of decomposable food like fruit and vegetables. Here are some tips for preparing a container, collecting worms, and keeping an ideal environment for them.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Creating a Small Wormery

1
Get a container. Various types of containers will work, as long as there is proper ventilation. If you want a container you can observe well, use a large, clean glass jar or other clear container. Poke some holes into the lid, or cover the top of the jar with a fine mesh fabric secured with a rubber band.^{[1]XResearch source}
- Your container should be ready before you get the worms, because worms shouldn’t be exposed to the light for long. You’ll want their moist, dark home ready for them when you collect them.
2
Create layers for the wormery. Put one centimeter of sand in the bottom of your container. Add a thick layer of damp soil, and another centimeter of sand on top of that. Then fill the jar with moist soil up to five centimeters from the top of the container. In a separate container, prepare the top layer you will put on top of the worms once you have them.^{[2]XResearch source}
- The topmost layer can include pieces of overripe fruit (such as grapes), vegetable peels and leaves (from trees and/or tea).
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3
Collect worms. You can search for or buy earthworms or tiger worms (redworms). Places you can catch worms are compost piles, gardens, or under rocks or leaf piles. Check the grass, sidewalk or driveway after a lot of rain. If you can’t find worms yourself, you can buy them at a local tackle shop.^{[3]XResearch source}
- Keep your hands moist when handling worms.
- Place the worms right onto the topmost (food) layer in the container.
4
Put the container away. Store the container in a cool, dark place such as a cupboard.^{[4]XResearch source} Put thought into where you keep your wormery. Worms like a place without vibrations. Wrap the container with black paper and secure it with string or a rubber band. Put on the ventilated lid.
- For example, don’t keep your wormery near a furnace, speaker, refrigerator or dishwasher.
- If you’re keeping the container outside, choose a garage or shed, and wrap the container in bubble wrap as insulation, without covering the ventilated lid.
If you used a clear container for observation, such as a jar, after a couple of weeks you can examine how the worms have taken to their new environment. They have likely made patterns in the soil and processed the food you gave them.^{[5]XResearch source}
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Building a Larger Wormery

1
Prepare a container. For a large wormery, you can use a plastic bin or garbage can with drainage holes drilled in, covered by recycled wood from old pallets. You can use many different types of containers to house worms and even layers of containers separated by wire mesh, as long as the top of your wormery has holes for ventilation. Large wormeries should also have preparations made for drainage.
- Another option for a large wormery is to use three old tires, weld mesh, and plywood or hardwood. Create a flat base with bricks or paving slabs, topped with a thick layer of newspaper. Cut the wire mesh into three circles with wire cutters, so that each circle fits over a tire rim. You can secure it to the tire with garden ties. Cover the top with a board weighed down with bricks.^{[6]XResearch source}
- Keep stones or gravel in a layer at the bottom of the container. Put a sheet of cardboard over the gravel and a layer of shredded newspaper over that to prevent the worms from falling through. Add drainage holes in the bottom of your container. Check the drainage holes occasionally to make sure they are clear.^{[7]XResearch source}
2
Prepare the layers for a wormery. Fill the bottom of the container with eight to ten centimeters of gravel or coarse sand. On top of that, put a circle of polythene or wood with drainage holes. Add seven to eight centimeters of damp material like compost manure or leaf litter. Add worms to the bedding. Put a layer of moist newspaper on the top or side. Add kitchen waste to the top layer.
- Prepare a moist, degradable blanket for the top layer of old newspapers. Worms also like moist, torn cardboard.^{[8]XResearch source}
- If your wormery has stacked containers, stuff each layer with shredded paper. Put about five centimeters of compost in the bottom layer, along with the worms. Add kitchen waste to the top layer to attract the worms up from below.
3
Gather worms. You can look for or purchase earthworms or tiger worms (redworms) for your wormery. Places you can find worms include compost heaps, gardens, or underneath rocks or leaf litter. Try checking the grass or driveway after a heavy rain. If you can’t find worms, you can buy them at a fishing tackle shop.^{[9]XResearch source}
- Keep your hands wet when handling the worms. They breathe through their skin and need to remain moist.
- There are various tricks for catching worms. You can dig in the ground, or pour a water and soap solution on the grass.
4
Put the container in an appropriate environment. Store the container in a cool, dark place such as a shed or garage during cold months. In warmer months, the container can stay in the shed or garage, or be moved to an area with partial shade. Your worms will be the most active if you keep them in an environment between 64 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit (18 to 25 degrees Celsius). Their activity will lessen noticeably if their environment is below 10ºC (50ºF) or above 30ºC (86ºF).^{[10]XTrustworthy SourceRoyal Horticultural SocietyLeading gardening charity in the U.K. providing resources for identifying, growing and caring for flowers and other plantsGo to source}
- If your wormery isn’t staying warm enough in the shed or garage in cold months, you have a couple of options. You can bury your wormery in the ground or snow to protect it from harsh temperatures. Or, you can surround the container with insulating material like polystyrene, thick carpeting, or a clear plastic tarp.^{[11]XResearch source}
- Add a thick layer of hay, straw, grass or dry leaves to the top layer of your wormery during cold weather.
5
Check the acidity if necessary. Composting worms like the pH level of their environment to be between 6.5 and 7.0. You can check soil acidity with a soil test from a garden store if your worm aren’t producing as expected.^{[12]XTrustworthy SourceRoyal Horticultural SocietyLeading gardening charity in the U.K. providing resources for identifying, growing and caring for flowers and other plantsGo to source}
- Add coffee grounds or a small amount of peat moss to increase the acidity.^{[13]XResearch source}
- To decrease acidity, add egg shells and/or turn the bedding weekly.^{[14]XResearch source}
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Maintaining the Wormery

1
Keep their climate ideal. Keep the worms’ environment moist, not wet or dry. Don’t allow it to get cold or too hot. The temperature of your wormery should stay between 55 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit (12.8 to 25 degrees Celsius).
- If the wormery is too wet and starts to smell, take everything out and thoroughly mix it with brown material before returning it to the container.
- If the wormery stays too dry, remove the contents, mix them with some water and green material, and return it to the container.
2
Feed the worms. Feed the worms by adding kitchen waste to the top, such as uncooked fruit, coffee grounds, tea leaves and vegetable peelings.^{[15]XResearch source} Although worms can process just about anything that’s decomposable, there are certain items that aren’t advisable to add. Worms can die from overfeeding, so make sure that you only add waste when the previous waste has been composted. However you should check the container regularly, since they’ll die from not enough food as well. As a rule of thumb, try checking every day or every other day.
- Use a variety of food for your worms rather than the same thing over and over. The pieces you add should be small. If you give them garden waste, do so sparingly (a few annual weeds here and there).
- Don’t give your worms meat, fish, dairy products, seeds, citrus peel, garlic and onions. Also avoid fatty foods like peanut butter or mayonnaise.
Since the wormery needs to be ventilated, the openings give fruit flies a way to get in. Feed your worms by digging a small trench in the wormery and adding the scraps. Then cover the scraps with an inch or so of bedding. This will prevent fruit flies as well as odors.
4
Remove worm castings. About every three months, move the top bedding to the side and add fresh bedding. Wait about two weeks, and the worms will have moved over into the new bedding. You can then scoop out their castings with the old bedding.
- You can work worm castings and their old bedding into your garden as fertilizer.
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Question
Can I use grass cuttings as a layer?
Community Answer
You should be able to, as long as you keep a healthy mix of soil in with the grass clippings.
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Do the worms multiply in a wormery? If so how often could I remove some for fishing?
CremelloHorse
Community Answer
No, they don't multiply. They might breed, and if they do, you can remove some for fishing.
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Tips

Wear gloves when handling soil or compost.^{[16]XResearch source}
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Don't pack in the dirt and sand.
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Processed vermicompost can be stored in sacks in a cool, dry spot.
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Warnings

Always wash your hands thoroughly after dealing with your wormery.
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If you’re using wood pallets, make sure they are free of wood preservatives, since those can harm the worms.
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When adding newspaper, don’t use glossy pages.
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If you neglect your wormery, it will develop an odor.^{[17]XTrustworthy SourceRoyal Horticultural SocietyLeading gardening charity in the U.K. providing resources for identifying, growing and caring for flowers and other plantsGo to source}
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Your container should never be soupy or swampy. The worms could drown, and if the container is outside they may choose to leave.
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Don’t give your worms perennial weeds, diseased plants, or pet feces.^{[18]XResearch source}
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Avoid giving your worms woody plants or brown leaves that would be slow to break down.^{[19]XResearch source}
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