WORM COMPOST EMPOWERMENT TRAINING
2008-06-14 Chehri, Harraya, Mahraganj
Upon the request of two Self Help Groups that we supervised in Chehri, we conducted Worm Compost Empowerment Training, as an income generation alternatives for the women. After training, the women started their own worm compost and now there are 8 places in the village that have started this project.
In coordination of Asian Sahyogi Sanstha India, two self help group named Ganga and Yamuna are running successfully in Chehri, Harraya, Mahrajganj. There are 38 women joined these two groups. Every month they held their monthly meeting and they opened their group account in the Goverment Bank in which they are submitting their collected amount every month. These women are also helping each other economically in some emergency cases like marriages and death.
These women revealed their interest in taking the income generation training of Worm Compost and gave a request letter to the organization. So we decided to arrange a training program for these women and the training has been arranged for these women from 15th to 16th February, 2008. We made a request letter to a social NGO, Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group (GEAG) for providing two resource people for the training and we got two trainers Mr. Sushil Kumar and Mrs. Prabhavati Devi from GEAG.
This training program started at 10:00 am on 15th February. Both the trainers inaugurated this program with lightening the lamp and then the local women presented their tow cultural songs one by one in front of the trainers. These trainers appreciated their song. Mrs. Prabhavati Devi (Trainer) also sings a song focusing on the unity of women in the villages. She also explained about herself that how she is doing the worm composting at her house and getting benefit due to this.
1. What is worm composting?
Worm composting is using worms to recycle food scraps and other organic material into a valuable soil amendment called vermicompost or worm compost. Worms eat food scraps, which become compost as they pass through the worm's body. Compost exits the worm through its' tail end. This compost can then be used to grow plants. To understand why vermicompost is good for plants, remember that the worms are eating nutrient-rich fruit and vegetable scraps, and turning them into nutrient-rich compost.
2. What are the materials needed?
For millions of years, worms have been hard at work breaking down organic materials and returning nutrients to the soil. Though worms could eat any organic material, certain foods are better for the worm bin.
We recommend using only raw fruit and vegetable scraps. Stay away from meats, oils and dairy products, which are more complex materials than fruits and vegetables. Thus, they take longer to break down and can attract pests. Cooked foods are often oily or buttery, which can also attract pests.
Avoid orange rinds and other citrus fruits, which are too acidic, and can attract fruit flies. Try to use a variety of materials. We have found the more vegetable matter, the better the worm bin. Stay away from onions and broccoli which tend to have a strong odor.
3. How to set-up a worm bin?
Setting up a worm bin is easy. All you need is a box, cow-dung and worms. To figure out how to set up a worm bin, first consider what worms need to live. If your bin provides what worms need, then it will be successful. Worms need moisture, air, food, darkness, and warm (but not hot) temperatures.
When choosing a container in which to compost with worms, you should keep in mind the amount of food scraps you wish to compost, and where the bin will be located. A good size bin for the classroom is a 5- to 10- gallon box or approximately 24" X 18" X 8". The box should be shallow rather than deep, as red wigglers are surface-dwellers and prefer to live in the top 6" of the soil.
4. How to harvest the worm compost?
If you take care of your worms and create a favorable environment for them, they will work tirelessly to eat your "garbage" and produce compost. As time progresses, you will notice less and less bedding and more and more compost in your bin. After 3-5 months, when your bin is filled with compost (and very little bedding), it is time to harvest the bin. Harvesting means removing the finished compost from the bin. After several months, worms need to be separated from their castings which, at high concentrations, create an unhealthy environment for them.
To prepare for harvesting, do not add new food to the bin for two weeks. Then try one of two methods for harvesting:
Over the next 2-3 weeks, the worms will move over to the new side (where the food is), conveniently leaving their compost behind in one section. When this has happened, remove the compost and replace it with fresh bedding. To facilitate worm migration, cover only the new side of the bin, causing the old side to dry out and encouraging the worms to leave the old side.
5. How to use the worm compost?
You can use your compost immediately, or you can store it and use it during the gardening season, or whenever. The compost can be directly mixed with your potting soil or garden soil as a soil amendment, which helps make nutrients available to plants. Or, the compost can be used as a top dressing for your indoor or outdoor plants.
6. Biology of worms
Worms can live for about one year in the worm bin. If a worm dies in your bin, you probably won't notice it. Since the worm's body is about 90% water, it will shrivel up and become part of the compost rather quickly. New worms are born and others die all the time.
Worms are hermaphrodites, which mean they are both male and female at the same time. In order to mate, they still require two worms. The worms line up in opposite directions near their band (or clitella), which contains some of the sexual organs. The worms are attached for about 15 minutes while they exchange sperm cells. Several days later, eggs come in contact with the sperm cells and form a cocoon, or egg case. The cocoon separates from the worm, and then fertilization takes place. Inside the cocoon, 2-5 baby worms may be found.