Worm Special

500 worms - R185

1000 worms - R350

2000 worms - R700

1kg worms - R1300

500+ worms with each worm farm purchased.

Please Contact us to place your order.

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Q: Why should we recycle Organic Waste?

In a society that produces more and more waste, and that contaminates the Earth, through the use of fertilizers which are largely chemically based and destroys the Earths protecting Ozone Layer, through the production of harmful Greenhouse gases, produced on Landfills with millions of tons of compressed and rotting organic waste products, there is a need to actively help to reverse or at least reduce the load the Earth and the environment have to take. This development has successfully been implemented in Western Europe, Australia and the US and is slowly getting introduced into South Africa. One of the best ways to reduce pollution of our Drinking water and to reduce the production of harmful Greenhouse Gases is to recycle organic waste products with the help of Earth worms!

This process is called Vermiculture or Vermicomposting!

Q: What is Vermi Composting?

Vermicomposting is the recycling of Organic Waste Products with the help of a special kind of Worms. These worms can eat half their weight a day and can turn organic waste into natural, hygienic and odorless castings which can be used to fertilize and recondition the soil. The Vermicompost never needs to be turned, never fills up and provides a constant supply of nutrient rich vermicast for your garden.

Vermiculture usually happens in Worm bins, which are designed to suit the needs of the Compost worms.

Q: Where can I get a Worm Bin?

You can either build a Worm bin yourself or buy one of the excellent Worm Bins from our Range at "Organic Solutions".

Q: Can I use my Worm Bin Indoors or Outdoors?

You can place your Worm Bin indoors as well as outdoors. The process is odorless and the worm bin doesn't take up lots of space. It can be placed underneath a kitchen sink, in a small corner in the garage or anywhere in your back yard, your balcony or garden. So you can compost even if you don't have a lot of space. "Protect your worms from extreme temperatures. Red Worms can handle anything from "5 to 30 degrees Celsius" but prefer the temperatures to be moderate.

Q: What kind of worms do I need?

The best worms for the recycling of organic waste are Red worms ( Eisenia Fetida), they thrive in a organically rich environment are hardy creatures and can eat half their body weight per day in captivity.

Q: Where can I purchase Red Worms?

You can order them right here on our Website, purchase worms from our outlets in Cape Town or receive them for free when you purchase one of our Worm bins.

Q: How many worms will I need?

It depends on the amount of organic waste you want to recycle. 1 kg of worms (app 4000) will be able to eat 1 pound of organic waste per day. The worms are prolific breeders and will multiply quickly. So even if you start with a small population you will be able to increase your recycling amounts in no time.

Q: How do I prepare the bin for the worms?

You should prepare some soaked and shredded newspapers, paper towels or peat moss for the worms. Add a few handfuls of sand or topsoil to the bedding and fill the bottom of the bin with app. 8cm of the bedding. Add your worms to the bin. The worms will crawl down into the bedding. Now you can add a thin layer (5cm) of food on top of the bedding and cover it with a wet piece of Hessian Cloth or a soaked newspaper and close the bin with the lid. The worms will start eating the food. Check the bin once a week. Once the food is consumed slowly increase the feeding as the worms multiply.

Q: What do I feed the worms?

Red Worms spend most of their time eating. They love to eat nearly anything that has ever been alive and is now dead, lots of things we wouldn't even like to touch. They enjoy potato peelings, carrots, lettuce, cabbage, celery, apple peelings, banana peels, cornmeal, oatmeal, crushed eggshells, coffee grounds with the filter, tea bags. Tea leaves, rotten and mouldy Veggies, fruits, old bread, leftover meals, pet droppings, newspaper, cardboard boxes, dog hair, grass clippings, sugar, ... etc.

Chopping these foods up will make it easier for the worms to eat, but is not essential. You might want to keep a plastic container in your refrigerator to hold food scraps so they will be nice and fresh for them. Don't let them rot and become smelly but if they are the Worms will still eat them. (Worms dislike, hot spices, Vinegar, Citrus Fruits or their peelings, Oils, Dairy Products and Meat! If you want to feed them any of these, only do so in very small quantities )

Q: Will the Worm bin produce bad odours?

A correctly managed worm bin will produce no bad odors. The contents will smell like fresh Forest Soil.

Q: How moist has the contents of the bin to be?

The Worms are breathing through their skin and need the contents of the bin to be moist at all times. The ideal moisture level is between 80 and 90%. Take a handful of bedding and squeeze it. 1 or 2 drops of liquid dripping down will be perfect a little more or less will still be ok.

Q: How do I harvest the Worm castings and the Worm Tea?

It depends on the type of Worm Bin you use. If you use a Single bin you will be able to start harvesting Worm castings as early as 4 month after you started the bin. Place an empty bucket next to your worm bin, remove the top 15 cm of food and bedding containing most of your worms from the bin and deposit into your bucket. Now you can remove the Worm Castings from your bin, place fresh bedding as described above and add the contents of your bucket to the bin.

If you want an easier way than purchase one of our Tower Systems. The basic Towers consist of 3 Bins. 2 Working bins and one for the collection of the Worm Tea / liquid Castings. All Towers can be upgraded with additional Working Bins. Start up the bin that is in the middle of the system as described above. Continue to feed your worms and slowly build up the volume inside the bin. Once the bin is full, you start placing food in the bin above and the worms will follow the food supply upwards. When your top Bin is half full nearly all your worms will have left the middle bin and will be living in the top bin. Now you can empty the pure Worm castings of your middle bin and place the empty bin on top of your tower system. This way you constantly rotate the top 2 working bins of your Tower. You will never have to remove the worms or food.

All Worm bins in our range have a tap at the bottom that will enable you to harvest Worm Tea ( Liquid Worm Castings) as early as 2 weeks after you started your Bin.

Q: What if the worms try to escape?

If the contents of the bin is to wet, drain the Bin and add dry bedding. If the contents of the bin is to dry, ( ants in the bin are a sure sign), add some moisture to the bedding.

Q: What if the Bin starts to smell bad?

If the Bin doesn't get enough air, take off the lid for some time and aerate the Bin. If the Bin is to wet, drain the Bin and add dry bedding. If the bin contains to much food, aerate the bin regularly and stop feeding for 2 to 3 weeks.

Q: What if the Bin attracts Flies and Fruit Flies?

Bury the food in the Bedding or cover the Surface of the Bin with a wet Newspaper or a piece of wet Hessian Cloth.