• Worms speed up the process of composting.b?ache image by Claudio Calcagno from Fotolia.com
  
  Composting is an effective way to dispose of organic household waste and to build up soil and gardens in the process. Worm composting accelerates the process of composting by employing worms to digest and aerate the soil. The primary advantage of worm composting over standard composting is that is can be done indoors and year-round in any climate.
  
  

Amounts

• The amount of food waste that you compost needs to be in proportion to the number of worms that you have. Too much food waste will rot because the worms can't eat it all. Too little, and the worms won't receive the sustenance they need. A good rule of thumb is to provide one pound of food waste per day for every two pounds of worms, or approximately 2,000 worms. As your worm population increases, you can give them increasing amounts of food waste.
  
  

Ingredients

• The best things for worms to eat include peels from vegetables and fruit, such as potatoes, apples and carrots. You can also add cores, pits and other parts. Do not include hard portions, such as peach pits, because they take too long to break down. Keep your worms healthy and organic by feeding them only organic scraps. Avoid meat scraps and dairy products, as these cause problems with odors and can attract flies and other pests.
  
  

Containers

• Keep worms in commercial plastic worm boxes, homemade wooden boxes, or repurposed containers, such as old dresser drawers. Drill holes in the bottom and place a waterproof tray under the container to prevent the compost from becoming too wet. Containers should have 8 to 12 inches of bedding material in them for maximum effectiveness.
  
  

Completion

• Compost is worm waste. It is made up of what is left after the worms have consumed and digested the food waste. Once a box is entirely full of completed compost, the worms need to be moved and provided with fresh food or they will die. You can do this by separating the compost and removing the worms by hand, but there is an easier way. When the compost is finished, push it all to one side of the container, opening up about half the space. Fill the new space with fresh bedding and food waste, allowing it to press against the old compost. Over a period of time, all the worms will migrate over to the fresh source of food. You can then remove the completed compost and put it on your garden or store it for future use.