Being thoroughly Chinese, I hate wasting anything (especially food) so we got a RELN “Worm Factory” worm farm from the local council this week, and the worms are settling in fine (I think). I’m very excited to do my bit for the environment, and with the limited space we’ve got, a worm farm seems to be the best solution.

Why did we get a worm farm?

In Australia, over half of the household material that end up at the tip is organic waste, and when it is buried can lead to groundwater contamination and the production of greenhouse gases. This practice is environmentally unsound and also wasteful because through natural processes this organic matter can safely and easily be converted into useful soil-building humus.

One of the best ways gardeners can break down organic matter is to use composting worms to convert food scraps into nutrient-rich, pH neutral worm castings, which produce a high quality soil conditioner.

From the Gardening Australia website.

If you’re thinking about getting one, our worm farm cost about $55 at the local council, in comparison to about $100 retail at nurseries. So I recommend checking with your local council to see if they provide worm farms before buying one at Bunnings or the garden center. The well-designed Worm Factory is made from 100% recycled plastic, and has everything you need to raise your worms in it, including very detailed instructions.

We got our 1000 worms online for $25+$10 shipping from Joe at WormstoWaste who was excellent. You should get at least 1000, or 2000 if you want things to start up quicker.

More links here:

I’ve also written a newer post about my worm farming experience.