DIY Worm Tower

This blog was first written on 3/4/2016 and featured on CBS|KCAL News the same year.  Though the information is the same, there's a easier way to simply buying a RootQuencher (yes, the same one for watering plants) as it already has holes in it, it's more than 20" long plus it has a cap! 

5 Benefits of Worms

On top of that it can be used for it's original purpose of watering plants.  Let's see what I wrote a long time ago......Worm castings are an organic form of fertilizer produced from earthworms.  Worm castings (AKA. worm poo) is the most nutritious all natural fertilizers that can be used in the garden.  The best part is, a little goes a long way.  As a matter of fact, a tablespoon of castings can feed a 6" potted plant for up to two months.

1. Balances soil pH which allows plants to absorb nutrients from the soil.
2. Increases water retention in the soil which in turn helps plants stay more consistently watered.
3. Earthworm castings have over 60 micronutrients and trace minerals, including calcium, magnesium, nitrogen, phosphates and potash.
4. The humus in the castings extracts toxins and harmful fungi and bacteria from the soil.
5. Boots the overall health of the plant.  Just like with humans, a healthy plant fights off diseases better.

Worm casting look a lot like regular soil.

Turn kitchen scraps into nutrient rich fertilizer, for free
​with A DIY worm tower!

​Worm castings cost a lot of money at the store because they're packed with so many essential nutrients that plants need.  This is how we built a simple worm tower with a few inexpensive things that you can find at your local hardware store, this way we can make our own consistent source of worm castings.  

DIY worm Tower - How It's Made!

Step 1 - Choose a Pipe

Materials:
1.  4 in. x 10 ft. 2 Hole Triplewall Pipe $20 buy online
2. 4 in. Styrene Drain Cap in White $3 buy online
3. 3/4" or 1" Drill bit and a drill, of course $10
4. Shovel or auger

Project total cost: $33+/-
Wow, that's not bad for an unlimited supply of worm castings!

Pipe

Cap

Drill bit

Auger or shovel

Step 2 - Drill more holes in the pipe

Cut your pipe to 3-5 feet long.  ​The taller you leave the pipe, the easier it will be to access after it's installed.
Make sure you buy the "hole" triplewall pipe because it already has half the holes drilled for you.  Drill more holes on the opposite sides of the pipe along the entire length.  This will allow more access for the worms and invite them in.

Step 3 - Dig A Hole

Use your shovel or auger to dig a hole at lease 2 feet deep and wide enough to fit your pipe down into.  We use an auger because we do a lot of planting and it's easy to use and attaches to the end of any drill and powers through the soil as if it's were snow. It's a great one time investment if you're an avid gardener.

The idea is that you'll feed your worm tower on a daily basis so we recommend that you install it somewhere easily accessible like in a planter bed or somewhere near your vegetable garden.

Step 4 - Set the pipe

Simply slide it into the hole that you dug and pack the dirt in around the pipe so that it stays up nice and straight.  There doesn't need to be any more than a foot or two of pipe left sticking out of the ground when you're done, again, depending on your preference.  

Step 5- Add Worms!

You have 2 options:

1. Buy earthworms at your local garden center or nursery and add them to the worm tower just like the picture on the left.

2. Start adding kitchen scraps to the worm tower and wait for worms to come.  Be patient, they'll eventually come.

Maintenance Instructions

What do I feed my worms?

Tips:
*Simply drop in food scraps through the top of the worm tower.
*Smaller food scraps get eaten quicker.
*Worms can eat up to half their weight in food per day.
*Keep it covered at all times to detour critters.
*Make sure it stays moist because if it dries out then "bye-bye worms."

This is a rootquencher. 
Use it for a quick and easy installation!

After 2 Months

Keeping it moist