VIDEO: Worming Away Your Food Waste
New Yorkers are used to fitting a lot into some very tight spaces. Some green-thumbed residents are even finding room in their kitchens for a pound or two of red wriggler worms to act as live garbage disposals. The worms (kept securely in a box, don’t worry) feast on fruit peels, vegetable tops, old newspapers, eggshells, and other compostable waste. As a result of the worms’ hearty appetites, their human keepers are throwing out a lot less trash, at a time when food waste has become a growing problem.
See also: How to Wage War on Food Waste
Jenny Shalant is a multimedia journalist and web editor at the Wildlife Conservation Society, based at the Bronx Zoo. She received a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where she covered the environment for Upt... READ MORE >
COMMENTS (12)
comment on this article
join the community
sign in
Please provide a full list of places where a new yorker can go with food waste. why isnt every community garden in NYC set up to serve as a compost center?? They should be mandated. As far as I know there is nothing in all of Manhatten except a booth - farmer on Union Square, on Saturdays. One place for all of Manhattan. Anything Uptown- and if not - why not? and how to convince Coops that you could have a compost bin in the building's garden without rats and such if there is no meat added. Isnt that true? Can we have a composting center in every basement - or building garden?
Look forward to your response, articles, and thanks for this report.
i am totally into recycling, BUT, got VERY SICK FROM MOLD (in the plumbing wall) i must warn that composting should be done in a well ventilated area. i'm in Hawaii and have to remember to hold my breath when opening the bin. even though, vegetablb mold is not as dangerous at Black Mold (stachybotris). RATS eat anything, so you need wire to keep them out. BEST would be sure restaurants are composting and using their oil for fuel. Coffee grounds are a wonderful source of "waste" that doesn't have to be composted. doggie poo is a super source of nutrients that worms love. cover with grass cuttings so flies don't breed. just think like a worm, folks. Socrates said they are the intestines of the earth. Worms do 12 miraculous things for gardens. antibiotic, etc. aloha.
Here is a compost map of NYC below. I personally think that finger-pointing at lack of compost collection shouldn't go to the volunteers that run community gardens, but that policy and infrastructure need to change in NYC so that we have curb-side compostable pick-up for leaves and food scraps just like San Francisco and what NYC already does with recycling.
http://greenapplemap.org/page/compost
Also, I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND putting in dog or cat excrement in your worm bin as they typically eat meat and the bacteria from that is found in the excrement. Your home bin does not reach a high enough temperature to make this a safe component of your indoor home worm bin. However, if you choose to do this anyway, DO NOT use this compost to grow anything that you might eat.
Here's more on how to compost at home both indoors and outdoors.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/nycwasteless/html/compost/edu.shtml
Thanks for watching! I appreciate your comments.
-Helen Ho
Master Composter
Does Ms Ho have a webpage describing her techniques for kitchen composting??? If not it is sorely needed!
Hi Glynn,
Check out this website: http://jaynesbazaar.com/
I took a class in worm farming a couple of summers ago, and decided to try it in my home in CO at 9000 ft where it can get very cold outside. I first tried the plastic garbage can method, but it became too cumbersome after a couple of weeks and heavy kitchen wastes. Then I ordered Jayne's wonderful worm farm. I've been composting in the WF ever since and have made some great soil. A couple of tips. I don't put banana peals in it, because they have a lot of pesticides which I don't want the worms to eat or to put in my garden. I also don't put citrus peals in it, because they attract white flies. Crushed egg shells, lint, shredded black and white newsprint (paper and junk mail), shredded toilet paper rolls, hair, (the list is endless) are fair game. The worm tea that comes out of the spigot is also great fertilizer. I have left my farm unattended for up to 2 months without a problem. I just leave a large bowl under the drain to catch the "worm tea". Amazingly, it doesn't smell.
If you do decide to order from Jayne, please tell her that I sent you.
Thanks so much, Marty 8-)
Glynn, It's me again. Actually Jayne calls it a Worm Factory, and it is the 4th headline on the right on her website: http://jaynesbazaar.com/ The videos are helpful as well. You can also research where to order your red wrigglers via Google. I started with 1 # and have shared them with others after they multiplied.
Marty Tod
Hi folks,
Helen here, educator from this video. Here is the website I would refer everyone to for more composting information. You can get a fancy bin as in the previous post, but a regular old bin that you can find anywhere will do just as well too.
http://www.queensbotanical.org/education/56847/composting
Remember that your worms are vegan raw foodists! But just like people, they are picky eaters and have some exceptions to their diet:
Okay for red wiggler worms:
Egg Shells - No other dairy is allowed unless you are priming yourself for an unpleasant science experiment. In a home bin, heat does not reach high enough temperatures to kill off bad bacteria from dairy and meat.
Not okay for red wiggler worms:
Citrus like lemons and oranges, including peels - These are okay for outdoor bins but too acidic for worm bins.
I will re-post this in the proper section but here is a compost map of NYC below. I personally think that finger-pointing at lack of compost collection shouldn't go to the volunteers that run community gardens, but that policy and infrastructure need to change in NYC so that we have curb-side compostable pick-up for leaves and food scraps just like San Francisco and what NYC already does with recycling.
http://greenapplemap.org/page/compost
Thanks for watching! I appreciate your comments.
-Helen Ho
Master Composter
I meant to post this link as the compost resource link. It is more direct:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/nycwasteless/html/compost/edu.shtml
-Helen
Hi all,
Thanks for the great feedback! I'm just back from a week in Italy, where municipal composting bins abounded in the agricultural region of Tuscany -- very inspiring. Helen provided some great feedback for New Yorkers looking for more information on vermicomposting. As for the question of drop-off locations, many community gardens and urban farms have their own compost facilities. From my own experience, gardeners are generally willing to accept donations from members of their community, as long as you adhere to the rules of what may/may not be included, and arrange a time to stop by in advance.
Jenny
Hi Helen Ho !!
I just kind of confuse... The video about worming away food way is a organization or just a idea of that. Since I am doing my research about non profit organizations but I just realize that your subject does not look like a organization. If there is any, may you tell me more about that . Thanks a lot !!!