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bags and coffee grounds. To
avoid potential rodent problems
do not compost meats, dairy pro-
ducts, oily foods or grains.
Bury the food waste by pulling
aside some of the bedding, dump-
_ ing the waste, and then covering it
up with! the bedding again. Bury
successive loads in different loca-
tions in the bin.

Harvesting your compost

After 24% months have - passed
there should be little or no origi-
na! bedding visible in the bin and
the contents will be brown and
earthy-looking worm casings.

It is time to remove some of the
finished compost. _

The quickest meihod is to sim-
ply move the finished compost
over to one side of the bin, place
new bedding in the space created,
and put food: waste in the new
bedding. ‘

The worms will gradually move
over and the finished compost can
be skimmed off as needed.

If you want to use all of the
compost at once, dump the eniire
contents of the bin onto a large
plastic sheet and separate the
worms manually.

Most children love to help!

Watch out for the tiny, lemon-
shaped worm cocoons which can
contain up to 20 baby worms.

Mix..a little of the finished
compost in with the new bedding
of the next bin.

Use your finished compost as
soil conditioner for houseplants,
gardens or lawns.

Common problems
‘Unpleasant. odors may waft

from your ‘bin. when it is
overloaded with food waste.

If this occurs, gently stir up the
entire contents to allow more air
in.

Stop adding food waste until
the worms and micro-organisms
have broken down what food is in
the bin.

Check the drainage holes to
make sure they are not blocked
and drill more holes if needed.

If the moisture level seems
tight, the bedding may be too
acidic due to a lot of citrus peels
and other acidic foods.

Adjust by adding a little lime
and cutting down on acidic
wastes.

Discourage fruit Mies by always
burying the food wastes and not
overloading the bin.

Keep a plastic sheet, piece of
old carpet or sacking on the sur-
face of the compost in the bin.

If flies persist, move the bin to
a location where flies will not be
bothersome.

A final word: taking worms out
of their natural environment and
placing them in containers creates
a human responsibility.

They are living creatures with
their own unique needs, so it is
important to create and. maintain
a healthy habitat for them to do
their work.

If you supply the right ingre-

dients and care, your worms will
thrive and make compost for you.
+. To learn more: ;
© read Worms Eat My Garbage
by Mary Appelhof, Flower Press:
Kalamazoo, 1982 (provides in-
structions for building a worm
bin).
@ visit a compost demonstration
garden in Burnaby, North Van-
couver, Surrey, Vancouver . or
West Vancouver.

® call the Compost Hotline at
736-2250. :

— Courtesy of the Greater Van-
couver Regional District.

Master Gardeners will give free gardening advice to the
public and answer questions from gardening enthusiasts
between 12:00 am-4:00 pm

on the following dates:

Saturday, June 26
Sunday, June 27
Saturday, July 10

Sunday, July 11

Saturday, July 24

Sunday, July 25

Saturday, Aug. 7
Sunday, Aug, 8
Saturday, Aug, 21
Sunday, Aug, 22
Saturday, Sept. 11
Sunday, Sept. 12

PARK & TILFORD GARDENS ARE SPONSORED
BY THE MERCHANTS OF THE .
PARK AND TILFORD SHOPPING CENTRE,
FOR ALL TO ENJOY.

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For further information call

Park & Tilford Gardens
Tel. 984-8200

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