Barrel Composter and worms?

by Charles

Hi Worm Lady

I have a rolling barrel composter in my backyard. Can I just add worms to it? And then when I use the soil, pull the worms out and toss them back in the composter?
I'm new at this. I got some good soil last year, but thought that worms would help
speed up this process.
Thanks
Charles

answer from Liz the "worm lady"
Adding worms to most bins will indeed result in faster decomposition of materials. However, I am hesitant to recommend worms to a tumbler because of two reasons:

1. I am not sure how much airflow gets to the bin and worms do not like an anearobic (no oxygen) environment and

2. I do not know how they would hold up when being "tumbled", seems like they might get smushed. I surely would not put a whole pound in there, you might try experimenting with a small amount of red wigglers borrowed from a fellow gardener. Or go find some in a local manure pile but I would not invest the $25 for a pound to have them die in the tumbler.

I hope this answers your question. If you do give them a shot, please let me know what your results are so I can learn from you.