exploration in vermiculture

i hate our compost bin. it's basically a wire cage with no front where we deposit kitchen trash for the neighbors dogs to pilfer. the chickens and ducks get the good bits, but we don't feed them eggshells so as not to encourage egg cannibalism. i could move the thing into a 55 gallon blue barrel, but that's not a particularly efficient strategy, with water and air stealing my nutrients. what's plan b? a worm bin! after reading "worms eat my garbage" and doing some internet research i've decided on a vertical style bin. i haven't decided if i'm going to spend $4 on tubs at the dollar store, or build one out of wood scraps laying around the farm. my carpentry skills are shit, and i'd like to take pictures of this thing, but i'm trying to avoid supporting 3rd world slavery and mnc's. i think i just made my decision. i'm probably going to get some red wigglers from the bait shop down the road. the book says 8 worms can reproduce to 1500 in a year, so i'm okay with starting with a small quantity.

how do you use worm castings?

you can sprinkle them around the top of plants and let water take the nutrients to the roots (good for potted plants). you can sprinkle around the plant and incorporate the castings into the top layer of soil (good for in ground plants. you can use it as part of the compost component in your potting soil mixes. i intend to add it to my aquaponic system for nutrient and mineral support for my fruiting plants. more on aquaponics later.