27/05/2026
Our two master composters Mary and Angela had a great morning at Scoil Naomh Maodhóg Scoil showing the Green Schools Committee how to set up the new wormery and how to compost with worms. A wormery teaches kids real sustainability — turning waste into nutrient-rich compost for school gardens.
If you’d like to follow along here’s what the children done in the hands-on wormery workshop!
Making the bedding
Worms need a dark, damp, fluffy home. Torn egg cartons, shredded paper, autumn leaves were soaked in water, the excess water was then squeezed out until it felt like a damp sponge. A thin layer of topsoil was scattered over the bottom of the wormery. Then the damp bedding was added and mixed well so there was no clumps.
Miss Higgins arrived with half a kilo of Tiger Worms. Tiger worms love “unavoidable” food waste. Fruit peels, veg scraps, apple cores, banana skins, coffee grounds, teabags, crushed eggshells are just some of the unavoidable food waste that they love.
Tiger worms don’t like meat, dairy, oily foods, citrus, onions, garlic, or spicy food.
After checking out the wriggly new residents the children placed them into the wormery. Within minutes they disappeared into the new bedding. The children made a shallow trench and added small pieces of food, then covered it over with bedding. They will rotate where they feed each time so worms move around to make compost.
Worms hate light. The bedding was covered with newspaper and the lid closed. The wormery is in an ideal shady area in the vegetable garden where it will be protected from the sun and freezing temperatures.
Top tips for success if you’re planning on making a wormery.
Worms eat about half their weight per day. Don’t overfeed — it causes smells.
No smells = happy worms: A healthy wormery smells like forest soil.
Chop it up: Smaller food scraps break down faster.
Keep it balanced: Too much food or water = problems. Too dry = worms leave.
