worm-trench method

description coming soon...

since i read the humanure handbook and built the passive pile at green string farm i have been advocating that method everywhere i go. there are other methods though that have their good points. one method i have never seen executed so well is the 'worm trench' method i got the chance to learn about from ken while staying at the dharma house.

the tools used in this method are the pitch fork and the hard rake. when one learns to wield these tools with skill, the work of making each deposit and harvesting compost can be a pleasurable workout rather than backbreaking labor. ken was very graceful and obviously experienced, and i felt awkward as i followed his instruction and finished the task.

the trench is dug into the ground two-three feet and this one was about eight feet long. ken said it would be better if it were a little longer to increase the capacity. food scraps and bedding material (carbon, usually in the form of leaves and small sticks) is added at the left, then progressively shifted to the right until it ends up finished at the other end. i believe the worms deserve the credit for most of the work in this system, unlike in a thermophilic pile, where bacteria, fungi, and other soil organisms play major roles. but this belief may be inaccurate.

what struck me profoundly as i watched ken's demonstration of technique, was that gravity is utilized in this method to sift the compost as it is being shifted along the trench. the hard rake is used to pull more coarse materials up and onto the ground next to the tranch while the finer particles stay in the trench. it takes some practice to use this technique most efficiently, but it is pretty straightforward.