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Summer 2009

Vol. 2, Issue 3

Headline of the month:

"Incase of Strike, Use Composter"

Toronto Star June 09

Cathy's Crawly Composters
Winner of the:

Bradford Board of Trade
2009 Award for
Social and Ecological Responsibility

Canada Health Infoway Inc.

Cathy: I just wanted to let you know how incredibly well your session today went over. The staff are still talking it up with others that couldn't or didn’t attend. We were all swept away by your passion and dedication and your amazing humour.

Thanks so much for coming to visit us and educating us on this valuable topic. I have already watched your DVD and was yet again finding myself smiling and falling in love with the little critters.

Keep up the great work!!! Warm regards,
Mary

Looking for funding so you can setup a vermicomposting system in your school?

You may want to try one of the following opportunities:

• Earth Day Canada (EDC) Community Environment Fund, in partnership with Sobeys, provides financial grants of up to $20 000 to support local environmental initiatives and projects in Ontario.
• Toyota Evergreen Learning Grounds helps schools create outdoor classrooms to provide students with a healthy place to play, learn and develop a genuine respect for nature.
• The purpose of the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation is to support worthwhile community based environmental initiatives that make a positive difference to the Canadian Environment.

A Special
Thank You

As part of our efforts to produce as little waste as possible, we often package our worms and worm castings in recycled 2 litre milk and juice cartons.

This month we would like to acknowledge all of our supporters that collect and supply clean used cartons.

We would also like to give a special shout-out to Karen Armstrong and Three-Time International Gold Medalists' The North Metro Chorus (appearing Nov 7 - Hamilton Place).
Their Carton collection efforts have been nothing short of incredible!

To all the people who drop off rinsed cartons,
a heart felt
Thank You.

Your support has helped us to minimize our ecological footprint by using recycled packaging whenever possible.

In gratitude,
Cathy & Rick

Report on NCSU ...
9th Annual Vermiculture Conference

The N.C. State University’s 9th Annual Vermiculture Conference was a huge success this year! The conference ran for 2 days on June 4 & 5 in Raleigh/Durham North Carolina. Close to one hundred participants and presenters attended this year’s conference. People traveled from 17 U.S. states (including Hawaii), Puerto Rico, British Columbia and Ontario.

A wide range of discussion topics were covered this year. Everything from the latest Vermiculture research and practices to modern worm husbandry and mid-scale worm farming.

Read the full report ...
Check out photo gallery ...

Did you Know?
Vermicomposting Q & A

1. What exactly is vermicomposting?
   Vermicomposting is simply composting with specialty worms known as red wigglers. The worms breakdown food scraps into nutrient rich compost.
   
2. Does it smell?
   Vermicomposting is an aerobic process which means with oxygen. A properly managed worm bin will not have an offensive odours. If there is a bad odour, it is an indication that anaerobic conditions are present. Often the result of over feeding the worms. Simply let the worms consume the food prior to adding more scraps. A bad ordour may also occur if the worm bin is too wet. Gently "fluff" the bedding to increase air circulation.
   
3. How much can worms eat?
   Generally speaking, 2 lbs. of red wigglers will recycle 1 lb. of organic matter in 24 hours. Worms can actually consume their own body weight daily - they eat half bedding (carbon) and half food scraps (nitrogen).
   
4. If you cut a worm in half, what really happens?
   If you cut a worm in half, you have a dead worm in two pieces. Worms have 5 hearts located close to the head. If they are cut in half blood cannot get to rest of the body.
   
5. How long do worms live?
   Worms can live up to 10 years! However, in the wild where there are many predators the average life span for a worm is 1 - 2 years.
   

In the News
For all the wormy news please visit our website.

Print

• Vermicomposting: Making Black Gold
  What does Vermicomposting mean? It is the practice of turning your kitchen scraps into compost with the help of worms. Yes, worms, little Red Wigglers to be exact. Sounds gross?, not as gross as a plastic garbage bag filled with organic scraps just sitting in the dump, fermenting, filling up valuable land space and being preserved forever in the landfill. Now that is wasteful. There is nothing gross about these little critters. Composting with specialty worms is a clean and environmentally friendly way to save tonnes of waste from going to landfill.
  Read more ...

• Getting over the ick factor
  What do Charles Darwin, Cleopatra and Aristotle have in common? They all revered the lowly earthworm for its contribution to the health of our planet. But not everyone shares the love.
  Read more ...

Television

• Cathy talks to Jacqueline and Jeff about drink trays and Compost Awareness Week. Daytime (York Region) What can we do with all those drink trays we get from the coffee shop?
  To see the full interview ... follow this link

For all the wormy news please visit our website.

Upcoming Events
For a full listing of all events please visit our website.

For a full listing of all events please visit our website.

Creating business opportunities for persons with intellectual disabilities

Common Ground Cooperative Inc.

To find out more, follow this link.

Preview of our next newsletter ...

Attention Educators Look for our Back to school Vermi-Ed contest. This could be the chance for your school to win their very own Worm Chalet. Worms in the classroom offer a tremendous learning opportunity. Coffee Shed Harvest Party Find out what happens at a worm harvest party. See the photos, meet the harvesters.

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Cathy's Crawly Composters

Bradford, Ontario
Local: (905) 775-9495
Toll Free: 1-888-775-9495
email us at: cathy@cathyscomposters.com

To find out more about Cathy's Crawly Composters visit our website: www.cathyscomposters.com

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