Worm Composting in Santa Cruz County

Let worms eat your garbage! They will happily turn it into some of the best fertilizer on earth—worm compost, otherwise known as worm castings or vermicompost.

Vermicom­posting is a fascinating, fun and easy way to recycle your food scraps. A worm bin requires very little work, produces no offensive odors and provides worm castings that help plants thrive.  Composting with worms saves money on garbage bills, improves the fertility and water-holding capacity of garden soil, benefits the environment by recycling valuable organic materials, and helps solve the crisis of over-flowing landfills.

The four basic steps to worm composting are: Getting Started, Feeding Your Worms, Maintaining a Worm Bin, Harvesting Worm Compost.

If worm boxes don't thrill you, don't despair! There are other great ways to recycle food waste described in these PDF downloads: Homemade Food Scrap Composter and Burying Food Scraps. 

Have More Questions?  Contact the Worm Doctor!

Recycling and Solid Waste Services

County of Santa Cruz Public Works Department Phone: (831) 454-2160 Email