Of Worms, Oysters*, Home Brew, Birch Beer

I compost my food with worms, which I then feed to my pet box turtle. This week I got an invitation to post my worm bin on the map of vermicomposters around the world.  Haven’t added a picture yet, but there are some good ones on there, like this one: http://flickr.com/photos/robindegrassi/2042100224/

If you compost with worms, check out these links: add yourself to the Vermicomposters.com map or join the Vermicomposters.com Ning ! These sites will also take you to more information on composting with worms… there’s a lot out there.

Right now I am composting with a species of worm that isn’t a very efficient composter. I’m not sure what species it is, but it is not the Eisenia fetida that is commonly used for composting. The worms are much larger, and they don’t reach the high densities that the E. fetida can achieve. We’ve also been having a problem with fruit flies in our bin (and in our house). The worm bin got moved to the porch, I recently split it into two bins, and now they are both sitting next to the bucket of Starbucks (R) coffee grounds that serve as growth media for Oyster* Mushrooms (currently on their third crop)! The Oyster mushrooms came from spores and media from Fungi Perfecti. We got an enokitake kit from them that sprouted a lovely crop in December.

This weekend I’ll be picking up home brew from my friends house. Steam Beer! The kit came from Karp’s Home Brew.

Also, I am thinking about making Birch/Sassafras Beer. I’m looking at recipes from the usual suspect: Stalking the Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons. Do you have a birch beer recipe to share? Leave a comment!