Uploaded April 2017 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
We are in the early stages of setting up a vermicomposting system for manure management here on Oxbow Farm. The idea eventually is to have enough composting worms (Esenia fetida) in an established outdoor bed system to be able to process the manure production from our cows on a daily basis.
In the not too distant future I will need to house Star in a yard for the bulk of the day, to prevent him from becoming obese from constant access to pasture and forage. At the level of work I am able to give him, I cannot allow him free range access to pasture without him becoming fat, which will shorten his lifespan.
With an ox held in a yard, daily manure collection is necessary to prevent a mucky disaster from developing in the enclosure. Compost worms seem an ideal solution for a simple and low-tech means of quickly rendering this manure into useable fertilizer/organic matter and preventing the growth of fly larvae etc.
I was pleased and surpised at how well both of the worm beds/bins survived overwintering this past winter, and encouraged by how well the adult worms were able to survive below freezing temperatures.
We are in the early stages of setting up a vermicomposting system for manure management here on Oxbow Farm. The idea eventually is to have enough composting worms (Esenia fetida) in an established outdoor bed system to be able to process the manure production from our cows on a daily basis.
In the not too distant future I will need to house Star in a yard for the bulk of the day, to prevent him from becoming obese from constant access to pasture and forage. At the level of work I am able to give him, I cannot allow him free range access to pasture without him becoming fat, which will shorten his lifespan.
With an ox held in a yard, daily manure collection is necessary to prevent a mucky disaster from developing in the enclosure. Compost worms seem an ideal solution for a simple and low-tech means of quickly rendering this manure into useable fertilizer/organic matter and preventing the growth of fly larvae etc.
I was pleased and surpised at how well both of the worm beds/bins survived overwintering this past winter, and encouraged by how well the adult worms were able to survive below freezing temperatures.
