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juli0o0

starting vermicomposting

juli0o0
12 years ago

After the summer i will begin vermicomposting with the worm factory 360.

I will have a number of plants which i will feed both the compost and the tea, but my main question is: is it possible for me to sell the extra compost that i will make to a small gardener or plant store to make some extra cash? is there a website where i can post my selling's? is there a website that would guide me towards selling the compost on a 3 to 4 monthly basis?

Comments (3)

  • Worms4Tracy
    12 years ago

    Hey Juli,

    At one point I looked into selling the extra compost I generated, but I haven't done it because the reality is that the best compost is quite damp and thus very heavy to put through the mail - the shipping would be too expensive. On the other hand, to dry it is a long, tedious, and/or expensive process. However, more and more local garden stores are starting to stock local products like this.

    Most of the gigantic companies sell bags of dry (and thus relatively useless but cheap-to-ship) vermicompost. If you can create a superior local product at a comparable price, most independent garden stores will probably be interested, though I wouldn't expect to make a lot of money.

    As I've looked online at different worm companies, I often see that they give away the compost for free or for a pittance, but never ship it (ex: $5 for a 10-gallon bucket, bring-your own bucket) simply because they cannot make any money on the compost once they have to start drying it, shipping it or trucking it.

    While I had big dreams of selling compost, I've now simply started giving it to relatives, friends and neighbors. It feels good to be doing something good for the planet. In return, their friendship, thank-you gestures, and sheer delight at getting "black gold" for free are more rewarding to me than the $10 or less per cubic yard I would make otherwise. At one point I went to a local garden swap and I brought 20 quart-sized yogurt containers full of still-damp, freshly-harvested vermi-compost. The people there snapped it up in a heartbeat. They kept marvelling to each other, "This is black gold! Do you know how much this is WORTH?!" And yet in reality, it would be very hard to get whatever they thought it would be worth, except at very small venues such as the swap.

    Others on this forum may have had very different experience, and I'm sure they'll share their wisdom with you. I hope that you'll take from my experience what you like and leave the rest.

    However you move forward, good luck to you and let us know how it goes!

  • 11otis
    12 years ago

    VC is sometimes offered in craigslist. Check there for pricing and you can post on your local list.

  • PeterK2
    12 years ago

    Yeah I'd go for any farmers or flea market. Or even get some local backyard growers and trade for food. Any local garden clubs? Haven't done it myself for VC, but other small hobbies (aquariums for me) it's the people you meet and connections that are valuable. Could score some extra worm food supplies in the bargin as well as some fresh veggies :)

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