Showing posts with label vermicomposting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vermicomposting. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

What Kind of Word is Vermicomposting?

A little story:

I grew up in northern Iowa. At the end of my sixth-grade year in school, we moved about 40 miles further north (about 25 miles south of the Minnesota border) and into a Norwegian community. If you are Norwegian, please take no offense if I have just a little fun at the expense of Norvegians (did you catch the "v"). You're probably used to hearing the many Sven and Ole jokes. ;-)

Anyway, I'm wondering if the term Vermicomposting might be a Norvegian word? Ve must explore this a bit further. In the vernacular of Sven and Ole, verms would stand for werms (worms).

As my high school Algebra I teacher would say, "If (this + this = this) and (that + that = that), then 'Aha!' this equals that!

So, if you already know that vermicomposting is composting with worms, and verms = worms, then it stands to reason that vermicomposting must be a Norwegian term! :-)

What was all that about?
Well, I thought perhaps I'd just completed some sort of life circle.

I moved away from that Norwegian community long ago,
but I've just moved a community into my home...
and it seems to be Norwegian!

Check it out!
(click on this photo to enlarge slightly)

I've been wanting to do this for years! I'd hoped to try it in my second-grade classroom, but I stopped teaching two years ago, and that was a goal I never accomplished. But after reading about this all last Winter, and ordering a book by the late Mary Appelhof, I became re-inspired!

I have had a compost pile in my yard for about 20 years, but it's not active during the Winter, of course. These little fellows are red wiggler worms. They would never live through our winter weather. But they're perfect for indoor composting.

At least, I'm giving it a try. I hope to have great results. If so, I'll post on the subject again sometime. :-)