How to Create a Worm Tower in 7-Steps

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In the spring of 2024, I sat down with Richland County, SC, market gardener Greg Brown to learn about a unique tool he implemented in his garden – worm towers.

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Greg was kind enough to let us film him while he shared how we, and you, can create these in our own homes or market gardens and harness the power of worms to break down weeds and waste while simultaneously feeding our soils and crops.

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Here is a step-by-step breakdown of Greg’s process. For a full video walkthrough, see the video at the bottom of this blog.

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Steps to create your own Worm Tower:

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1. Get a container.

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This can be a 5-gallon bucket or even a high-diameter PVC pipe. But make sure your container has a lid to keep rain and rodents out.

2. Drill holes

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Drill holes on all sides and the bottom that worms can enter/exit through (about 1/8-1/4-inch in diameter). Make sure to have enough holes for the worms to easily access (~every 2 square inches), and to only drill holes in the parts of the tower that will be covered by surrounding soil.

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PRO TIP: Many different types of worms will be able to use this, but Greg “inoculated” his with Red Wigglers since they eat their weight in organic matter every day, making them very efficient nutrient cyclers in these systems.

3. Dig your hole and bury your container

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Dig a deep enough hole to bury your container (making sure all holes are covered). Then, place the container in the hole with the lid on top and fill in soil around all sides.

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4. Fill the container

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Now you can fill the container with weeds, compost, or other organic material (whatever is most convenient and you have lying around should work). This can be leftover produce from recent meals (e.g., banana peels, apple cores), dead leaves, weeds you just pulled, etc.

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5. Monitor Once a Month

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About once a month, remove the lid and add water to the container. This will help the broken-down matter and nutrients the worms made leach out into your surrounding soils.

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6. Distribute the compost

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Once the worms have consumed everything, you are left with highly nutrient-rich, solid worm compost that can be taken and spread elsewhere in your garden.

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