Magic Worm Worm Composter

The Magic Worm is designed for the kitchen, pantry, or garage: its manufacturer presents it as a worm composter that saves you from having to take your food scraps outside. A balcony or patio can still work if it is well sheltered:

• protect it from rain, which would soak the bedding;
• keep it out of direct sunlight, which worms hate;
• bring it indoors during heat waves; cover it or bring it in when temperatures drop below about 23 °F (-5 °C).

Worms thrive between 59 and 77 °F (15–25 °C), in a well-ventilated spot. To move it around, its instructions call for 4 optional wheels that slide under the leachate tray.

All our tips: How do you protect your worm composter from cold and heat?

For the Magic Worm, plan on 8.8 oz (250 g) of worms for 1 to 2 people and 1.1 lb (500 g), or about 1,000 worms, for 3 people.

Settle them in the first tray, on a bed of damp cardboard cut to fit the oval shape of the bottom, with a thin layer of food scraps. They'll then breed on their own and adjust their population to the space and food available. The more worms you start with, the faster your Magic Worm gets going. After that, increase feeding gradually, keeping an eye on their appetite.

All our tips: How do you set up your worm composter, step by step?

The Magic Worm comes with a lid, 2 or 3 trays depending on the version, a leachate tray with built-in feet, a spigot with a seal and nut, our vermicomposting guide with detailed instructions, and a video training session.

To get started, you'll need worms (if they're not part of your order), bedding (coconut fiber or cardboard), and an oval hemp mat, cut to fit its design. Made in France, it comes with a 2-year warranty, and a compatible replacement spigot is available in our store.

In the Magic Worm, your worms eat about half their body weight in food scraps every day, sometimes as much as their full weight: 1.1 lb (500 g) of worms can digest about 8.8 oz (250 g) of scraps a day. Their population doubles every 3 to 4 months, then adjusts to the available space. Its 2 or 3 trays, each holding 3.7 gallons (14 liters), are designed for a household of 2 to 3 people and sit at a comfortable height for adding your peels.

Bonus: your cardboard, paper, and egg cartons get recycled too, in equal parts with your peels, and it's this balance that prevents odors. Depending on the household, that means 30 to 50% less organic waste in the trash can.

All our advice: What can you feed the worms in your worm composter?

To get your Magic Worm off to a great start, we recommend:

• our Eisenia composting worms: 8.8 oz (250 g) for 1 to 2 people, 1.1 lb (500 g) for 3 to 4 people;
• a 2.4-gallon (9 L) coconut fiber block, as starter bedding;
• our oval hemp mat, sized to fit the Magic Worm, placed on the active tray;
• our graduated 1.1-quart (1-liter) leachate tray, which slides under the spigot;
• our mini mixing rake, with rounded tines, to aerate the active tray once a week.

To get everything at once, our Pack of 5 Essential Accessories includes 2 oval mats, WormFood, RegulaWorm, WORMboost, and a mini rake.

All our tips: Which accessories for your worm composter?

Start the Magic Worm with just one tray. When it's three-quarters full, set the second tray on top and add your food scraps to it: the worms will move up on their own. Do the same with the third tray, the maximum for the Magic Worm worm composter.

When all the trays are full, harvest the bottom one: place it on top of the others, without the lid, under a light, and scrape off the vermicompost in thin layers. Its self-supporting lid hooks onto the rim of a tray, so there's no need to set it on the floor while you add scraps or harvest.

All our tips: How and when to harvest vermicompost and compost tea

The Magic Worm worm composter produces two natural fertilizers for your plants:

• compost tea (worm tea), after about 2 to 3 months: the Magic Worm's built-in feet let you slide a bottle under the spigot, which you can leave open so the tea drains all by itself. Dilute 1 part tea to 9 parts water;
• vermicompost: first harvest after 3 to 6 months, then roughly every 1 to 2 months. Use 30% vermicompost to 70% potting soil; it keeps for up to 2 years.

Find all our tips in our guide: How and when to harvest vermicompost and compost tea