the slow part # How it’s made No machine does the clever bit. Just good feed, shaded beds, time, and a great many very busy earthworms. _Illustration: A long dashed trail across farmland joins six small scenes, a dairy gate, a dung heap, a shaded worm bed, a cone of castings, a sieve and a loaded pallet, and an earthworm travels along it_ _Illustration: Dawn at a partner dairy: the sun rising behind a hill, an open farm gate, a cow in the paddock, a steaming heap of dung and a hand cart loaded with crop waste_ The slow descent 1. Ground level Fresh cow dung from partner dairies, plus crop and vegetable waste from farms and markets nearby. Nothing is bought in a bag. 2. Days 1 to 21 The mix rests for about three weeks, so it cools down and softens before the worms move in. Too hot and the worms would leave. 3. Days 21 to 80 Red wiggler earthworms feed through shaded beds for 45 to 60 days, turning it all into castings. This is the slow part, and it cannot be hurried. 4. Day 80 The worms move on to fresh beds and the castings are lifted out by hand. Some worms and cocoons stay behind on purpose, to start the next bed. 5. Day 82 Castings are sieved to a fine, even texture, with no lumps, stones or bits of plastic, then dried to the right moisture. 6. Day 85, and beyond Each batch is checked, packed in sealed bags and sacks, and sent to gardens, farms and nurseries across India and the world. The slow descent 1. _Illustration: Dawn at a partner dairy: the sun rising behind a hill, an open farm gate, a cow in the paddock, a steaming heap of dung and a hand cart loaded with crop waste_ 1\. Ground level ### We gather the feed Fresh cow dung from partner dairies, plus crop and vegetable waste from farms and markets nearby. Nothing is bought in a bag. 2. _Illustration: Two long windrows of mixed feed resting in the shade of a tree, a thermometer probe set into the front one, steam thinning away as the heap settles and darkens over three weeks_ 2\. Days 1 to 21 ### We let it rest The mix rests for about three weeks, so it cools down and softens before the worms move in. Too hot and the worms would leave. 3. _Illustration: A worm bed cut open under shade-net arches: moisture drops fall through the net, red earthworms tunnel through the feed and a layer of dark castings thickens at the bottom as the days pass_ 3\. Days 21 to 80 ### The worms get to work Red wiggler earthworms feed through shaded beds for 45 to 60 days, turning it all into castings. This is the slow part, and it cannot be hurried. 4. _Illustration: Harvest day: a gloved hand with a trowel rests in a neat cone of finished castings beside a bucket, while in the cut-open bed in front a worm and two cocoons are left behind and the worm crawls toward the fresh bedding_ 4\. Day 80 ### We harvest by hand The worms move on to fresh beds and the castings are lifted out by hand. Some worms and cocoons stay behind on purpose, to start the next bed. 5. _Illustration: A wooden frame sieve tilted on its legs, shaking, with a few coarse lumps left on the mesh while fine castings fall through into a wheelbarrow beneath its low edge and pile up_ 5\. Day 82 ### We sieve it fine Castings are sieved to a fine, even texture, with no lumps, stones or bits of plastic, then dried to the right moisture. 6. _Illustration: A bagging station: castings pour down a chute and fill a pouch, a sealed pouch drops onto a scale, wrapped sacks wait on a pallet, and a delivery truck behind them pulls away_ 6\. Day 85, and beyond ### We pack and ship Each batch is checked, packed in sealed bags and sacks, and sent to gardens, farms and nurseries across India and the world. ## What we check before it leaves - _Illustration: Two hands shaking a round sieve while fine, even castings fall in a regular row into a small heap, and a tick lands beside it_ ### Fine and even Sieved so there are no lumps, stones or bits of plastic. - _Illustration: A fist squeezing a handful of castings with a single drop forming and falling, a small heap beside it and a tick landing over the heap_ ### Right moisture Moist enough to stay alive, dry enough to never turn soggy. - _Illustration: A desk lamp lighting a lab flask on a bench while a worm with a hand lens looks it over, and a tick lands above them_ ### Checked every batch Each batch is checked before it is packed and dispatched. ## Want to see the worms at work? Visits for schools, gardeners and buyers are by appointment only. [Take an appointment](https://thecomposta.com/contact) _Illustration: A farm gate swinging open at the end of a track, with a post-and-rail fence either side and two earthworms peeking out of the grass verge in front_ --- Source: https://thecomposta.com/how-its-made The Composta is a brand of Nutrify Private Limited, 1st Floor, Plot No. B & B1, Vanijya Nikunj, Enkay Centre, Udyog Vihar Phase 5, Gurugram, Haryana 122016, India. Contact: contact@thecomposta.com, +91 90535 19734 (also WhatsApp). Quotes: sales@thecomposta.com. Importers and bulk buyers: export@thecomposta.com. More for agents: https://thecomposta.com/llms.txt