Red worms on a white background

Sonoma County is about to roll out the red carpet for some unlikely celebrities: worms. With two composting workshops on the calendar this fall, locals have a chance to see firsthand how these slim, tireless recyclers turn kitchen scraps and yard waste into rich fertilizer, keeping tons of organics out of landfills.

For gardeners, it’s no surprise. Worms — especially red wigglers — are the backbone of home composting bins across the county. Unlike deep-burrowing nightcrawlers, red wigglers thrive in the upper layers of decomposing material, making them the perfect partners for transforming apple cores, coffee grounds and wilted lettuce into usable soil food.

“They’re surface dwellers, and they reproduce quickly, so they’re ideal for worm bins,” a UC Master Gardener volunteer says.

Sonoma has its own worm industry. Sonoma Valley Worm Farm, now part of TerraVesco, produces more than 200,000 pounds of vermicompost each year. Much of it goes to vineyards, where growers report healthier vines and fewer plant diseases after applying worm castings.

“Worm compost is pretty amazing stuff,” soil scientist Dr. Norman Arancon says in a UC Davis study. Researchers have found that castings not only enrich soil with nutrients but also suppress plant pathogens and improve seed germination.

Workshops like the ones scheduled this September and October aim to spread that knowledge. Zero Waste Sonoma and UC Master Gardeners host public sessions — sometimes even giving away starter kits — to encourage residents to try vermicomposting at home. For those without the time or space, the county’s green bin program ensures organic waste is still converted to compost on a larger scale.

A pound of red wigglers can eat half their body weight in scraps every day. In a year, a small home worm bin can produce gallons of dark, crumbly castings — the “black gold” that gardeners swear by. The worms also tunnel through the compost, naturally aerating it and speeding decomposition without the need for constant turning. http://gty.im/1704924700

Castings improve soil structure, increase water retention and provide a slow-release nutrient boost that’s safe for vegetables, flowers and fruit trees.

Charles Darwin once wrote that earthworms have played a more important role in world history than most people would ever suspect. In Sonoma County, that truth is visible in every worm bin tucked into a backyard shed or under a kitchen sink.

Whether in a vineyard, a school garden or a community workshop, worms are central to a more sustainable food system. They take what would otherwise be landfill waste and recycle it into living soil.

As one local worm farmer puts it: “Worms are going to be the next big thing in agriculture.”

And in Sonoma County, the movement has already begun — one banana peel, one coffee filter, and one red wiggler at a time.Community Compost Workshop & Soil Health Adventure

Sonoma Garden Park, 19996 7th St. E., Sonoma Be Nice to the Earth: Scraps to Soil

Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, 10 a.m.–noon

Los Guilicos Demonstration & Teaching Garden, Santa Rosa

Featuring worm-wrangling, worm bin giveaways, kitchen scrap pails and educational activities for all ages.