Wormsworth #1 - Why Wormly?

Welcome to Wormsworth 🪱

Hi, I’m Mark Fischel, founder of Wormly, and welcome to Wormsworth - my newsletter exploring worms, composting, soil health, permaculture and my learnings from growing Wormly.

In this first edition (Feb 2026), I wanted to explain how I got into worm composting in the first place, and how that grew into Wormly. It began with a garden.

1. My first garden

In October 2024, I moved into my first home in Tooting with my partner.

I’ve always loved being outside, and gardening has always been in my life, from eating home-grown veg to enjoying freshly cut flowers. But this was the first time I had been responsible for my own garden; it was exciting but also overwhelming.

So I started doing some YouTube 'research'. One day I was watching a video from Mark from 'Vertical Veg', showing the incredible amount you can grow in even the smallest urban garden.

And then he casually showed off his wormery. I had to pause the video, as the video moved on as if it was the most normal thing in the world. I replayed that section and realised I had never heard of such a thing before. I was hooked.

2. My first wormery

The idea immediately appealed to me, I could have my own free supply of compost and I could reduce my food waste at the same time. What's more, it was ideally suited for a small London garden like mine.

So I decided to build my own wormery. I ordered a wooden box from Etsy that was technically meant for children to store toys in. You could personalise it with your child’s name. I chose “Worms" and wondered whether the Etsy seller thought I was completely mad.

I ordered some worms, put everything together, and it worked (sort of). The worms were happy enough, but the wooden box slowly soaked up all the moisture and goodness and began to rot. 

I went looking for a better option and ordered a ready-made wormery online. It’s the same model I now sell as the Wormly Wormery #1, although at the time I had no idea where this was heading.

3. My first customers

I spent the first 6 months of 2025 chewing my friends' ears off about my new hobby. Friends asked questions like "do you have names for them" and "do they ever escape"?

And then a couple of people asked a different question:

“Where can I get one?”

So I said I’d order the parts and put one together for them. After a few more friends asked for the same, and before I knew it, Wormly existed. I launched the website in late 2025.

So far, I’ve mostly been selling to friends and friends-of-friends, but recently I’ve expanded from London to Manchester. I love hearing from customers; their questions, and their excitement when they start to see the composting happen. The worms have a way of capturing the imagination!

4. What’s so special about worm composting?

There’s nothing quite like holding a handful of rich, crumbly worm compost. It smells and looks different; it feels alive in a way that garden centre compost cannot replicate. And when you’ve watched it come to life in your own garden, balcony, or garage, it’s all the more satisfying.

The RHS put it beautifully when they ranked compost as one of their top gardening trends for 2025:

“Compost isn’t just a material… it’s a mindset. And right now it’s one that’s helping gardeners feel more connected, more resourceful and more hopeful.”

More people than ever are rethinking what we call “waste” and seeing value in the food that they throw away each day.

And the worms themselves become a bit like pets (at least they have done for me!) It's remarkable to watch them at work, and you can't help but want to see them fed and watered and thriving.

What’s next for Wormsworth?

Thanks for reading, and welcome to Wormsworth. Future editions will explore more topics of interest on worms, composting, soil health, permaculture and more, as well as my learnings from growing Wormly.