Drainage will likely be very poor and your biggest issue unless you have very sandy soil and a relatively low water table. And while air flows through soil -- despite the folks here who think it doesn't ;) -- it doesn't flow through plastic.

(Well, it does through some plastics, but that's another issue.)

I suggest you simply vermicompost outdoors, sans bin, in a pit or a pile. Your worms will either die in the winter and return from cocoons in the spring or dig deep if they are a species that will.

But worm bins don't need to be ugly; you can make it as pretty as you like or take an ugly bin and build an attractive box around it. An above ground bin will be easier to maintain, too. Especially if you have creaky knees like me.

Another consideration is how you you would harvest any of the castings/ compost which sooner or later you would have to dig out. Even laying the tub on it's side would put the bottom a couple feet down into the ground. Splitting the bin would just make it a trough and i'm sure you did not mean to bury a 55 gallon drum standing on one end in the ground. That would be REALLY difficult to make work.

Above ground you could paint nice worm pictures on the outside of your drum.

If you check on eBay, there is someone who makes bins out of wood and does art of some sort on them; they were pricey for what I want in my basement or garage but may be okay for your backyard. Just a thought.

You could make an in-ground pit without the barrel, but as mentioned harvest would be a pain! How about building a nice above ground (open bottom) bin out of redwood or cedar 2x6 and make the top into a nice hinged bench? A bin measuring 18" wide x 8' long x 18" tall would hold many worms! To harvest, you could remove the bottom 2x6 (use screws) and shovel out VC Hopefully the herd will dig-in in the winter. I find it quite peaceful and calming to sit on my bin.

Pete

Would you like to harvest the castings?

You could just have the worm farm active in-ground so the worms feed the garden directly. Have a few if you like.

Have a look about 1/2 way down this web page.

http://www.kookaburrawormfarms.com.au/index.aspx?page=2

Here is a link that might be useful: Kookaburra in-ground worm farms.

Well that was some interesting ways of looking at worm keeping. A bit different than I have been reading and saying here but it seems to work for them. Worm Bombs. Gotta Love It. Mixing of worm species. Putting bins right on the earth.

Re: fitting an in-ground farm/bin into your small yard, mendopete's suggestion of making a garden seat over the pit sounds great. The Kookaburra inground bin is interesting, but you still have a somewhat unsightly bin.

Have you scoped-out the red worm composting site? He's from somewhere in Canada, and has experimented for several years with over-wintering worms, as well as making worm pits/trenches alongside his vegetable garden.

hit the link below then hit HOT TOPICS...scroll down to VERMICOMPOSTING IN TRENCHES & WORM WINTER COMPOSTING.
On the main page, scroll down to VERMI TOMATO GARDENING.
You may find bits and pieces of a perfect solution for your situation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Red Worm Composting

The Kookaburra system could be home made and look however you want it to look. The main thing is that your worm farm is feeding the garden directly which saves the handling of castings etc.

I have a small home made one in my veggie garden, it's just a small/medium flower pot with extra holes drilled then buried 2/3 into the garden. I then sit an empty bucket upside down over it to provide shelter, shade and darkness.

I also drilled a few holes near the top and bottom of the bucket so that hot air can escape during summer.

I haven't been feeding it or paying as much attention as I do with my bins, but there are red worms in it and food keeps getting eaten.

Some people call them worm towers if you want to search for more examples.

Thank you so much everyone for all the advice! I really don't think the barrel-thing is gonna work out so well. But I DO like the hinged bench idea! Thanks Pete!