| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Alee |
Posted - Aug 12 2010 : 09:32:44 AM
I think I am the worst VermiComposter ever. I started a bin because I wanted to get the rewards of the worm castings and fast composting in the winter.
I captured some wild worms this spring and put them in the bin with bedding and quickly realized I had made the bin way too wet. So then put in some dry bedding and just left it for a while...Okay so I kindof forgot about them out in the garage...
So about a month ago I went to go see if they had all perished and surprisingly it seems that some have survived! But the bin was WAY to dry and needed food.
So I got the bin re-wetted and put in some greens and grass and such. Now I just went and checked on it again and I think they are breeding! YAY!
Anybody have any good tips on how to get my worms to breed as quickly as possible? Are there particular foods that the worms love and would encourage more breeding? I want the bin to have a good population before I bring them in for the winter. I want them to breed to the point where they can handle our kitchen waste. Right now I think I would say I have about half a pound of worms or so. For bedding I have a mixture of soil and paper products with grass and some carrots for food right now. I am hesitant to really give them lots of fruit and veggies scraps right now since there are so few of them...I don't want it to get stinky... |
| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Alee |
Posted - Aug 18 2010 : 06:05:18 AM
Thanks Cindy! That does help! I will put a banana peel in next. Right now I am kindof letting them catch up on their own environment. Hoping the coccoons hatch soon!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
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www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
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| Cindy Lee |
Posted - Aug 17 2010 : 8:33:35 PM
Alee, I've had a bin for years and have the best luck when I have shredded the food going into the bin. Remember, worms have very small mouths! (I read that in a book about raising worms!) So, squash seems to be high on their list. Eggshells not so much. I put all out coffee grounds in as well. Oh...they love banana peels too! Don't get in a hurry to add fruit at this point, if they don't et it fast enough you WILL have a problem with fruit flies and smell! Hope that helps!
If life gives you scraps, make quilts! |
| Alee |
Posted - Aug 12 2010 : 5:08:22 PM
I just dumped and sorted the bin. I put the worms in a glass measuring cup as I found them- I have about half a cup of worms- I also saw lots of cocoons so that is good! I am hoping they like their new looser environment and now that I have sortof mixed everything up and redistributed things I am going to just top dress for a while. Hopefully they like it!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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| Alee |
Posted - Aug 12 2010 : 4:01:40 PM
Thanks telling me about your set up, Jewel! I have a very large rubbermaid tote. I need to drill holes in the bottom and get another tote to put under the worm one like you do. That was the original idea but I haven't done it yet. Right now the worms just have to kindof move up if the bottom is too wet- though I am thinking it might not be wet enough. I read on a vermicomposting forum that they often dump the contents and sort the worms etc. I have some compost that is only about half composted. I think the worms would like that. I think I might dump, sort and restart the bin with a thick layer of compost at the bottom. The bin was started with some of our super clayey soil and I think the worms are having a hard time breaking it up.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
| Mama Jewel |
Posted - Aug 12 2010 : 2:58:25 PM
I've been vermicomposting since early spring. The wetness should be like a wet sponge. I have mine in a rubbermaid container with 1/4" holes drilled throughout the top & upper sides and on the bottom of the bin & then have this bin sitting inside a solid bin with a couple of bricks, so that I can catch the compost tea & any stray worms that fell through the holes. The way I understand it, the worms will "fit" whatever size space you give them and adapt to that size. So, if you have a small bin, they will breed only a little & with a big bin, bigger. I hope this makes sense. My worms have bred so much that I'm thinking of adding a second bin (esp since we're a vegetarian family & it's hard to do regular composting with the snow). The ratio of greens to browns is the same as w/regular composting (2/3 brown to 1/3 green material). When I was checking on my worms, it looked like the babies being born were in the egg shell scraps & toilet paper tubes. I keep a tea pot of water nearby so when I add dry brown materials, I can pour some water & wet down the material to get that damp sponge effect.
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
