Vermicomposters Unite! Official Worm Farmers Thread

calliandra

calliandra

Well-Known Member
meangreengrowinmachine said:
worm bins are another thing that loves neglect lol .. well for a while ... give them their food and then leave them the F alone lol
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Whereby, as a beginner, I do like to check on it the first days after feeding, just in case it starts heating up too much, especially when I know I may have overdone it with something hi-N :)
 
TheEagerBeaver

TheEagerBeaver

Member
calliandra said:
Whereby, as a beginner, I do like to check on it the first days after feeding, just in case it starts heating up too much, especially when I know I may have overdone it with something hi-N :)
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In that case, just stick a soil thermometer in there so you don't disturb them too much.
 
W

Wetdog

Well-Known Member
ShLUbY said:
i've tried to follow the rule *only "feed" on one side* so they have somewhere to retreat if they wish :) so i've been alternating the sides. this weekend i don't even think im going to "feed" them
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That's a good technique to follow. But, just how often are you feeding them?

Even in the summer when the bins are really cranking, it's seldom more often than every couple of weeks and in the winter it's more like a month to 6 weeks. Max temps are 76* and 52* min in the basement.

It also depends on the food. Some stuff takes months to fully decompose and I've found worms in harvested VC months later actually thriving. I mean, you expect some, but not where you could start another bin population. These were harvested in Aug and the tote not opened/checked till a week or so ago. What the hell have they been eating for 4-5 months? Was a real WTF?, but in a good way. Educational too.

Wet
 
ShLUbY

ShLUbY

Well-Known Member
Wetdog said:
That's a good technique to follow. But, just how often are you feeding them?

Even in the summer when the bins are really cranking, it's seldom more often than every couple of weeks and in the winter it's more like a month to 6 weeks. Max temps are 76* and 52* min in the basement.

It also depends on the food. Some stuff takes months to fully decompose and I've found worms in harvested VC months later actually thriving. I mean, you expect some, but not where you could start another bin population. These were harvested in Aug and the tote not opened/checked till a week or so ago. What the hell have they been eating for 4-5 months? Was a real WTF?, but in a good way. Educational too.

Wet
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just on the weekends when i come home. i throw a little compost down, maybe some coffee grounds, and whatever greens from my fridge that may not be looking so hot. potato and carrot skins as well. stuff that breaks down quickly or is already breaking down.

i definitely think i could feed less though. the first weekend i dont think i put anything in there because i had compost and food scraps in the bin before they even arrived. only been at it 4 wks now lol
 
meangreengrowinmachine

meangreengrowinmachine

Well-Known Member
Wetdog said:
That's a good technique to follow. But, just how often are you feeding them?

Even in the summer when the bins are really cranking, it's seldom more often than every couple of weeks and in the winter it's more like a month to 6 weeks. Max temps are 76* and 52* min in the basement.

It also depends on the food. Some stuff takes months to fully decompose and I've found worms in harvested VC months later actually thriving. I mean, you expect some, but not where you could start another bin population. These were harvested in Aug and the tote not opened/checked till a week or so ago. What the hell have they been eating for 4-5 months? Was a real WTF?, but in a good way. Educational too.

Wet
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hahaha i had this same thing happen to me recently... open the bin thats been closed for months and is FULL of castings and worms all scramble for cover.. I had the same reaction.. as you
 
Fastslappy

Fastslappy

Well-Known Member
I've read they recycle the bin when u quit feeding ,soo it's actually best stave every once in while so they do recycle
 
Nugachino

Nugachino

Well-Known Member
Heh. I chucked everything from my super soil bag and bokashi bin into a large tub. Gave it a good mix through. Then dug a big pit in the middle to add a box of 1000 worms. Then finished up by covering it with a damp layer of fibrous cloth.

I checked on it today. And a few worms were poking their heads out from under the cloth.

Can't wait to see how good the soil is after they've dug through it for a couple months. Should be super-mega-dooper soil by that time.
 
meangreengrowinmachine

meangreengrowinmachine

Well-Known Member
Nugachino said:
Heh. I chucked everything from my super soil bag and bokashi bin into a large tub. Gave it a good mix through. Then dug a big pit in the middle to add a box of 1000 worms. Then finished up by covering it with a damp layer of fibrous cloth.

I checked on it today. And a few worms were poking their heads out from under the cloth.

Can't wait to see how good the soil is after they've dug through it for a couple months. Should be super-mega-dooper soil by that time.
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Well you will end up with some great worm castings for sure...I don't know about a whole soil... but great castings for sure!
 
Nugachino

Nugachino

Well-Known Member
Yeah I'm kinda sporadic like that. Just chucked in whatever I thought would work. They don't seem to be hating it. So it can't be that bad. Could be too early to tell though.
 
Nugachino

Nugachino

Well-Known Member
Nah. I chose soil that was blank canvas. It's an improvised mixed recipe from a few different super soils. It's missing the oyster and crustacean shells though. Couldn't find any. So I added more powdered egg shells.

The only other things it has in it are: Epsom salts, dolomite lime, micro nutrients and fish + kelp & seaweed bio booster.
 
ShLUbY

ShLUbY

Well-Known Member
so i made a fungal dom tea over the last couple days with couple tbsp of canna meal, kelp meal, and alfalfa meal, fish hydro, and bioag humic. after it was done brewing i strained out the solids, wrung them dry and put them in the worm bin. today when i looked in the bin.... the worms were FEASTING on the stuff. it was awesome!
 
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Nugachino

Nugachino

Well-Known Member
Damn bro. That's awesome. Guess I got to get my arse down to a local nursery. Try and get some good good to throw in my bin.
 
ShLUbY

ShLUbY

Well-Known Member
Mohican said:
I feed mine almost every day. They are amazing little eaters.
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i can't wait til i have enough to do that! I have a stockpile of stuff in the freezer for them lol. i should have started with more than 1000 but i just wanted to make sure I got it down before I went crazy! maybe i should order a couple thousand more.... hmmmmmmmm
 
Fastslappy

Fastslappy

Well-Known Member
ShLUbY said:
i can't wait til i have enough to do that! I have a stockpile of stuff in the freezer for them lol. i should have started with more than 1000 but i just wanted to make sure I got it down before I went crazy! maybe i should order a couple thousand more.... hmmmmmmmm
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I collect some every rain . I find the locals more vigorous than the red wiggerls but the wiggers stay low it seems
BUT I can't tell the difference anymore , 3 bins working one is near full 2 started last fall
my comfrey crown slivers turned out great 32 in 3 gal all with 12" leaves & some are blooming
over wintering in the greenhouse atm waiting on spring I planted the crown cuts end of November
 
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