SpicySativa's Organic Garden

freemandrake

freemandrake

Well-Known Member
nothing wrong with worm snacks hahah can you adjust nutrient levels (more banana peels for potassium) or does it end up kinda even?
 
SpicySativa

SpicySativa

Well-Known Member
I suppose you could, but I only eat so many bananas... I do sprinkle in a little kelp, alfalfa, neem, and crab meal from time to time.
 
smokecat

smokecat

Well-Known Member
SpicySativa
Nice thread. Nice plants. Nice bins. I love my worms as well... Question for you.. I have been using 1/4" screening, but as you mentioned a lot of cocoons and some worms get through... But I find it takes forever to sift even through that size,yet you seem to be having better luck than me using the smaller size. Do you let it dry out first? Or maybe I am just not letting my bin finish completely(too much larger stuff). Anyway, sub'd!
 
SpicySativa

SpicySativa

Well-Known Member
Smokecat- I don't purposely dry anything out, but I keep my bins a lot dryer than others I've seen. Rather than keeping a lid on, I just pile the bedding on thick. The bedding on top gets very dry, but it acts as a mulch and conserves the moisture deeper in the bin. I rarely add any moisture at all, other than what is in the food scraps I feed. I also stop feeding the bins for at least two weeks before harvesting, and do not add any moisture during this time. The mulch/bedding layer holds in plenty of moisture to keep the worms happy during this time.

What I'm left with is moist/damp (NOT mucky/muddy), "granular" worm castings that aren't all stuck together. They sift really easily like this. Each bin takes me about 15-20 minutes to harvest.
 
smokecat

smokecat

Well-Known Member
Hmm.. Ok cool I'm going to try going lid free and see what happens.. Yeah mine tends towards the heavier side right now. I need to make 2 more bins, it's crazy how fast these little guys explode in population... I wonder if it's leaves :weed:
thanks for your help!
 
DonPetro

DonPetro

Well-Known Member
Mine are in a wood bin but you guys are rockin it in those plastic totes. I'm switchin it up i think and will keep a layer of the box to make a screen maybe.
 
SpicySativa

SpicySativa

Well-Known Member
Sweet... It's nice to hear see all this interest in worm bins.

I really think keeping things from getting overly wet/soggy is important. Think of the bin like you would think of a pot of soil. You want it to be loose, aerated, and moist, because these are the conditions that foster healthy bacteria and fungi. Not heavy and muddy, which can foster anaerobic microbes (and the worms don't like it much either). Ending up with nice loose, airy castings is just a bonus.
 
hyroot

hyroot

Well-Known Member
Where I'm at, the weather is pretty warm. The flower room is around 80. The bin is in the closet in the same room. So the bin cab dry out. So I water it from time to time. With a pump sprayer though. Usually adding thawed veggie slurry or left over castings and compost from a tea's puts enough moisture in there. I have had worms die off twice from letting it dry out too much. Sometimes I'm too busy and too tired to deal with anything garden related.
 
SpicySativa

SpicySativa

Well-Known Member
Happy plants --> Happy farmer. All's well around here. It's been about a week since they were up-potted, and they have easily doubled in size during that time. Haven't even watered them since transplanting. Pots are finally feeling a little light, so I'll give them a drink this evening. Probably just water, but maybe a little aloe/silica/Ful-Power mix.

I also plan to spread them out a little and prune the undergrowth this evening, as long as I remember to pick up some twisty ties on the way home...

Thats all for now.

Cheers,

-SpicySativa

image.jpgimage.jpg
 
SpicySativa

SpicySativa

Well-Known Member
image.jpg

A nice 8-pointer in the making. The picture doesn't really do it justice, but that plant has a neat purple candy striped trunk.
 
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