Vermicomposting - a thing to consider

[Ohsogreen]

OK, it's pretty clear to most of you guys - I'm an Organic Soil Grower.
I love all aspects of Organic Growing. Last year, I started my own little worm farm in my garage. I feed them left overs from the kitchen, yard waste & a little left over alfalfa (rabbit food). In return - the give me - sweet, dark, earthy smelling - Worm Castings. This stuff is Black Gold and makes everything grow better. Hit this link to get detailed information :

Vermicompost - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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After reading this, if you don't make your own little worm farm - you will at least see how good the stuff is & why you should be using it. Plus - Worm Castings are real cheap - an added Bonus. You can get them at Garden Centers just about everywhere & even some Wal-marts carry them.
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Worm Castings - are Organic Black Gold....
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Keep it Real... Organic....

 

[Ravioli]

I had a worm farm going on at my last house, and heard that they enjoy newspaper mixed in there, could you confirm this?

 

[Ohsogreen]

I had a worm farm going on at my last house, and heard that they enjoy newspaper mixed in there, could you confirm this?

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Yes, worms love the newspaper. To use it, take out all those colored or glossy pages (they equal toxic shit to Mr & Mrs. Worm), tear them into strips, moisten them & ring them out. They should be moist, not dripping wet. Drop them in your worm bin & Mr. & Mrs. Worm will do the rest. It provides both bedding & food for them.
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Plus if you feed them the left over alfalfa dust / pellets from your rabbit feed (since, I read your starting a rabbit farm)- you get the added bonus of Triacontanol - a naturally occuring plant growth stimulant found in alfalfa. Triacontanol survives the trip through the Bunny and is found in decent amounts in Bunny Poop.... see reading the Organics Thread is Good !!!
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Hope this helps....
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[Ravioli]

Okay, cool. That's how I was doing it. Unfortunately some financial issues arose and I had to move away from my dream home, leaving my rabbits and worm farm behind. I doubt my landlord now would enjoy a bunny farm!

You have actually answered more questions in the organic section than I've ever had answered in any other section. I'll be stickin' here for awhile! Thanks for your insight and knowledge! REP+

 

[Ohsogreen]

Okay, cool. That's how I was doing it. Unfortunately some financial issues arose and I had to move away from my dream home, leaving my rabbits and worm farm behind. I doubt my landlord now would enjoy a bunny farm!

You have actually answered more questions in the organic section than I've ever had answered in any other section. I'll be stickin' here for awhile! Thanks for your insight and knowledge! REP+

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Thanks for the REP +.. I'm glad I cleared up at least one or two things for you. The Zoo Doo thing makes me laugh - one of those strange but true kinda deals.. See thread " Making Tea - is EZ & cheap " for funny Zoo Doo link.
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Keep it Real .. Organic...
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[brendon420]

worms are expensive man its like 30 bucks for a pound of worms apparently thats around 1000 worms but man, 30 bucks, ill go dig in the backyard instead.

 

[Ravioli]

worms are expensive man its like 30 bucks for a pound of worms apparently thats around 1000 worms but man, 30 bucks, ill go dig in the backyard instead.

It's 3.95 for like 50 nightcrawlers at the local Freddies here. Sold as fishing bait. I assume they mate, 50x50= 2500

 

[brendon420]

thats what im hoping for with mine, i dug up about 100 and i hope they have multiplied or atleast doubled by now. hey ohso is there anything i can throw in there to act as an afrodisiac for the worms?

 

[Ravioli]

thats what im hoping for with mine, i dug up about 100 and i hope they have multiplied or atleast doubled by now. hey ohso is there anything i can throw in there to act as an afrodisiac for the worms?

Sorry I know you weren't asking me, but....

Blow some weed smoke on the dirt

 

[brendon420]

good idea, and a little bit of vodka in their water lol

 

[Ravioli]

good idea, and a little bit of vodka in their water lol

Roofiecoladas, anyone? Haha

 

[Seamaiden]

OK, it's pretty clear to most of you guys - I'm an Organic Soil Grower.
I love all aspects of Organic Growing. Last year, I started my own little worm farm in my garage. I feed them left overs from the kitchen, yard waste & a little left over alfalfa (rabbit food). In return - the give me - sweet, dark, earthy smelling - Worm Castings. This stuff is Black Gold and makes everything grow better. Hit this link to get detailed information :

Vermicompost - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

.
After reading this, if you don't make your own little worm farm - you will at least see how good the stuff is & why you should be using it. Plus - Worm Castings are real cheap - an added Bonus. You can get them at Garden Centers just about everywhere & even some Wal-marts carry them.
.
Worm Castings - are Organic Black Gold....
.
Keep it Real... Organic....

Ohso, did you build your own worm unit, or buy one pre-made? I've been wanting to do it on the cheap, Martha Stewart has a little guide, but I think it may require more work to get the castings separated from the other stuff due to its design. Having never raised worms, I'm not sure what I should look for or.. anything. Other than worms. I know I need worms.

 

[Ohsogreen]

Ohso, did you build your own worm unit, or buy one pre-made? I've been wanting to do it on the cheap, Martha Stewart has a little guide, but I think it may require more work to get the castings separated from the other stuff due to its design. Having never raised worms, I'm not sure what I should look for or.. anything. Other than worms. I know I need worms.

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Yes, Seamaiden - I built my own using this simple plan (see attachment).
Just one sheet of plywood, a circular saw, a few two by fours & some screws. I got all of the wood, from dumpsters at construction sites. So all I bought was the screws.
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Using wood, prevents the problem that most plastic worm bins experience (too much moisture). Since, the wood will wick out some of the moisture, when things start to get a little too wet. Plus, the wood is a better insulator, preventing big temperature swings. I painted the outside of mine white, to ensure they stay cool. Worms like temps between 55 & 75 degrees (max). Mine live in the garage.
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For bedding, I use newspaper (no color ink or glossy pages), saw dust, a little yard dirt, a hand full of sand (aids in digestion), leaves and grass clippings (after they are a few days old - to prevent composting action). The bedding should be moist, but not wet.
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If you feed them, starting on one end, then every three days move towards the other end a few inches. By the time you hit the other end, you have useable castings. I harvest by hand. I do not use tools & rarely ever lose a worm. I started with about 100 worms & now probably have over a 1000. They double every three months under favorable conditions.
That 1000 makes about 1/3 - 1/2 pound of castings per day, on average.
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Since, we feed them food scraps (non-meat / non-dairy / & no hot or spicy stuff) & yard waste - our food cost for them is zero.
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[Seamaiden]

Why no hot or spicy stuff? I will have to discuss how we do this with Dave, in the winter it gets far colder than 55, in summer, even underneath the house where it stays cool, it can get well over 75. This explains why Martha was talking about her little vermi-bin being set up on a small scale so it could be kept indoors.

 

[Ohsogreen]

Why no hot or spicy stuff? I will have to discuss how we do this with Dave, in the winter it gets far colder than 55, in summer, even underneath the house where it stays cool, it can get well over 75. This explains why Martha was talking about her little vermi-bin being set up on a small scale so it could be kept indoors.

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Seamaiden.. Worms just don't like spicy tasting things. So, avoid foods with curry or chili pepper in them. The reasons for avoiding dairy products & meat - are to avoid attracting pests & having your worm bin turn into a compost bin.
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Yes, if you have to deal with temperature extremes - indoors would be the way to go. If you don't overfeed them, your worm bin will not have any odor. I keep mine in the garage, sitting in the back on the concerte floor. The temperature stays pretty level & my worms seen pretty happy. When I open it, it just smells nice & earthy.
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I have read, worms can survive down to freezing & if frozen very slowly & thawwed out slowly they can actually bounce back. The 55 to 75 degrees is just the optimum temp range - where they are most happy. I have never had my worms freeze, so don't hold me to that - back from the dead thing.
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[Seamaiden]

I thought that dairy and meat products are verboten in the composter, too. Had I chickens or pigs, they'd be getting all the scraps.

 

[Ohsogreen]

I thought that dairy and meat products are verboten in the composter, too. Had I chickens or pigs, they'd be getting all the scraps.

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Yes, Meat & Dairy in the compost barrel are a no, no. I just meant, putting them in your worm bin, would start up allot of unwanted bacterial action - generating heat - which could kill your worms. The meat would attract rodents, who will chew throught anything & will also eat worms. I don't want either of these problems in my worm bin.
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[Seamaiden]

Me, either!

 

[brendon420]

is it bad to have a dairy /meat pile kind of thing, i just hate making more trash so i throw all food outside, i dont seem to get any rodents digging through the piles which is suprising because we have coyotes out here

 

[Ohsogreen]

Brendon420 I have a neighbor, who always buys those high end, high dollar gadgets - from Brookstone. He got this thing called a Pre-Composter, I believe it could be made pretty cheap.
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It is a metal canister, that opens in the middle, its about a foot tall, about 9 inches in diameter on the bottom, and tapers up to about 6 inches in diameter at the top - with a 6 inch magnifying glass at the top. He throws, anything in it, and in a coupe of days - it's dust. It heats up to, like 500 plus degress for several hours each day. On one side is a tiny, one way valve (like a one way valve on an aquarium air pump line), that vents out methane & water. So, the end result - dust. He then throws this dust, into his high dollar, Compost Barrel.
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