Vermiculture

[Scorpion]

Worm Dirt!
Anyone who has a garden,yard,flower bed...you should grow your own worms too,they are the very best way to compost and make some exceptional Organic fertilizer called Black Gold.
aka Worm Casting or just Cast.

Top compost worms are Eisenia Foetida <red wigglers>
with Africans and Blues running a cool second <climate control required>
ENC or Eisenia Hortensis is a very good compost worm and an excellent bait worm...
Forget about Canadian Nightcrawlers...wrong type.
check it out
you just cant get any greener than a worm...

keep it green

 

[Scorpion]

Vermicomposting can be acomplished indoors too.

 

[Scorpion]

by useing a home made worm bin or a nice store bought one.

 

[Scorpion]

I use a worm factory 360 for breeding up the herd and a home made bin for the fishing worms..

 

[palmate]

vermiculture is great. i love being able to turn scraps into ferts with such little hassle. the worm castings are brilliant for soil mixes too

 

[tokeroo]

never done this before. Got any tips for starting out? Do you just throw some works in vermiculite?

 

[tokeroo]

Sorry guys, I absolutely misread the thread title. Vermiculture, not vermiculite. oops!

 

[Sabot]

Hey scorp, I have been making my own castings for years, nothing fancy.. Just and old bathtub with compost materials, but I do prefer a different kind of worm, some call them Georgia jumpers or Alabama jumpers.. they will literally jump off the ground or out of your hand, they are much heartier, go deeper in harder soil, and produce more casting in less time with good resistance to cold conditions, very low maintenance buggers.. I love them..

 

[Scorpion]

hi sabot,
I agree, alabama jumpers are a top compost/outdoor worm.
I am starting a large ground bin now,bedding is aged horse/goat manure with some leached old coco fibre and some shredded news print.
as the bedding matures I will attempt to add 4 seperate worm types.
a local earth worm found on my property,jumpers and I will also add a pound of each E.Hortensis and E.Foetida too.
so during different parts of the year,the different types should be found in the surface feeding area.
we will see if it works,I think they will do great.
keep it green
scorpion

 

[Sabot]

hi sabot,
I agree, alabama jumpers are a top compost/outdoor worm.
I am starting a large ground bin now,bedding is aged horse/goat manure with some leached old coco fibre and some shredded news print.
as the bedding matures I will attempt to add 4 seperate worm types.
a local earth worm found on my property,jumpers and I will also add a pound of each E.Hortensis and E.Foetida too.
so during different parts of the year,the different types should be found in the surface feeding area.
we will see if it works,I think they will do great.
keep it green
scorpion

Sounds like a plan, I think you'll do well too... Ever tried feeding them laying mash?? (chickenfeed) An old guy I know who raises worms for bait shops told me to try it and the worms love it (cheap too).. I have some now that are so big and fat it will almost startle me when I turn over the dirt with my hands (I'm thinking O' shit SNAKE!!) Those Jumpers are fast and slither just like one.. Almost flips me out, I have a thing about snakes.. I wish I could send you some, their 6-8 inches long and bigger around than a no.2 pencil.. I know you can order them, but I just go out to my horse barn around the feeding area and turn up the soil with a pitch fork and find loads of them, From there its off to the ole' Bathtub to let them do their thing, and in the fall before it gets too cool I release them back at the barn, works good for me, and for them too it seems, they reproduce and thrive year after year..
Happy Growing
SABOT

 

[cauldron]

i've started pre-mixing my worm feed, though i'm still working out the ratios:
homegrown alfalfa and comfrey meal, baby oatmeal and dried molasses with egg shells and used coffee grounds. even though they're free, i might switch from egg shells to oyster shell flour. i don't eat very many eggs and it takes me forever to accumulate any significant amount of shells. the used coffee grounds are great though, i get pounds for free at a local cafe. i've been thinking about asking Chipotle for their avocado skins, sooo rich in potassium.

 

[cauldron]

just called Chipotle, apparently they go through over 400 avocados a day. i will be picking up about 100 skins tomorrow! free worm feed for the win?

EDIT: scratch that idea... apparently avocado skins are about as compostable as wax. looks like i gotta call Chipotle back :oops:

 

[Scorpion]

Sounds like a plan, I think you'll do well too... Ever tried feeding them laying mash?? (chickenfeed) An old guy I know who raises worms for bait shops told me to try it and the worms love it (cheap too).. I have some now that are so big and fat it will almost startle me when I turn over the dirt with my hands (I'm thinking O' shit SNAKE!!) Those Jumpers are fast and slither just like one.. Almost flips me out, I have a thing about snakes.. I wish I could send you some, their 6-8 inches long and bigger around than a no.2 pencil.. I know you can order them, but I just go out to my horse barn around the feeding area and turn up the soil with a pitch fork and find loads of them, From there its off to the ole' Bathtub to let them do their thing, and in the fall before it gets too cool I release them back at the barn, works good for me, and for them too it seems, they reproduce and thrive year after year..
Happy Growing
SABOT

Hi sabot,
I feed mostly manure and green waste like fruit and vegetable,I do use Worm chow for a top dressing but I dont use much since a little goes a long way,but it has the calcium and other minerals that produce some fatty's and a good grain blend too,
very finely ground so they eat it right away.

keep it green
scorpion

 

[ethnoman]

I love vermiculture. Such a useful part of the garden. Converts waste to beneficial and highly useable products. Go worms!

 

[vierundzwanzig]

what about old fall/fallen leaves isn't that a booster for the worms? i just started a worm factory seems to be working but i know i need help @scorpion

I use a worm factory 360 for breeding up the herd and a home made bin for the fishing worms..

when should i add the remaining trays what should i put in them? any advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Scorpion]

what about old fall/fallen leaves isn't that a booster for the worms? i just started a worm factory seems to be working but i know i need help @scorpion

when should i add the remaining trays what should i put in them? any advice will be greatly appreciated.View attachment 212498

I just follow the instructions on the lid.