What do you get when you have 5000 feet of worm beds and a Gazillion worms ............. Worm Poop!
If you are one for "doing it yourself" -
Well, we put together some ideas to get you going.
First and fore-most determine the size of the garden you wish to work. This will determine the size and number of worm composting bin(s) you will need. The more or larger the bins you use the more castings you can produce. Over a period of two to six months 1 - 2 pounds of composting worms for use in flower pots or a small garden area of 4’ X 8’ can be furnished with worm castings and compost using a converted 40-70 gallon plastic tub, available at Walmart, Big Lots, Lowes, Home Depot or Rural King or even 50 Gallon water barrels cut in half lengthwise. (Be aware that many of the commercial worm bins for sale that you see on the internet are often too small and unrealistic in their production estimates.) We suggest you use at least 3-4 separate bins with holes drilled about 2” FROM the bottom on the SIDES. You should have a “spare” to work from should you be invaded with ants or have other problems with a bed. QUICK action for a problem is best.
These bins should be set up with watered bedding soaked for 24 hours (or more) in advance to allow for full saturation. Pick up a handful and squeeze with the strength of a good firm handshake – ONE or two drops of water should come out, no more, no less! The bed should be started with any materials readily available of any combination of peat moss, shredded paper, cardboard, composted yard waste or manures (that have cooled down), leaves and/or small branches. Essentially any biodegradable material can be composted using worms. The smaller the bins, the more time you will have to spend monitoring and maintaining the bed, being especially aware of the food & moisture levels as well as quantity of worms appropriate for the space provided. (If you crowd the worms they will not grow and reproduce well. Much like a fish in the tank, they will grow only as the space will allows.) Larger gardens will require much larger worm beds to be maintained. We recommend building 4’ X 4’ or 4’ X 8’ beds using any inexpensive and easily obtained materials such as landscaping timbers, cement blocks, metal siding, old bathtubs, wood pallets or refrigerators; essentially any material that can “contain” the worms. However, we prefer ground beds, the advantage of the worms being able to travel down deeper when the temperatures drop below their liking is a real benefit. They come back “up” when it warms. Ideally you want your bed to be at LEAST 12” deep - 18” is better. If you have your beds on the ground, you do not need to line the bottom. However, if your area is prone to nuisance critters like moles, racoons, possums or armadillos, you may wish to use a plastic or metal wire screen on the bottom of your beds to keep critters from tunneling under your beds and feasting unbeknown to you.We are often asked “how many worms do I need to get started?” Typically, 1 - 2 pounds in a 40 - 70 gallon bin will give you a good start. The best answer is “When do you want to begin using the composted soil?” • The more worms you start with the quicker the process will work.• Worms will double or triple their population in 90 - 120 days if - ALL the conditions are RIGHT.• The larger the garden area you have; the larger the worm bins/beds needed to support it. • All worms will compost, but the larger the worms, the more they will (EAT) compost. Our Garden Mix contains worms commonly known as: African Nightcrawlers, Red Worms, Eisenia Foetida, Red Wigglers, “Alabama Jumpers” and European Nightcrawlers.
Feeding the worms - having access to animal manures – sheep, rabbit, cow, horse, dog or cat is ideal. Be certain that they have NOT been recently Wormed. Kitchen scraps can be fed, (no meat or dairy, they cannot digest it) it must be chopped into small pieces or run through a blender and BURIED to keep the flies at a minimum. The moisture level should be 70 – 80%. This is especially important to monitor on outside beds. An easy test is to pick up a handful and squeeze with the strength of a good firm handshake – ONE or two drops of water should come out, no more, no less!Introducing the worms to your beds is simple. Dig holes 3”- 5” deep scattered throughout the bedding or make a few 3”- 5” deep trenches, drop in the worms and cover them up. Then leave them alone! Using a light can help to keep the worms “down”. Check them in a few hours, be certain they are still “down”. Any "topside" worms should be buried again. Should this happen again re-evaluate the bedding and moisture content. If your worms are crawling out of your beds or dying off, there is something wrong with your beds. The most common errors are: over feeding (inviting ants and/or flies), moisture levels too high or low, bed is over populated, temperatures are extreme hot or cold beyond their liking.Worms can be harvested in many different ways. As the worms work the compost you can harvest the worms and transfer from one bin to another to start the process over again. The most popular is by sifting the worms through a screen to separate the worms from the bedding. One can also use a bright light on a pile of worms and castings and gradually pull away the bedding; the worms will pile up trying to get away from the light. There are also various shakers and/or rollers on the internet to aid in harvesting.If this sounds like it may be more work than you wish to do; we do have FOR SALE our CWM 100, Composted Worm Manure in bags. We fill up 50 pound feed bags. They are 50 pounds and are always available by appointment. You may call and place the order and set a date and time you would like to pick up your order.Questions? Should you have any questions we are always happy to help. Contact us by contacting info@bestbuyworms.us or phone (352) 573-0166 Mike or Dee Blaha
These bins should be set up with watered bedding soaked for 24 hours (or more) in advance to allow for full saturation. Pick up a handful and squeeze with the strength of a good firm handshake – ONE or two drops of water should come out, no more, no less! The bed should be started with any materials readily available of any combination of peat moss, shredded paper, cardboard, composted yard waste or manures (that have cooled down), leaves and/or small branches. Essentially any biodegradable material can be composted using worms. The smaller the bins, the more time you will have to spend monitoring and maintaining the bed, being especially aware of the food & moisture levels as well as quantity of worms appropriate for the space provided. (If you crowd the worms they will not grow and reproduce well. Much like a fish in the tank, they will grow only as the space will allows.) Larger gardens will require much larger worm beds to be maintained. We recommend building 4’ X 4’ or 4’ X 8’ beds using any inexpensive and easily obtained materials such as landscaping timbers, cement blocks, metal siding, old bathtubs, wood pallets or refrigerators; essentially any material that can “contain” the worms. However, we prefer ground beds, the advantage of the worms being able to travel down deeper when the temperatures drop below their liking is a real benefit. They come back “up” when it warms. Ideally you want your bed to be at LEAST 12” deep - 18” is better. If you have your beds on the ground, you do not need to line the bottom. However, if your area is prone to nuisance critters like moles, racoons, possums or armadillos, you may wish to use a plastic or metal wire screen on the bottom of your beds to keep critters from tunneling under your beds and feasting unbeknown to you.We are often asked “how many worms do I need to get started?” Typically, 1 - 2 pounds in a 40 - 70 gallon bin will give you a good start. The best answer is “When do you want to begin using the composted soil?” • The more worms you start with the quicker the process will work.• Worms will double or triple their population in 90 - 120 days if - ALL the conditions are RIGHT.• The larger the garden area you have; the larger the worm bins/beds needed to support it. • All worms will compost, but the larger the worms, the more they will (EAT) compost. Our Garden Mix contains worms commonly known as: African Nightcrawlers, Red Worms, Eisenia Foetida, Red Wigglers, “Alabama Jumpers” and European Nightcrawlers.
Feeding the worms - having access to animal manures – sheep, rabbit, cow, horse, dog or cat is ideal. Be certain that they have NOT been recently Wormed. Kitchen scraps can be fed, (no meat or dairy, they cannot digest it) it must be chopped into small pieces or run through a blender and BURIED to keep the flies at a minimum. The moisture level should be 70 – 80%. This is especially important to monitor on outside beds. An easy test is to pick up a handful and squeeze with the strength of a good firm handshake – ONE or two drops of water should come out, no more, no less!Introducing the worms to your beds is simple. Dig holes 3”- 5” deep scattered throughout the bedding or make a few 3”- 5” deep trenches, drop in the worms and cover them up. Then leave them alone! Using a light can help to keep the worms “down”. Check them in a few hours, be certain they are still “down”. Any "topside" worms should be buried again. Should this happen again re-evaluate the bedding and moisture content. If your worms are crawling out of your beds or dying off, there is something wrong with your beds. The most common errors are: over feeding (inviting ants and/or flies), moisture levels too high or low, bed is over populated, temperatures are extreme hot or cold beyond their liking.Worms can be harvested in many different ways. As the worms work the compost you can harvest the worms and transfer from one bin to another to start the process over again. The most popular is by sifting the worms through a screen to separate the worms from the bedding. One can also use a bright light on a pile of worms and castings and gradually pull away the bedding; the worms will pile up trying to get away from the light. There are also various shakers and/or rollers on the internet to aid in harvesting.If this sounds like it may be more work than you wish to do; we do have FOR SALE our CWM 100, Composted Worm Manure in bags. We fill up 50 pound feed bags. They are 50 pounds and are always available by appointment. You may call and place the order and set a date and time you would like to pick up your order.Questions? Should you have any questions we are always happy to help. Contact us by contacting info@bestbuyworms.us or phone (352) 573-0166 Mike or Dee Blaha
** These are the methods we practice at our farm. We are not responsible for your results **.