Vermicomposters Unite! Official Worm Farmers Thread

[DonTesla]

Is it easier for the worms to consume the fruits mashed up after thawing out? If so, I'm gonna incorporate that technique next feeding. I just put the bananas, broken into smaller pieces after thawing, and strawberries right under the soil without smashing it up.

Absolutely Joe, give it a shot.

Though they love strawberries they will mould quickly too, so the freezing thawing and mashing helps the worms win the "bacterial" race .

Wet dogs' right as well- they have no teeth at all..In fact, they like to use sand and rocks/shells/other particles in the soil to clean out their bodies.

******************************

>>>An aloe Vera skin wrapped around this super crop wound that snapped halfway thru, working great with some medical tape on the aloe so the plant remains untouched by glues...

 

[DonBrennon]

Absolutely Joe, give it a shot.

Though they love strawberries they will mould quickly too, so the freezing thawing and mashing helps the worms win the "bacterial" race .

Wet dogs' right as well- they have no teeth at all..In fact, they like to use sand and rocks/shells/other particles in the soil to clean out their bodies.

******************************

>>>An aloe Vera skin wrapped around this super crop wound that snapped halfway thru, working great with some medical tape on the aloe so the plant remains untouched by glues...

View attachment 3606774

I like that idea, do you think it could start rooting though? a bit like air layering

 

[DonTesla]

I like that idea, do you think it could start rooting though? a bit like air layering

That would be a sight to see, never thought about that !

Edit:
Probably will remove it in bout 48 hours or so, though..
Plants heal pretty fast

 

[Dr.D81]

Harvested one of my bins last night and started some tea

 

[Dr.D81]

Absolutely Joe, give it a shot.

Though they love strawberries they will mould quickly too, so the freezing thawing and mashing helps the worms win the "bacterial" race .

Wet dogs' right as well- they have no teeth at all..In fact, they like to use sand and rocks/shells/other particles in the soil to clean out their bodies.

******************************

>>>An aloe Vera skin wrapped around this super crop wound that snapped halfway thru, working great with some medical tape on the aloe so the plant remains untouched by glues...

View attachment 3606774

Just tape alone will heal it and not risk the rooting.

 

[hyroot]

I picked up some more worms today. Locally and for a great deal.





In their new home

 

[kkt3]

We juice, and the worms in my 2 bins love the leftover pulp from whatever we juice!!

 

[MustangStudFarm]

We juice, and the worms in my 2 bins love the leftover pulp from whatever we juice!!

I am glad that you brought that up! I recently got a Omega 8006... I might have to start using lemon at the very end, and catch it with something else!!! What about ginger, is that going to cause a problem also?

 

[MustangStudFarm]

I just found it, ginger is bad! Its not really that big of a problem... Is this the type of stuff that you can make bokashi out of? If I could bokashi citrus, onion, garlic, potato skins, and ginger then it might be worth it... Actually, I just came across an article that covers this very topic!!! I was starting to think that bokashi was worthless in my rotation!

http://treadingmyownpath.com/2015/02/19/bokashi-bins-the-whats-hows-and-whys/

 

[kkt3]

I don't do bokashi and also don't put any citrus or ginger into my worm bins. We juiced some apples and carrots yesterday and mixed the pulp in with some horse manure, chopped up banana peels, apple peels, carrot peels, oyster shell flour, alfalfa meal, dirt and ground up ganga leaf. the mixture sits in a closed plastic container for about a week then it gets fed to the worms.

 

[Grandpa GreenJeans]

Is it easier for the worms to consume the fruits mashed up after thawing out? If so, I'm gonna incorporate that technique next feeding. I just put the bananas, broken into smaller pieces after thawing, and strawberries right under the soil without smashing it up.

Anything we'll feed to the worms has a natural moisture content. When water freezes, it expands. This is what damages the tissues and solid form, and Concequently makes the item mushy. This is what speeds up the breakdown and assists the worms in an easy meal.

 

[Grandpa GreenJeans]

I just found it, ginger is bad! Its not really that big of a problem... Is this the type of stuff that you can make bokashi out of? If I could bokashi citrus, onion, garlic, potato skins, and ginger then it might be worth it... Actually, I just came across an article that covers this very topic!!! I was starting to think that bokashi was worthless in my rotation!

http://treadingmyownpath.com/2015/02/19/bokashi-bins-the-whats-hows-and-whys/

Puree the ginger and ferment it in a mason jar. Or add it into the bokashi fermenter. It's a good pest repellent. Fungi and bacteria will eat basically anything, but gnats, aphids, mites, ect... wont. Bokashi is so much more valuable than being noted for it closed system composting. All those microbes you can't get in any other fashion.

 

[Grandpa GreenJeans]

I am glad that you brought that up! I recently got a Omega 8006... I might have to start using lemon at the very end, and catch it with something else!!! What about ginger, is that going to cause a problem also?
View attachment 3608083

Props on the maceration juicer!
I have a champion and I love it! It even chews through asparagus with ease!

 

[calliandra]

Puree the ginger and ferment it in a mason jar. Or add it into the bokashi fermenter. It's a good pest repellent. Fungi and bacteria will eat basically anything, but gnats, aphids, mites, ect... wont. Bokashi is so much more valuable than being noted for it closed system composting. All those microbes you can't get in any other fashion.

But bokashi is actually an anaerobic process, so the microbes are bound to be anaerobic-loving ones =problem causers in the soil? Or does the compost worms' processing take care of that?
Also, I'm wondering if bokashi gets hot enough to kill off pathogens?

 

[Grandpa GreenJeans]

But bokashi is actually an anaerobic process, so the microbes are bound to be anaerobic-loving ones =problem causers in the soil? Or does the compost worms' processing take care of that?
Also, I'm wondering if bokashi gets hot enough to kill off pathogens?

Anerobic microorganisms are bad, but not all of them. By culturing the EM1 serum, we're only allowing a select few anerobes to proliferate. These are flaculative and they have dual purposes in different enviroments. But the microbes needed to make bokashi is mainly lacto bacillus and it wards off any truly bad anerobes. No worries! The same probiotic reason that I eat Greek yogurt and drink keifer, the worms will benifit from too.

Now, we know that worms rely on bacterial presence in their enviroment and within their guts. But...... a worms gut isn't aerobic, it's anerobic. Yes there's aerobic in the castings but they wernt always like that, only after they left the worms body.

Bokashi does not get hot, at all. It may warm up some but not to the point that alfalfa or seed meals will. But while bokashi is in its fermenter it is a cold composting method.

 

[Grandpa GreenJeans]

Notice the purple rainbow hue to my worms? Bokashi, EM1, avacado and yeast protein powder. Amongst many other food sources, but I focus mainly on these.

 

[mucha_mota]

can i use coffee ground as a "grit" so to speak? not always. just until i can score some oyster shell flour. egg shells too. i want to stash, bake off, & pre-process. im not an egg eater. & i forget to grab the shells from work lately. coffee grounds, i mean its the liquid of life.

 

[DonBrennon]

Notice the purple rainbow hue to my worms?

I noticed the purple hue on your thumbnail pmsl..................ouch, must've hurt, I'm in the construction industry and get them often, nothing worse than the end of your thumb throbbing so much it feels like it's gonna explode

 

[Grandpa GreenJeans]

can i use coffee ground as a "grit" so to speak? not always. just until i can score some oyster shell flour. egg shells too. i want to stash, bake off, & pre-process. im not an egg eater. & i forget to grab the shells from work lately. coffee grounds, i mean its the liquid of life.

Totally liquid life!
The grounds will add some "aggregate" like qualities, but if you have oyster flour, I'd opt for that first. Egg shells are good, but most people can't get them to the proper "ground" like consistency. Personally, I'd use a food processor or motor and pedistal, to get that fine grade, that the worms can gulp in with the rest of the mess.

 

[Grandpa GreenJeans]

Now with coffee, you want to be conservative until the worms adjust to the predominant food source. Grounds being very acidic and high in N, may shock the worms if too much is added at once.
Also, make sure the worms have an additional food source. One that they're familiar with and readily feed upon. This way the acclimation to a new predominantly acidic food source is a smooth transition.