October 23, 2008

Worm Bin Bedding

Here are a couple questions from Marc:

I just started a worm bin per your video instructions. So far so good. Well, it’s only been a few days. But I do have a question. Once I’ve done the original bedding, moistened everything, added food scraps, let it stew for a week, and added the worms… is there any reason to add more bedding materials? Do I just keep adding kitchen waste and no more bedding?

Here’s another question, how small of a bin have you attempted? I have friends interested but space is an issue. Is three gallons too small?

Thanks, I really like the site.

Thanks Marc!
These are good questions.
Firstly, let’s talk about bedding. These materials – typically a carbon-rich and absorbent – are really important in a typical ‘worm bin’ vermicomposting system since they absorb excess moisture, help to balance the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio, increase air flow, and help to create a safe habitat matrix for the worms.

In my humble option, it’s not a bad idea to add a small handful of new bedding every time you add wet food wastes to your bin, and on a fairly regular basis in general. If you stop adding them altogether you will notice that conditions start to get really soggy in the bin, and/or there will be lots of liquid down in the reservoir (if you’ve made the ‘deluxe’ bin). Your system may also start to stink due the increased moisture content and reduced air flow.

As for creating a small worm bin – I say go for it! The bins I made in my YouTube videos (deluxe and basic) are actually very small systems – likely in the 3 gallon range. You definitely need to be careful with the amount of food you add to small systems however, since you can end up overfeeding them quite easily. Other than that, the same basic principles (of vermicomposting) apply.

Hope this helps!
8)

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Different Kinds of Lime

I’ve decided to include two reader questions here since they are somewhat related.

Our first question comes from Hibou:

Hello,
I’ve read that a bit of lime is very good for garden soil. Is it good for my vermicompost bin? If so, which type? Wikipedia tells me that “agricultural lime is” mainly calcium carbonate (CaCO3). However, the lime I’ve got my hands on is “slaked lime,” i.e. calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2), the by-product of acetylene gas. Thus it’s mixed with a bit of calcium carbide (CaC2) as well. What do you think? Will my worms appreciate it?
Thank you,
Hibou

Hi Hibou – I’m really glad you wrote in with this question since this is an important topic to talk about. Firstly, yes you can certainly add lime to your worm bin in moderate amounts to help keep the pH balanced somewhat and provide a source of calcium for the worms. Is it vitally important to do so? Definitely not – composting worms actually tend to prefer a somewhat more acidic environment (similar to the one they are used to in their ‘natural’ habitats such as compost heaps etc), so you really don’t need to get hung up on the pH issue. That being said, if you ARE giving your worms a lot of acidic foods such as tomatoes or juicer waste (citrus etc), you will more than likely need to provide at least a little lime supplementation. One thing I definitely DON’T recommend you do is wait until your bin goes ‘sour’, then try to rectify the situation by dumping lots of lime in – you’ll more than likely just end up making matters worse for yourself. Rapid shifts in pH can wreak havoc on your bin ecosystem, and ultimately your worms.

Ok – now on to the different types of lime. This is REALLY important since there are a variety of different materials called “lime”. You want your lime to be CaCO3 – 95% or higher. One exception is ‘dolomitic lime’ which basically has a 50:50 ratio of CaCO3 and MgCO3 – it is ok as well. You definitely DO NOT want ‘hyrdrated lime’, ‘builders lime’, or ‘slaked lime’ (all similar) since these can be caustic and thus not worm-friendly.

Hopefully you have not added your slaked lime to your bin yet! Your worms will definitely not appreciate it.


Next, we have a question from Nick:

Are seashells (Calcium carbonate and chetin) OK to use in my
bedding, instead of eggshells or limestone? I live close to a beach full of seashells, and would be criminal not to take advantage of the millions of seashells washed ashore every day. Hopefully, there will be no adverse effects on my red Wigglers. I am a beginer in vermicomposting and would feel really bad, if I inadvertently harmed the breaders.

Hi Nick,
I am a big fan of slow-release sources of CaCO3, so I would give a big thumbs-up for seashells. I use eggshells myself, but I suspect seashells (that have been washed with fresh water to avoid adding salt to your bin, and perhaps crushed with a hammer) would provide a similar source of calcium. Moderation would be important, as always – you certainly don’t want a worm bin full of sea shell shards (try saying that 3 times fast!!), as these would likely be quite abrasive.

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Get Yer Worm Inn – Step Right Up

Hey, guess what – this is my 200th blog post! Whoohoo.
Unfortunately I don’t have anything overly captivating for you, but maybe I can plan something fancy for when I hit 500 (if I haven’t retired before then – haha).
8)

I just wanted to let everyone know that my Worm Inn sales page is finally live. If you think you might be interested in buying one be sure to check it out. Rumor has it they make a pretty interesting and unique Christmas gift!
😉

I’m sad to say that Robyn no longer carries the camo design (the sweet, badboy I’ve now got hanging in my basement), but she mentioned potentially bringing back some form of camo if people show interest. Speaking of my Worm Inn – as mentioned in my last post (on this topic), I’ll really be putting my system to the test. I will be introducing 3 lbs of Red Worms to the system, and will certainly keep everyone posted on how that works out for me.

[tags]worm inn, worm bin, flow through, continuous- flow, red worms, red wigglers, composting worms, vermicomposting, worm composting[/tags]

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