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Tiny Red ‘Bugs’ in Worm Bin

A question from Kelly

We recently started our bin. Picked up a large bucket of
worms/compost from Growing Power here in Milwaukee. Set up our bin
with bedding and food etc. we went on vacation for a week came back
and the inside lid had tons of water moisture on it. We actually
dumped it off (so we drilled more holes for air to release) BUT, we
also discoved little itsy bitsy tiny red bugs…the size of a
strawberry seed all over the inside lid were the water was trapped.
Is this a problem? Can it get worse? What can I do?

Hi Kelly,
It definitely sounds as though you have had a population explosion of mites (more closely related to spiders than insects). Check out the photo I’ve included below – do your ‘bugs’ look anything like the brownish-red critters? (the other guys are Springtails, by the way)
Mites VERY common in worm bins – especially your typical, enclosed plastic bin. Generally this isn’t something to need to worry about too much. They won’t harm your worms, and are just taking advantage of an available food source.

Mites and Springtails
Mites and Springtails on rotting melon

They seem to love wet conditions and water-rich food wastes like cucumber and melon. As I’ve written previously, now that I am using open systems (much drier and more air flow), I hardly see any of the common worm bin mites anymore – I’m sure some of them are still there, but likely living down where the moisture levels are higher.

I’d suggestion drilling a bunch more air holes (sounds like you are way ahead of me there) and adding lots of dry, absorbent bedding at the top of your bin to help create a drier environment in this zone. Also, if there seems to be excess food waste in the bin, you may want to cut back on the amount you are feeding your worms.

Hope this helps!
8)

Written by Bentley on April 20th, 2009 with 7 comments.
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7 comments

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Get your own gravatar by visiting gravatar.com Ellee
#1. April 28th, 2009, at 5:30 PM.

Hi. I am trying to harvest my compost and have set about putting the food into one side and have reduced the bedding so that I can have the compost. However the worms are not moving to the other side. I suspect they want to finish the remaining food in their side. Also I have noticed black bugs that are long with mini horns on top and the red mites. I do not know whether the red mites turn into the black horned insects but I don’t know how to deal with this. They don’t seem to bug the worms but how the heck did these insects get into the compost bin to begin with?

Thanks

Get your own gravatar by visiting gravatar.com Dave
#2. May 15th, 2009, at 11:35 PM.

I experienced a massive bloom of mites after adding too many banana peels to the scraps, so many mites that the top of the composter was seething with them and the worms weren’t coming up to eat. I have a plastic worm condo so it was difficult for me reach a moisture balance to get rid of them. I finally resorted to covering the top layer of compost with slivers of honeydew melon over night and the next morning taking one sliver off at a time and quickly scorching the mites with my handy little chef’s butane torch. Then I cut back on all fruits and so far so good.

Get your own gravatar by visiting gravatar.com BertTrinder
#3. March 3rd, 2010, at 2:28 AM.

i had the RED MITE in my two worm farms .And i got rid of them by placeing two very ripe avacado over night and taking the avacados out every morning and wash them under the cold water .Idid it for about a week no more RED MITE .Iwill add i placed the avacados on a lid of two liter ice cream container they seem to find they way to the avacados

Get your own gravatar by visiting gravatar.com BertTrinder
#4. March 3rd, 2010, at 2:33 AM.

I hope this will help every body that has thoes MITES in their worm farms

Get your own gravatar by visiting gravatar.com Bentley
#5. March 11th, 2010, at 2:55 PM.

Thanks for sharing that Bert! Sounds like a great idea. I’ve heard of people doing the same using melons etc and it seems to be a great strategy.
8)

Get your own gravatar by visiting gravatar.com Whitney
#6. May 5th, 2010, at 4:11 AM.

I have had a swarm of itsy bitsy bugs also emerge in my worm bin. We have finally moved it outside because the bugs were getting onto the plant starters in the garage windows. Two questions: how can I get them off the plants, organically? And will the worms be okay outside in their plastic bin? (79-80 F days under a willow tree; 40s F at night)

Thank you!

Get your own gravatar by visiting gravatar.com Bentley
#7. May 6th, 2010, at 2:58 PM.

Hi Whitney,
I’d need to see a picture of these bugs to have any idea re: what to do about them. I don’t know of any worm bin critters that pose issues for plants other than fungus gnats (whose larvae can harm seedlings).

As long as the worms have LOTS of aeration and are never in direct sunlight I think they should be ok outside but you really do need to be careful will small plastic bin systems (with lids on that is)

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