Comments on: A Mite is a Mite is a Mite? Not Quite!

By: Bentley

Bentley — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:17:29 +0000

Hi Kate – interesting that you mentioned adding the pumpkin waste. One of the things I have noticed about mites is that they seem to absolutely LOVE cucumber family waste materials – so melons, squash, pumpkins etc.
I my previous response (above) I mention a way you can remove quite a few mites using pieces of cucumber etc as a trap.

I myself would personally just let everything sit for awhile – maybe just add moistened cardboard for food. Once all the food waste has become nicely processed you should see the mite population decrease.

By: Kate in Sacramento

Kate in Sacramento — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 03:38:27 +0000

I found this article because I have both brown and white mites in my outside box in HUGE numbers. This happened before and I had to physically remove them. I took out all my worms and put them in a plastic bin then used the “light sorting” method to remove the compost/bedding etc. and then I was left with a huge writhing mass of mites. I took a Bar-B-Que scoop out and dumped several scoops of mites into a bucket of water. Life in the bin was good for several months but they are back. I was feeding chopped up pumpkin from several neighbors Halloween decorations and obviously over did it. Challenge is that I have A LOT more worms now and I don’t want to pull them all out again.

Here is my question – Will the mites go away when the bin gets back to normal feeding or will the population stay put and just eat what ever is around? I have been using the cucumber method to get rid of them but only the brown mites are taking the bate.

By: Bentley

Bentley — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:58:53 +0000

Hi Lindsay – unfortunately the only real suggestion I have for you is to leave chunks of watermelon (EDIT: Just read that you don’t have watermelon – whoops) canteloupe, squash, cucumber etc in the bin for a few hours then remove them and wash the mites off. If you do this over and over I would imagine the numbers could be reduced quite drastically. Just be sure not to leave the materials in long enough to actually lead to more mites being produced.

Maybe some camouflage would also help – add LOTS of shredded newspaper etc so they are not as obvious.

Lastly, when it comes down to it education is the key. Assure people that these are COMPOSTING mites that feed on decaying organic matter – they will not live for an extended period outside the bin nor will they cause any harm to the students.

By: Lindsay

Lindsay — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:16:25 +0000

Are there any other ways to get those red mites out of a bin? I work in a school and I’m concerned the parents of my science students will freak! I don’t have access to watermelon until summer…

By: Bentley

Bentley — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 13:25:23 +0000

Hey Cameron,
I have yet to even see a “red” mite in my own bins, so I can’t really comment on your observations (other than to thank you for sharing – very interesting).
I do have some other interesting findings to share however (observed after writing this post). The brownish species of mite that I commonly find in my worm bins, while seemingly harmless to worms, actually DOES seem to be an arthropod parasite. I have found groups of them attached to the back of insects, insect larvae and sow bugs on a number of occasions. I am glad you posted your comment since it has reminded me that I wanted to write a post about this!

By: Cameron Willis

Cameron Willis — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 06:59:01 +0000

I’m not certain about the red mites. I’ve found them all over a number of dead, dying or other erratic worms, several of which had cysts or abscesses on them. I realize that this may be a coincidence; perhaps my worms are dying of something else, and the mites are feeding on them. But the close coincidence of red mites appearing and then dying worms suggest these may be something unusual. On the other hand, are you aware of any diseases of worms leading to large cysts and erratic, pained or stunned behaviour? I have a small bin, with no problems for six months, and I’ve even managed to introduce sowbugs as a secondary detrivore group, and they are definitely untouched by any parasites (though I realize that annelids and crustaceans are NOTHING alike). Troubling, all the same.

By: Pam from Canada

Pam from Canada — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:01:14 +0000

Hi there,

Found your article on mites very interesting. I have been doing tons of research on these little guys lately as my whole vegetable garden is INFESTED with predatory mites. I realize they are good guys but I have been trying to knock down the population to one or two zillion as I seem to come away from my garden CRAWLING with mites and hate my kids to go anywhere near the beds. (They are all over in the grass surrounding the raised beds as well.) I filled my garden beds with city compost that had obviously had these little guys in it. Any idea how I may rid just a few of these mites? I have tried Diatomaceous Earth, and sulpher and they did nothing at all! Please Help?!

Thanks,

Pam from Canada

By: Jenn

Jenn — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 20:07:59 +0000

So I’m curious, are these mites bad for my veggie garden? I mean, if I’m transferring the castings (which have mites) into my veggie garden, are they gonna start feasting on my goodies?

By: Bentley

Bentley — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 15:17:16 +0000

Thanks, Brenda – glad the article helped!
A lot of people (understandably) worry when they notice LOTS of other creatures in their bin aside from worms – it is kind of a knee jerk reaction since most of us have basically been trained (via media etc) to assume that lots of ‘bugs’ are a ‘bad’ thing.
It sounds like do definitely have the right perspective!

By: Brenda

Brenda — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 00:43:55 +0000

Thanks for the article! I had one small bin that i left alone for 2 months, and it was sludgy (but not smelly) and completely covered in the small brown mites. I knew they were too small to be worm eggs, and then they i realized they were actually moving very slowly. It freaked me out, and i spent all day today wondering if they were a bad omen. You explaination was great.
Btw, I often have the small white “salt” and didn’t know what it was, but it never seemed to do anything bad, so i usually leave them alone and bin conditions eventually balance themselves out.