Comments on: Homemade Manure

By: Bentley

Bentley — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:57:25 +0000

Hi Wade – that’s a good question. I’ve never encountered issues with manure that has been allowed to age for a period of time outdoors. I say go for it – just to be safe, why not test out a small amount first?

By: Wade Watts

Wade Watts — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 02:45:32 +0000

I to have some horse manure that I got from a farrier. I am sure that the horses that were in her stalls have been dewormed. I was told not to use horse manure where horses had been dewormed, it was bad for worms, is this true, it is probably 4 to 5 months old.
I have red wigglers, European night crawlers and African night crawlers.
What say you, use it or don’t use it?

By: Bentley

Bentley — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:33:28 +0000

Sorry ANN – I missed your comment there!

I generally caution people about using manure in enclosed worm bins – especially if it hasn’t been aged for all that long. The problem is that it can off-gas ammonia which is very toxic to the worms. With open systems this is not an issue, and as long as the worms have some good habitat to retreat into (assuming the manure isn’t ready yet), they should be totally fine.

If we are talking about fresh manure here, I generally recommend piling it outside and letting it sit for a few weeks or more. You can also actively (hot) compost it for 1-2 weeks prior to vermicompost in order to help stabilize it and get rid of excess ammonia etc.

By: Bentley

Bentley — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:41:51 +0000

Thanks for sharing, Dan! I am glad that the homemade manure has worked out so well for you!

By: Dan

Dan — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:57:36 +0000

G’Day Vermicomposters!
After a couple of experiments with food and bedding I have found that home made manure (food scraps blended in food processor and horse manure) is the best food for my worms. I have an open bin system and I overcome the aeration problem by using larger pieces of egg carton as my bedding (this also helps during the seperation of castings) the food is digested quicker, the worms reproduce quicker and the castings are seperated more easily. What more could you ask for?

By: Ann Duncan

Ann Duncan — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:43:31 +0000

SO glad to find this post and these comments. Pretty new to vermiculture and have a lot to learn!

One question my on-line searching hasn’t answered fully yet is – how to use horse manure safely in the worm bin.

I have a small box of horse manure a neighbor gave me about a month ago (had dewormed his horses 3 wks prior). It’s harvest time for my worm bin and I’m preparing the new bedding, curious as to what I need to do with the manure before adding it. It’s been sitting in a cardboard box on my back patio.

Any suggestions/advice welcome!

Blessings…

By: Mark Again

Mark Again — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 20:37:30 +0000

Well, after doing some googling I found that some anglers do keep lobs. They seem to have had success with pretty traditional wormery bedding (ie shredded cardboard). And they seem to feed them mashed potatoes to fatten them up! Having read this I decided to investigate my soil-bin. I tipped it all out and had a good look through. There were very few worms in the soil that had been in the bottom of the barrel (it’s one of those big blue plastic barrels – sort of like an oil-drum). There were lots of worms in the layers of rotting organic material (horse manure etc). Lots of worms were in there looking very healthy. There were plenty of small worms which I think must have been born in the barrel and some cocoons that were MUCH bigger than composting worm cocoons. Therefore I think that lob worms do breed in “captivity”! Now I have read that the reproductive cycle is very long and that’s why they aren’t really commercially viable. But I am just doing it out of a love of worms anyway. I put some shredded cardboard in my barrel and replace most of the material in which worms were living. I then topped it off with some horse manure. I plan to leave it alone for as long as possible, apart from to feed them of course!

By: Mark

Mark — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 07:58:43 +0000

Hi, I have enjoyed this discussion. Some time ago I used to blend my worm food. My wife insisted I buy a separate blender as she didn’t like me using the kitchen one for this purpose. Anyway, I’d got out of the habit, but I am back into it again now in a big way. I tend to blend egg shells, tea-bags, apple cores, banana peel and other nice bits of vegetable matter I pick out of the general composting bin. I have several wormeries so I usually let the mixture sit a while then share it out.

I had been blending egg cartons right in there, but I might stop that and just tear them after reading your comment, Bentley.

I have a question. As well as my composting worms, I have a barrel full of soil in which I keep some soil-dwelling earthworms. This is mainly just for the fun of it, although my father-in-law does sometimes ask me for worms for fishing. I have heard that soil-dwelling worms don’t breed well in captivity – although mine do seem to be multiplying. I generally don’t disturb them at all, and just keep them moist with the occasional addition of some horse-manure or home-made compost. Anyway … I was wondering if they would appreciate some of the “home-made manure” – I have added some and haven’t noticed any ill-effects (ie they’re not crawling up the sides of the barrel in disgust!).
mark

By: Bentley

Bentley — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:18:44 +0000

SUSAN – Just noticed that I hadn’t replied! Sorry about that. You are right – adding cat waste to a regular worm bin might not be the best idea! I have a separate system for the task.

———
CANDIN – Thawing is important since this allows the microbes to then quickly invade the materials (since partially broken down from feezing) – it also helps avoid excess water release into your bin. For a summer bin however, adding it frozen is a great idea since it will help to cool the system, and moisture is often needed anyway.

By: Candin

Candin — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 21:27:43 +0000

I too have been adding frozen scraps without thawing. I have an outdoor inground bed and just put some shredded newsprint in there with the small hole dug for the feedstock. What is the actual purpose of thawing anyway? In the heat where I live, the frozen stock would seem like a homecoming to the worms. Its like the frozen bottles I out on top of the bed in the summer heat.

The dry newsprint helps to absorb the excess moisture left by the frozen stock.

Regards

Candin