Comments on: Red Worm Cocoon Production in Different Materials

By: Bentley

Bentley — Tue, 08 Jan 2019 18:14:57 +0000

Janet – you need to be extra careful with poultry manures. Very different ‘can of worms’ (lol) than horse and various other livestock manures. Tends to be dry, with high salt content and tendency to give off ammonia gas (salts and ammonia are very dangerous for worms).
If you want to use them I would recommend mixing them with a lot of carbon-rich bedding materials (straw, cardboard etc), soaking down, and basically letting the mix compost outdoors. Once it is darker in color with a more pleasant (somewhat earthy) odor it should be fine. Test on a small scale first.

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John – I definitely understand that not everyone has access to manure, and agree that the more typical materials, like you mentioned, would be interesting to compare. You should try your mix in some little tubs (I’d suggest a bedding like cardboard or shredded paper as well though) with 4 worms and see what happens!
😎

By: Bentley

Bentley — Tue, 08 Jan 2019 18:08:38 +0000

Caleb – by the time you read this, I may have posted my 21 day results. Definitely some interesting surprises, and yes cardboard was a strong treatment for sure (especially second half of the 3 week period).

As for aged horse manure – it’s been one of my favorite materials for many years now. Straight manure vs vermicomposted horse manure are definitely quite different. Same sort of idea as basically any organic waste – and the compost you make with it. The finished stuff will be very rich in stable humus, plant-available nutrients, and even potentially various plant growth promoters (in case of worm worked material, that is – not regular compost). Aged horse manure could be just fine for a garden (especially if well aged) – and may essentially be a compost by that point. Fresh stuff can be a bit more unpredictable. Sounds like another great idea for an experiment! Haha

By: John Anderson

John Anderson — Tue, 08 Jan 2019 16:06:58 +0000

I see all three of your tubs contain horse manure. I for one have no access to horse manure. My primary mix is aged leaf litter, coffee grounds and kitchen scraps. Would you at some time consider several mixes all with different base media?

THANKS,
John

By: janet jaromscak

janet jaromscak — Tue, 08 Jan 2019 14:05:53 +0000

can you use chicken poop instead of horse manure?

By: Caleb

Caleb — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 23:23:08 +0000

I’m with John W, I’d think the cardboard will be the perfect combo with the manure to increase cocoon count.

Another question on the Horse Manure specifically since I see you’ve started using it more recently. What difference is there in garden productivity with straight horse manure put into the garden vs worm processed horse manure? I’m curious how much difference the one to two month additional processing makes, if any.

By: John W.

John W. — Wed, 26 Dec 2018 03:08:58 +0000

My vote is on the horse manure and cardboard mix.