Comments on: Worm Inn Journal – 09-29-09

By: shitzandwiggles

shitzandwiggles — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:19:54 +0000

Oh Ok was curious cuz I’ve only seen the worm inn never heard of the pro before. And yes digging deep you have a wealth of information on your site will take a while to catch up on all of it. Thanks.

By: Bentley

Bentley — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:04:20 +0000

It seems you’ve found an older post!
While there USED to be a regular Worm Inn and a “Pro” version – all Worm Inns now offer the pro features (and the older model is no longer sold).
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By: shitzandwiggles

shitzandwiggles — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:57:08 +0000

Just curious what is/are the difference/s between the worm inn and the worm inn pro?

By: Bentley

Bentley — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 16:46:29 +0000

Thanks Drew 8)
That is really interesting re: the ecosystem mix you bought. I haven’t heard of anyone else selling the stuff (although they SHOULD in my humble opinion). 8 or 9 pounds of the stuff PLUS a heap of worms certainly sounds like a fair amount (can see why you are off to the races!) – my ecosystem mix is mainly just the leftover habitat, although there would still be some adults (along with the babies and cocoons). I’m still confident that it won’t take too long to get going though!

I agree with you about the ecosystem mix being a better way to get started. For one thing you are letting the worm population grow naturally on its own (not forcing a high concentration of worms to adapt to a new habitat). It also provides any worms that are in the mix with more quality habitat they are used to living in (and of course introduces a bunch of other beneficial critters into the system). It is less stressful for the worms since they are not really handled, nor are they crowded.

Research has also shown that worm raised in a given habitat do much better in it that adults introduced into that habitat.

There are obviously still plenty of situations where it will make more sense to go with concentrated batches of worms – but for anyone wanting to ease themselves into vermicomposting, and not pay so much to get started, I think the ecosystem is a good option.
8)

By: Drew

Drew — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:40:29 +0000

Bentley,

I want to start by saying I really appreciate your website. Not only do you provide great information, your enthusiasm is contagious. In part because of your site, I’ve recently started vermicomposting after a 1 yr. break. I’m also planning to trench compost once I have more worms.

You mention using a ‘compost ecosystem’ to start your new Worm Inn. I purchased something like this from a local source (SF Bay area) and started up 2 stackable worm bins. Both bins pretty much immediately started processing food (small amounts) and are doing great 2 weeks later.

Here is the description of the ‘compost ecosystem’ I purchased:
“Vermi Start-up Kit: 5-7 lbs of bedding, 1 lb. worms (1000+) worm eggs and microorganisms.”

The bedding is basically the compost the worms were being raised in. It’s hard to say if there were a full pound of worms in there, but the ecosystem I took home was closer to 8-9 lbs and definitely full of cocoons along with worms of all sizes. I used a single “kit” to start 2 worm bins and it still seemed to work fairly well. My amateur opinion is that these ‘compost ecosystems’ are a better way to start a new worm bin. I’ll be interested to hear your observations in the coming weeks.

Andrew