Tag Archives: red wigglers

Worm Farming Heat Hacks

7 Jun

Summer arrived early this year and it’s August in June here in South Texas.   Help your worms beat the heat with a few tips.

  1. Ice bottles.  Partially fill plastic bottles w/ water and freeze.  Add frozen bottles to your worm bins in the morning.  Pick them up and re freeze overnight and repeat.
  2. Shade.  If moving your worm bins in doors is not an option add shade cloth or move to a shady area.  Especially from the afternoon sun.
  3. Keep moist- Add a drip line and/ or keep beds covered w/ mulch or old rug.  Covering will protect worms and help keep in moisture.
  4.  Add insulation –  add more bedding and in ground beds are a couple of ways to keep things from heating up and keep your worms happier in the heat.

These are a few tips to help get your worms through the summer.   Share any ideas or successful hacks you’ve come up with in your part of the world.

Jumpers1_1_1

 

Maggots in my worm bin?

30 Apr

Below is a picture from a customer who asked the question, “What are these in my bin and are they harmful to the worms”?  These are probably black soldier fly larvae.  They are a little unsightly, but are good composters in their own right and are not harmful to your worms.  These tend to show up in my manure piles when the weather heats up.  I will remove them most of the time from my worm bin if they show up, but it is not necessary.

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DIY Raised Worm Bed.

28 Apr

Here’s another example of a raised bed for worms.  It’s next to the house and gets full shade.  It’s next to a spicket for easy access to water and/or drip irrigation.  I used some landscaping blocks to construct the borders and filled it with compost. After adding a Tx Jumper Starter, I cut a piece of old carpet to cover.  The cover acts as a permanent mulch blanket to keep in moisture and protects the worms.  I like carpet or an old rug because they last a long time, and I believe the weight gives the worms a sense of security that promotes surfacing and feeding.

wormbed

 

Within a few months of setting this up, the worms started to really take off.  I continue to keep moist, and fed with compost.  The worms do the rest.  It’s always fun to pull back the carpet and see a bunch of happy worms (Texas Jumpers).

happyworms

Pallet Compost Bin

26 Feb

Wood Pallet Composter

Check out this link to see how to make a compost bin out of pallets.  Pallets can usually be acquired for free and make a great bin for breaking down your organic matter before feeding your worms or your plants.

 

 

Robert’s European Nightcrawler Bed

20 Dec

I am looking to have a storage building built on my property and called a local builder that I came across at http://www.bbarns.com.  After talking a few minutes, we realized we had met earlier.  Turns out a year or more ago, Robert got a pound of European Nightcrawlers from me.  In addition to talking storage building construction, Robert talked all about how well his worm bed was doing and sent me this great pic.  Not only does he have a great looking worm bed, but his vegetable garden is the envy of the neighborhood.  Thanks for sharing, Robert.

Robert's ENC Bed

Weekend Worm Workshop Saturday 10/19 @ 33 Herff Road, Boerne, TX

17 Oct

Fall Garden Fest

TexasRedWorms will be in Boerne, TX this Saturday the 19th at 33 Herff Road, Boerne, TX.  We will be there to talk about composting with worms, setting up, and other how to information.

We’ll be there from 10am-11am Saturday morning.

redwormsOCT

Houston Based Startup Turning Juice Bar Pulp Into Black Gold

4 Oct

Solaris Ag Base from Houston, TX is producing worm castings from juice bars all over the Houston area.  Anson Woods and his team are expanding their operation into a warehouse facility.  Worm castings (black gold) the perfect fertilizer produced from nutrient dense juice pulp and coffee grounds by Anson’s worms.  Instead of filling up dumpsters, this waste is being used to produce soil enriching and life giving worm castings packed with pH neutral and beneficial micro-organisms.

Congrats to Anson and Solaris Ag Base on their continued success, and thank you for choosing Texas Red Worms as your composting worm supplier.

Take a look at this pic from Anson’s original worm farm.  What a gorgeous set up!Solaris Ag Base

State Master Gardener Composter Specialist Training June 12

3 Jun

Vermiculture/Worm Composting Presentation is scheduled from 3-4PM on Wed 12 June 2013 at the San Antonio Botanical Garden (Education Bldg or Auld House depending on room availability-TBD)

Kyle Harrell from TexasRedWorms.com will be presenting from 3-4PM focusing on setting up a simple worm bin, along with the benefits/challenges of vermicomposting in Texas.

Join us for worm composting and compost tea talk at the Alamo Heights Community Garden

16 Apr

Today Tuesday, April 16th, from 6-8pm at the Alamo Heights Community Garden Texas Red Worms will be with Green Spaces Alliance at 403 Ogden St.  Join us for instruction and discussion on worms, composting, and compost tea.

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Red Worms, Castings, and Eggs

14 Apr

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Spring is here and the worms are hungry.  Cocoons, and baby worms are appearing by the minute.  Here are a couple of pics from this week’s castings harvest.

April 13 cocoons

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