Tag Archives: vermicomposting

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.

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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).

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Paul’s worm bin in North Carolina

9 Apr

A big thank you to Paul in North Carolina for sending us these pics of his compost tumbler and worm bin.  Great work!

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Spring Fever Festival Sat. March 29, 2014 in Boerne, TX

28 Mar

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How to keep your nightcrawlers from “nightcrawling” out of your bin

4 Mar

When you start a new European nightcrawler bin, these little fellas will do just as their name suggests and night crawl all over the place.  On several occasions I have woken up to worms out of the bin.   There is a simple little trick you can use that will help them stay put. Place a lamp or light source above the bin at night and they will be good girls/boys and “stay”.  After a few days, maybe a week or so they will get settled into their new home and be “trained” to stay put.

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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.

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Michael’s Rabbit Hutch Worm Bed

23 Jul

Thanks to Michael in Cypress, TX for sharing the pictures of his rabbit hutch and worm bed design.  Great work and thanks for sending.

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Red Mites and Red Worms

16 Jul
Red Mites killing a red worm

Red Mites killing a red worm

Red mites on watermelon rind.

Red mites on watermelon rind.

I’ve encountered these red devils before but not at this level.  Unlike most visitors in your worm bin, these guys are parasites to worms.  (see top picture).  Red mites flourish and can become a problem in a bin that is too moist, has too much food, or too acidic.  Don’t panic if you have a few mites, but a bin that is has been neglected and unkept in these conditions can pose a problem.  My outbreak was caused by overfeeding before we headed out for our July 4th vacation, and was left to fester for more than a week.  Getting rid of a red mite infestation can be a challenge.

I’ve tried several methods and have shown below a little experiment I began today.  I scraped the top of some red mite infected bins and partially filled some small shoebox containers.  From Left to Right in pic below 1. control 2. diatomaceous earth 3. watermelon rind 4. agricultural lime.

1. The control bin will be left open and scraped from time to time to see how long it takes to get rid of the red mites.

2. Diatomaceous Earth has been applied to top of #2.  DE needs to be kept dry in order for it to stick to bugs and make tiny cuts that will dry them out and kill them off.

3. Watermelon rind placed on top to attract red mites and discard.  I will replace with a new one and repeat and see how this does.

4. Ag Lime dusted on top.  Ag lime is alkaline and will hopefully bring the acidic bedding closer to neutral.  The high alkalinity concentrated on the top should burn up the red mites and not harm the worms.

4 methods for getting rid of red mites

These methods have been used before and should all work.  I just kind of wanted to see them head to head.  We’ll see how this turns out.  The good news is most of the red mites have been dismissed without harming too many of my bins and worms.  Additionally, I learned a valuable lesson about overfeeding, and next time I’ll use more composted manure and less of my worm chow mix.  My mistakes were 1. overfeeding 2. too wet 3. too much peat moss and too little composted manure (which made my bedding a little acidic) 4. My infected bins were unattended for a week.  Had I caught them sooner it wouldn’t have been much of an issue.

 

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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Worms new home

11 Apr

From Mike in San Antonio:

“Bro thanks a million!!! Very excited about my worms.  Almost turned around and bought more! LOL. Here are some pix.

Very excited about my Garden.”

Thanks for sharing!

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