:)
Nell - the burlap actually won't last all that long, it's organic material too, and will stay wet on the bottom of the bin, better to put some fly screen down to protect the drain holes, but you don't really need anything in a real bin, as opposed to pots

in your situation, what would work for coaxing the worms out of an area is to put some fresh food with a bit of bedding/castings in one of those mesh produce bags [usually orange here for oranges, or onions], and bury it slightly in the bin [size it to suit your bin size] - after a while [days? weeks?] most of the worms will have moved into the bag, you can lift it out, set it aside, and work over the remaining material .... and yes, melon is good 'bait' because the sugary material gets microbially active very fast, chopping is good, 'pulverizing' not necessarily

an effective way to seperate out the laggards is to mound the bedding in a cone on a piece of cardboard and scrape away the surface [say an inch at a time], putting any worms you find back in fresh bedding - scrape another layer down every few minutes and any worms will wind up in a ball bottom center - when you get to a small pile or lots of worms, just scoop the remainder back into the bin .... might watch for cocoons too, and save them so too many don't hatch in your potted plants

Bill

Thanks Squeeze Bill!

Mesh produce bags??? The only ones I've seen here have huge (relative to worm size) holes! I would guess 1/4" spaces!

At the workshop I went to - we dumped the bin, put everything in a mound (those were those smaller flower pot types)and picked out the big things and then w/our hands gently scooped away cast and the worms just kept balling themselves at the bottom but I know the cast that I have would have egg sacs and little guys. I guess I'll try a huge scoop at a time. . .

I read that the worms I have won't survive outside the bin or in the garden :-( I attached the link to "my" worm source and the FAQs.

I want to post picture of my bin - but I'm too lazy to open a PhotoBucket account - that would be the only way, right? Thru a URL? How would I upload from my computer?

Here is a link that might be useful: Waikiki Worm Company

those worms will do fine in any garden soil that is rich in organic material, the same as the usual Eisenia fetida 'red worms', although in your warm climate the soil temp might not be well suited, and there's not likely to be enough organic material deeper

yes, in order to post pictures on the web they have to be hosted someplace ... there is a photo gallery here at GW, you could upload a pic there and link it here

Bill

oh yeah, the mesh bags - hole size doesn't matter, the bag is to hold the bedding/food so you have a package to pick up containg most of the worms - works well

Bill

Hi Squeeze:
I'm going to go another month with your coffee grounds & carrot pulp (Hey! I juice too) since I still have "stuff" in the bin and then I'll do the bag method - which means adding MELONS to the grocery list.

My papaya orchard is not bearing fruit. The trunks are skinny and they are only sprouting leaves - maybe they are too young! And the soil is too tight/compact - I wanted papayas for me and the worms.

Did you know that papaya seeds are birth control for the worms? They go back "to normal" once seeds are removed from bin. The Waikiki Worm lady told us so and it is in her site.

Hey, I re-read her FAQs and maybe I can procrastinate ANOTHER YEAR!!!

Thanks for picture hint - there isn't a vermicasting area so I guess I can place it "anywhere" and upload it that way?

Here is a link that might be useful: See: Are there any foods poisonous to worms

never heard that about the papaya, I hate the seeds cuz they really never break down, even in my fast acting hot compost ... also note that what the 'poison foods' thing says about lemons is somewhat misinformed, the "acidity" [not much higher than lots of other foods] isn't the issue, it's the limonene ["zest"] that puts the worms off, but the problem is simply that it has some antibacterial properties when fresh and takes longer to start being broken down - large amounts of any citrus can 'raise a stink', but do break down soon enough, especially if chopped fine and mixed with other material

Bill

Squeeze Bill:

My bins are on sale so I'm planning the harvest.

There are so many different (and conflicting) info about harvesting. I did read a tidbit on a kid's site that you can just let your bin go for 3-4 months and not do a thing but then you will have committed VERMICIDE since the worms will all die. I am NOT going to do that!!

At the workshop I attended we did do a harvest the cone-way but that was just a mini-bin . . . I graduated to the 10-gallon plastic bin so it is going to be a lot of work! To spare my back I think I'll use the picnic table and I will cover it with a tarp and hope my harvest day is not windy.

So I am going to do a combination of the cone and the one-bin-in-another!

1) DUMP the bin and do the cone & scoop. And because I want LOW VERMICIDE rate I am going to put everything back in the "old bin" and the wormies tha I cone & scoop will go in the new bin which will sit in the old bin. . .

2) The new bin with holes on the bottom and with some bedding on one side (so I can see the migration and tracks on the bare plastic) and yummy food ready for baby wormies & the ones who hid from me during the cone & scoop to make their move.

3) I am going to let the original bin "dry out" a bit and not add anything to that bin to promote the migration.

and do I fluff up the bottom bin, maybe once a week to see if it is drying out nice and there are no stragglers?

Worm Nelly

drying out isn't a good thing, worms get oxygen from the moisture on their skins, not lungs, and require ample moisture to do that - a worm is about 85% water, and "dry" is what kills them more than anything else, they prefer a quite wet medium

I harvest a large outdoor bin once a year [when I use the castings in my greenhouse], the only seperation I do is always adding fresh material at the top so the worms are encouraged to stay in the upper area - I scoop that aside until I reach a layer there's few worms, shovel out the rest for the greenhouse, leave the top behind, carry on with adding bedding

worms will do quite well on their castings for a long time, they're very inefficient eaters, and the castings are still quite rich in nutrients and bacteria, so they can work'em over repeatedly

Bill