how can they "get going" if there's nothing to go on? the coir isn't too attractive as food, it's sterile carbon

it would have been good to add some feed immediately, even before the worms - worms eat the decomposer microbes, and it takes a while to get that decomposition process going

and no, "damp" isn't wet enough, worms are largely water and breathe via their wet skin, so need about 50% moisture level, wetter than your garden ..... keep things wet and see what happens after a bit .... 1lb of worms should be able to handle 1/4 - 1/2lb of food every few days to start, then every day once there's a volume of microbially active food

Bill

Thanks Bill! So - more moisture and more decomposed food... I'm sure these poor things will be grateful that I finally asked for some advise...

BettyN

Betty,

It might be a good idea to give them a small amount of something mushy like some mashed pumkin or some watermelon. That might give the worms something to get started on while the other vegetable is rotting.

Good luck with your new bin.
Marshall

Sometimes it helps to freeze/defrost some veggie/fruits and put that in. This helps it to start to decompose which is exactly how the worms like it.

as to "Thanks Bill! So - more moisture and more decomposed food... I'm sure these poor things will be grateful that I finally asked for some advise..." he did not say "more" decomposed food. He said the food needs more time to decompose! You should have put it in sooner not put in more now! It takes time for the food to get to where they can eat it.

Betty,

The food you added a week and a half ago should be well on the way to becomming worm food.

Don't get confused with the differences of opinion you will find in these forums. Use your own judgement.

Marshall

Marshall,

Thanks for the encouragement. When one is beginning a completely new project, it can all seem a bit mysterious. I'm sure it will all eventually make sense and I will know what to look for. Besides my desire to get worm castings for my garden, I do feel a sense of responsibility for these wigglers. I don't want to hurt them due to my lack of experience....

BettyN

Hey bettn,
My worms just love squash and pumpkin and seem to feed on this even if it hasn't decomposed. Most things have to "rot some" for the worms to feed on so if you want a jump start go get a squash and cut ut up and place some on top of the bedding fruit side down . Within 1 or 2 days there will be a worm squirm. Then just feed them garbage! Just watch for moisture problems.
Good Luck, Tom

Tom,

Do you discard the pumpkin and squash seeds? and what about the skins?

Do you think it's the sugar content that they like? How about sweet potatoes?

Thanks!

BettyN

My favourite emergency food is banana and rockmelon/cantelope. They are full of worms withing 24 hours. Leave it on top of the bedding so you can watch what happens.

Remeber that TOO WET and TOO MUCH FOOD can be your biggest problems. So just watch for that.

At the beggining I like to add a little bit of food each day, of a few different kinds of food scraps, banana is always a favourite, lettuce and melon also breakdown quickly (and add liquid to balance the moisture of the bin) and watch what happens. You will quickly learn what they do and dont like, how long and how much etc.

As long as the bedding can drain, it should sort the moisture thing out fairly quickly.

My worm disasters have always been from too much food, too much fruit fermenting (I mean like 2 kilos of apricots or plums is too much), alien larvae invasion (from too many apples) etc.

Once the bin is up and running, (you will know because the food you put in will be covered in brown excreta (poo)and will eventually dissapear (like a cruise ship sinking into the mediteranean).

I then only put food in once a week, so as not to disturb the little wrigglers. Only enough food to cover the surface about 1/2 - 1 inch. Adjust as you see fit.

Hope that helps and good luck.

Raphael

Newbies are inclined to over-moisturize worm bins....and overfeed them.

"50% moisture level", IMHO, is both a misnomer, a little excessive, and gives a wrong impression to a newbie. I just don't think a newbie (or most anyone else) comprehends what 50% means. "Like a wrung out sponge" continues to be the best description of it.

Just about all probs in a bin start with too much moisture. "Damp" is, for me, NOT dripping.

All that said, 2+ weeks ain't really gonna cause much noticable difference....esp if the food in there wasn't yet "worm worthy".

betty youve had lots of good advice already. I would just add that you dont have to bury the food in the bedding, you can also just lay it on top of the coir and cover with some newspaper. Ive always done it this way and it is very easy to see how much food the worms are getting through without disturbing them or digging. There's nothing wrong with pocket feeding as youve done, top feeding is just another way of doing it but it makes it very easy to monitor their food consumption.

dont expect too much too soon, just look after the worms, keep the bedding moist - coir is easy to work with because its very obvious if it starts drying out and keep adding small amounts of food increasing it as they start eating more, just keep ahead of them with the food but dont overload the bin. keep the worms happy and the castings will come. :) and if you run into any problems just ask here and you will get lots of good advice.

Betty, i also just put the food on top of the bedding and cover with damp newspaper. Works fine for me.Flies can be attracted if food is placed on the surface, so as long as your bin is bug proof, I dont see any reason to bury it. The newspaper kepps everything moist and cool.

You have all been so generous with advise and encouragement. Thank you so much!

With moister conditions and mushier compost, the worms appear to be much more active. When I lift the lid, there's a lot of wiggling going on. I dug into the most recent batch of compost a little and it was full of worms.

I'm feeling much encouraged.

I'm sure I will likely have more questions as I go along. I am most grateful for the experience and wisdom on this forum.

BettyN