New at WORMS...Info Appreciated.

19 years ago

I have a "so-called" cold compost area adjacent to my garden, into which I put assorted scrap, and water occasionally. I also "turn" the compost occasionally, if I have time.

This Spring it was necessary for me to move the compost pile to make room for other endeavors. The compost was laid upon the vegetable garden prior to tilling. And I started a new compost pile in another area (with plain old clay dirt that I also needed to move....and neighbor's grass cuttings).

When we reached near the bottom of my original compost pile, there were quite a bunch of worms in that soil.....So, I took them and put them in areas of the garden that I thought could use some "aeration"; also put some upon the veggie garden area.

I'm planning to build a worm bin in hopes of getting more worms to help in the yard and perhaps adding the vermicompost to the garden, compost pile, and perhaps the container garden.

I have an old unheated, falling down, wooden shed here. I am thinking about putting the worm bin in there. The bin I plan to make would NOT allow the worms to enter the Earth in order to keep warm. The temperature here in the Winter can get to 20 below Zero (Fahrenheit). Will the worms freeze to death?

I think I've designed a very good wooden worm bin (to be built from scrap lumber), but I haven't built it yet (Winter Project). I plan a few "stackable" flat bins. Would the depth of the bins make a positive difference in the survival of the worms in Winter?

Haven't tried this yet...but don't want to build the bins if they must be kept inside in Winter. No extra indoor room.

Thanks for any replies,

Bruce (Junkmanme in New Mexico)

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Comments (5)

billr12
19 years ago
If it gets anywhere near 20 below for any length of time and the worms are on top of the ground they will be goners for sure. I wouldn't give them much hope without the sides being heavily insulated and the depth being at least 2 feet with some type of protection on top of that.
junkmanme
Original Author
19 years ago
Hi billr12 !
THANKS for the response! That's about what I thought. Unfortunately, in order to provide that amount of insulation (like with bales of hay), it would use up all the space in that old fallin' down wooden shed. I'm using it to store some other things that I don't have storage for elsewhere. (I hope to build another outbuilding this next Summer.)

I started a little hair-brained experiment yesterday, which I posted here on this Forum. It's entitled: Worm Capture Experiment. Here's "link" to that posting:

Worm Capture Experiment

Any comments or concerns?

Best Regards,
Bruce (Junkmanme in New Mexico)
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pablo_nh
19 years ago
I guess it does get cold there :) Sounds about like some areas I've lived in Western Mass.

I have the same issues as you do bud. I was going to do an indoor worm bin, but while I seem to have a green thumb with anything in the ground- as soon as it's potted up I stumble. My first worm bin was an almost complete failure and I've resorted to outdoor methods.

I found a document on commercial vermicomposting that gave me some inspiration and tips on doing it all outdoors. It's good enough, IMO, that people here will likely get sick of me posting it. I dunno if you have access to that much free organic matter like we do here (leaves), but a deeper outdoor bed is my basic approach to cold weather.

See the link.

Here is a link that might be useful: vermiculture
farmer_joe
19 years ago
Junkmanme,
The worms you found under the compost were there for one reason - free food. When you moved them it isn't likely they stayed in the garden very long, unless you had enough food there to keep there interest. Regarding the worm bin, you want Red Wigglers for that. These are naturally found in manure piles and are fast composters. They also stay near the soil surface, making them ideal for shallow bins. The ones you found outside were probably nightcrawlers which are excellent for the garden but not the bin. I use rubbermaid 10gal bins. One with holes on the sides and bottom inserted into another one with no holes. A lid on top keeps it dark and moist. You will need to keep it inside. Even here in Raleigh I have to keep it inside. These worms like it 50-80 degrees. There is no smell - just don't over feed them.
Good luck,
Joe
junkmanme
Original Author
19 years ago
Hi Farmer Joe!
I see that you are in North Carolina! My Father's family is from North Carolina and those lines all go back to before the American Revolution. There is a wealth of American History in North Carolina!

The worms I found at the bottom of the compost pile were BOTH "red worms" and "Night-Crawlers". I think that most have survived and reproduced in the garden area because I add composable material there as well (leaves and grass clippings for mulch).

I haven't checked my "Worm Capture Experiment" this past week. I'll take a look this afternoon or tomorrow to see if there is any evidence of worms (I doubt it, since the evenings are well below 32 degrees.....but maybe come Spring, I'll "capture" some local worms...???)

I appreciate your reply to my posting!

By the way, some of my favorite veggies to grow in the garden are hot peppers and, of course, tomatoes. Do you grow hot peppers?

Best Regards,
Bruce (Junkmanme in New Mexico)