Please help! I don't know what I'm doing.

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

I am new to vermicomposting and wanted some advice. I recently started a worm bin in an 18 gallon Rubbermaid tub, using mostly coconut coir with a little bit of shredded newspaper and cardboard. It is outdoors. I have several questions. First, if I am outside looking through the bin once a day to check on my worms is that bad? Second, it has been almost two weeks since I added the worms and they still don't appear to be eating. There is a fairly large amount of white mites on top and when I dug down to where I first put the food it is swarming with maggots. What should I do and am I doing something wrong?!?!

Featured Answer

Priswell

8 years ago

The first thing is to pay attention to the smell. Is it still sharp smelling? Are the worms finally starting to move into the areas that the BSFL were in? If there are stlll faint smell traces, wait another day or two or three. Don't worry, they won't starve. Pay attention to moisture levels next. Moist but not soggy throughout the bin?

OK, then you can start feeding them again, but in very small amounts. In the early days of a new bin, the worms won't eat much. They are getting oriented to the bin, and learning to eat new foods. They were fed XYZ at the old place, and maybe you are feeding them CDE instead.

I like to start out with a mix of corn meal and slightly ground oatmeal dampened into kind of a dough ball. Worms love it, it doesn't release a lot of water, and it's non-messy to prepare. Not a whole lot - a handful, maybe. Make a ball of it and put it in one place in the bin. That way, the worms can move away if there's some kind of problem, real or imagined. Also, when you can see that the worms are starting to find the ball of dough, and you can see that they are actively eating, then you can start feeding them small amounts of whatever else you have on the menu. Always err on the side of less food, rather than more. They will eat cardboard and paper with delight if they are really hungry, but until they get really settled, go slow with the food.

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Comments (9)

Kevin Forst
Original Author
8 years ago
I just added a layer of dry newspaper and cardboard shred. And then a peice of cardboard over it.
Priswell
8 years ago
How many worms do you have? How much food are you adding? It's not unusual for worms to take a while to settle in and appear to not eat, or to actually not eat as they get acclimated.

If you have maggots (are they black soldier fly larvae or regular fly maggots?), it's a sign that you are feeding them too much.

Also, make sure that your bin is out of the sun.
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Kevin Forst
Original Author
8 years ago
I think I put way to much food in the first time. I started with 500 worms, and yeah I'm 99% sure they are black soldier fly. I just don't want them to take all the food from my worms. Also I drilled a bunch of 1/8 in holes on the bottom for drainage, is the sufficent?
Priswell
8 years ago
It's not unusual to find BSFL in a worm bin. But large numbers are a sure indicator that you have put too much food in. They like fresh food like fruits and veggies best.

Some people like BSFL in their bins because the larvae will break down whatever food is there, consume what they want, and then the worms can clean up the rest.

But, there are two problems if it gets out of hand. First, the BSFL will break down fresh fruits and veggies, and release a lot of the water. Then the juices begin to ferment and become acidic. Worms hate that kind of environment, and it will even kill them. You can tell if it's come to that by the smell. Sharp, acidic.

Secondly, BSFL eat in a hurry. It's a feeding frenzy. There's lots of movement, rushing, and feeding. The worms don't really like that, and they will move far to the sides until the BSFL are done partying. If you have a bin full of partying BSFL, there will be no room for the worms, and they will give up and die between being pushed to the edges and beyond, and the acidic environment.

BSFL and worms can cohabit, but only if the BSFL are in small populations.

I suggest that you put in more bedding. If you have room in the bin, and it looks like you do, double it. Also, put in a few handsful of "clean" dirt. You don't normally need dirt in a worm bin, but dirt is a very forgiving worm bin filler. There is a lot of bacteria in dirt and it will help to absorb some of that extra food, and help level things out in the bin.
Kevin Forst thanked Priswell
Kevin Forst
Original Author
8 years ago
I spent a while digging through it and making sure there wasn't any large peices of food and picking out the BSFL. Now the only thing left in there is a corn Cobb right on top. How do i know when it's safe to start adding food again?
Kevin Forst
Original Author
8 years ago
Does it matter if I bury the food or not? How am I supposed to know if they are eating it if it's buried?
Priswell
8 years ago
You bury it just far enough under the surface to suppress any possible smells, (although with corn meal/oatmeal there probably wont be any), but when you want to take a look, you just gently remove the bedding over your "food plug" and take a look. The worms will immediately dive for cover, but you should get a good enough look to see what's going on.
Kevin Forst
Original Author
8 years ago
Ok thank you. I'll give it some time and then give some food a shot