Vermiculture question

[RedClayGardener]

Does anyone know how you get the castings out of the bin without getting too many worms and throwing them out too? I know they will multiply but I would rather keep them in the bin.

Thanks!

 

[Beekissed]

Supposedly you can take the soil out of a bin, pile it on a tarp or newspaper, in the sun. The worms will move to the bottom of the pile and you can scoop the top of the layer off.

 

[punkin]

I harvested my first tray Tuesday. I just scooped it out by hand and picked out the worms as I went.

 

[robbobbin]

In my small worm bins I move all 'muck' over to one end and put new fresh wet paper and compost yummies on the other end and wait a couple day-the worms move over to the 'fresh' side and I harvest the poop...eewww! Works great! But when I'm in a hurry I do the scoop and pluck method too.

 

[RedClayGardener]

Thanks! Those are all good solutions!

 

[Southern Gardener]

I put my worm bin together today and read the directions. My worms will ship on Monday. I've been saving food scraps in a container in the fridge. Is it a good idea to take them out to get to room temp before I put it in the worm bin?

Thanks!

 

[kellygirrl]

In my small worm bins I move all 'muck' over to one end and put new fresh wet paper and compost yummies on the other end and wait a couple day-the worms move over to the 'fresh' side and I harvest the poop...eewww! Works great! But when I'm in a hurry I do the scoop and pluck method too.

So how come they don't all move upstairs to the fresh food in my worm stacker, like the manual says? Perhaps they are illiterate? I wind up with 3 trays of worm inhabited goo. Could be worse, though.

 

[NoSpringChick]

Does anyone know how you get the castings out of the bin without getting too many worms and throwing them out too? I know they will multiply but I would rather keep them in the bin.

Thanks!

The best way I have found is to place a few layers of newspaper on a table with a light above it....wait 10 minutes and remove the top 2 inches....wait another 10 minutes and remove the next top 2 inches...repeat until you just have a pile of worms.

 

[nightshade]

I have got to give worm farming a try this is driving me nuts. Is it really as easy as you guys make it sound? I primarily want to do it as another/ better way to make compost.

 

[kellygirrl]

Yes, it is easy . Kitchen waste, and enough sawdust, leaves, or shredded paper to keep it from smelling. Technically you're supposed to have drainage, but they don't complain (lack of vocal chords a real plus there). I have a stacker and a tub in basement waiting until spring, and a working bin in the kitchen, with a bucket of sawdust next to it, sooo easy. Do it . In summer, I toss them in our outdoor pile and they wintered over zone 5 the year before last (forgot to put them in our new pile this fall). Do it, do it, do it !