Vince watched a bunch of videos and ended up ordering the VermiHut 5 Tray Plus Worm Compost Bin. Yay! It requires no real work for him and I’ll get my worm castings.
It should be here Friday and what we read said it takes about a week to get the “bedding” ready for the worms so we won’t order the worms til probably the first part of next week.
I had ordered 2,000 Red Wigglers in 2017 for $34. Now it costs $50+ for 1,000 Red Wigglers. Hopefully we’ll keep these rascals alive!
I’m so proud of Vince for reading and studying and doing it . . all within a few days. I’m the one who gets a crazy idea – not that getting worms is a crazy idea – and I act on it. Vince thinks about things for weeks and often loses interest before he makes a decision.
This will help our garden so much and the worms will be much easier to raise here than they were in Texas.
Liz says
where are you going to put the worm bin? By the soon to be veggie washing bin? I can see that being a good spot since you might have lots of moist green scraps to add to the bins.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
No. We’ll probably put it just outside the downstairs garage door so we can roll it inside on the nights it gets really cold or if we have 100+ degree temps.
Liz says
… So, sorta in the same area – in the back of the house, close to the gardens. I didn’t see that it “rolls”, unless Vince makes a rolling platform. But a rolling platform might be a good idea so that you can move it closer to your cleaning station during the “normal” temp range and then inside when the temps are critical.
How long do the worms live? will you have to restock those every year? Or will you have some worm “funny” business going on??? Inquiring minds need to know!!!!!
Another thing – your setup has a spigot. So, with this setup, is there a liquid that is generated or do you have to add liquid to get the compost tea? Or is the spigot needed to drain fluids which are generated by the composting – so much to learn about this….
Most of the seeds that I “planted” in the Aerogarden have sprouted, but the older seeds that I put in the pot outside are not emerging… oh well. Based on the weather reports, I still have to wait before I can plant the cucs and tomatoes outside. It’s so hard to wait…. I am amazed that you are buying plants but, you might be in an area that can tolerate earlier planting. Micro-eco areas… sigh… I wait until after tax day!
judy.blog@gmail.com says
It doesn’t roll as it comes. We’re going to put it on rollers because we knew we would need to move it indoors occasionally.The worms really don’t eat a lot. A handful of veggie scraps every few days is plenty.
The worms reproduce like crazy – 5 – 7 “hatchlings” per week AND they are hermaphrodites. So long as they have good growing conditions, we’ll have to divide them up every couple of years and start additional beds or share worms. Once the initial housing for them is set up, there’s almost no cost to having worms – they eat scraps, coffee grounds, crushed egg shells, etc. The castings make an almost unbelievable difference in the garden, plus almost completely eliminate the need for storebought fertilizer. We can use the castings around the garden, flowers, fruit trees and it would be great for bartering.
As far as their life span, I can only tell you what I’ve learned from Google. Even though I had them in Texas, I had no idea which worms were the original ones and which ones were their offspring, but, according to Google, they live 1 – 5 years.
Yes. there’s a spigot. There is a liquid that drains from the bin. There shouldn’t be much discharge. It’s more of a way to know if you have a problem and your bin is too wet. It’s called “leachate” and should be discarded. You might enjoy reading this.
No. I’m buying plants because they’re available. Nothing will be planted outside til mid-April but I can be fertilizing and watering and taking better care of them than they’ll be getting in the store parking lots. Your seeds outside may not have sprouted because the ground is still cold. My seeds outside have not sprouted yet either but I’m not worried about them.
Twyla says
Have u thought of a mate for Oscar? I have a friend near Branson who is trying to rehome her one year old, fixed female that is so energetic my friend can not keep up with her.
judy.blog@gmail.com says
I would love to take her but Vince would not be happy at all! Of course, I could send you my address and if I found her on my front porch, what could I do?? 🙂