Worm bin issues.

I bought a bin from Uncle Jim and also 1000 big worms. I followed the directions for starting the bin. I've fed them a few times since then and they don't seem to be eating. I've fed them stale bread, paper mixed with a little water. I've fed them dried leaves and shredded paper mixed with a bit of water. It just doesn't seem like they are crushing it like I imagined. Is this normal for new bins?

Sure is for new bins. Dont stress. Dont expect to see any action for the first month.

And stop feeding them until you notice them eating.

BurnzAU said:

And stop feeding them until you notice them eating.

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Thank you!!!

Tyleb173rd said:

I bought a bin from Uncle Jim and also 1000 big worms. I followed the directions for starting the bin. I've fed them a few times since then and they don't seem to be eating. I've fed them stale bread, paper mixed with a little water. I've fed them dried leaves and shredded paper mixed with a bit of water. It just doesn't seem like they are crushing it like I imagined. Is this normal for new bins?

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Burnz is correct about the first month, but wet paper, stale bread and dried leaves is barely worm food, more like bedding material except for the bread.

You need stuff that will rot and rot fast. Worms don't *eat* anything. No teeth, jaws and a tiny mouth. What they do is sorta slurp up the bacterial slime from decomposing organic matter. Pretty much the faster it rots, the better.

For a quick feed they will certainly crush, melon rinds work like a champ. Too much though adds too much moisture to the bin, so don't make it a steady thing. More like a fast food treat once or twice a month, max. I feed a good amount of used coffee grounds, but they take about a month to break down enough for the worms. They do love it. Any fruit or veggy's that go bad also work well, but no onions or citrus or stuff of that nature.

For right now, I would suggest a banana or 2, or just the peel. A real treat for the worms and doesn't add a lot of moisture to the bin. I would also stop with the bread, it's not that good of a food source.

HTH

Wet

Tyleb173rd said:

Thank you!!!

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keep in mind that they only eat their weight, and when it's cold/stressed/new home they eat less
but think about it, 1000 worms don't weigh much.
Freeze leftover fruit pieces, then thaw, then mash, then dig a small hole in the middle of your wormbin, plop the fruit in, cover, and presto, the worms will eat like a mofo.
BUT don't feed them until your bin is clear of the last food, or you'll have issues, reason is worms have clear favorites when it comes to food, and they'll abandon the other food when you add the fruit. And the old food will rot, and smell.
they LOVE fruit.... grapes, melons, pears, apples, avocados, bananas, etc.
all those when they go bad, let em get reaaaal ripe, and then chuck em in the freezer.
only need a full freeze to burst the fruit open on a microscopic level, which essentially is cutting out a LOT of the feeding time for the worms.

greasemonkeymann said:

keep in mind that they only eat their weight, and when it's cold/stressed/new home they eat less
but think about it, 1000 worms don't weigh much.
Freeze leftover fruit pieces, then thaw, then mash, then dig a small hole in the middle of your wormbin, plop the fruit in, cover, and presto, the worms will eat like a mofo.
BUT don't feed them until your bin is clear of the last food, or you'll have issues, reason is worms have clear favorites when it comes to food, and they'll abandon the other food when you add the fruit. And the old food will rot, and smell.
they LOVE fruit.... grapes, melons, pears, apples, avocados, bananas, etc.
all those when they go bad, let em get reaaaal ripe, and then chuck em in the freezer.
only need a full freeze to burst the fruit open on a microscopic level, which essentially is cutting out a LOT of the feeding time for the worms.

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Hey grease! As always full of great wisdom. I neglected my bin all summer. Getting ready to start a worm farm from scratch. Any advice on homemade option for larger scale and ease of harvesting castings on a regular basis.

green_machine_two9er said:

Hey grease! As always full of great wisdom. I neglected my bin all summer. Getting ready to start a worm farm from scratch. Any advice on homemade option for larger scale and ease of harvesting castings on a regular basis.

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Google open flow worm bin. There's how to videos on YouTube for a few designs. For large scale casting production it seems like the only way to go.

Thanks to all. I'll remove what they haven't ate yet and place it in the middle. The leaves and stuff that don't seem to be well liked will be removed completely.

Tyleb173rd said:

Thanks to all. I'll remove what they haven't ate yet and place it in the middle. The leaves and stuff that don't seem to be well liked will be removed completely.

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Shredded leaves make for great bedding!

green_machine_two9er said:

Hey grease! As always full of great wisdom. I neglected my bin all summer. Getting ready to start a worm farm from scratch. Any advice on homemade option for larger scale and ease of harvesting castings on a regular basis.

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I LOVE a bigass smartpot.
Don't have much exp with anything past that, and nowadays the worms are reproducing so fast I don't even screen my castings anymore.
the soil is LOADED with reds in it, and that is juuuust fine with me.

Rasta Roy said:

Shredded leaves make for great bedding!

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YES!
the best bedding in fact, shredded leaves, shredded cardboard and a couple gallons of old soil is a perfect start

I've been shedding like broccoli stalks , old rice , left over veggies I'll nuke till soft ,throw in the middle & boom it's gone
shedding news print & leaves for bedding

Fastslappy said:

I've been shedding like broccoli stalks , old rice , left over veggies I'll nuke till soft ,throw in the middle & boom it's gone
shedding news print & leaves for bedding

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they love egg cartons too, those work well at the bottom of the wormbin to keep it from compacting too much

greasemonkeymann said:

they love egg cartons too, those work well at the bottom of the wormbin to keep it from compacting too much

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cool i'm about to start a new layer of tote ,purfect for the bottom , been saving the shells in the cartions

i'll preload some rotting material into the egg cartons to ripen

Fastslappy said:

cool i'm about to start a new layer of tote ,purfect for the bottom , been saving the shells in the cartions

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just remember they don't do much with the egg shells, those are better in a coffee grinder and sprinkled in the soil mix, like oyster flour.
although it is good to sprinkle a little of that in there to help with their digestion

Shells go in soil & oyster flour to the worms what i'm doing now they add sum Cal in their gut when shit out

Wetdog said:

Burnz is correct about the first month, but wet paper, stale bread and dried leaves is barely worm food, more like bedding material except for the bread.

You need stuff that will rot and rot fast. Worms don't *eat* anything. No teeth, jaws and a tiny mouth. What they do is sorta slurp up the bacterial slime from decomposing organic matter. Pretty much the faster it rots, the better.

For a quick feed they will certainly crush, melon rinds work like a champ. Too much though adds too much moisture to the bin, so don't make it a steady thing. More like a fast food treat once or twice a month, max. I feed a good amount of used coffee grounds, but they take about a month to break down enough for the worms. They do love it. Any fruit or veggy's that go bad also work well, but no onions or citrus or stuff of that nature.

For right now, I would suggest a banana or 2, or just the peel. A real treat for the worms and doesn't add a lot of moisture to the bin. I would also stop with the bread, it's not that good of a food source.

HTH

Wet

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Yes they absolutely love any kind of fruit or veggies; even leftover frozen veggies my kids wouldn't eat. When you make a salad or cook veggies or fruit save the scraps in a bag in the freezer until ready to feed; I do the same with coffee grounds and even eggshells which I cook in the microwave for 2 mins before tossing into the bag. The freezer starts the breakdown process & makes everything nice and slimey for soft worm mouths to enjoy. My worms love:
Carrot peels
Strawberry tops
Banana peels
watermelon rinds
Apple cores
Peach cores
Pumpkin guts
Tomato scraps
Lettuce scraps
Sweet pepper scraps

DONT give them:
Bread
Garlic
Dairy
Onions
Citrus
Potato peels are edible but take forever to break down so I avoid them as well and put those in a compost pile out back instead of in the wormbin.
It does take a few months to get established but after about a year you can dump a shit-ton of food in there and it will be gone quickly once the worm population grows a bit. Use coco for worm bedding or just a shovel of soil is good. Paper is not their favorite thing but they'll eat if there's nothing else; I don't give it anymore except the occasional egg carton all broken down to soak up the moisture of the fruits I give them. Fruits & vegs have enough moisture so you don't have to mist the top layer to keep the bin moist. If you want fat worms add some corn meal to their food. I put a lot of perlite in my bin too because airflow is important for wormbin health. Give your worms some grit by adding a spoonful of oyster flour every tray you start.

I like to blend everything they seem to really like that as well, if you do blend just remember to put some dry in with it so it doesn't get to wet.

Shit.....should I remove the bread? We have very little waste in the food DEPT here and I used the but ends of a loaf. No body eats that shit....lol