Beer Brewing leftovers

mresseguie · February 10, 2009

Neva,

It's not uncommon for worms to take a week or so to adjust to their new environment. It's could be different temps, different bedding materials, shock from the move/shipping, or even orneriness. Your sweet potato peels will have to first start breaking down before the worms will feed. Bacteria are the prime facilitators that make food 'edible' to the worms. Be patient with the worms.

If you have any, mix in a couple handfuls of brown leaves just to add to the newspaper. If you have corn meal, flour, or oatmeal in your kitchen, toss in an ounce or so.

Did you soak the newspaper first?

60 to 90 degrees is okay. I've been told 50 to 80 is best for making babies, but yours is close enough.

Actually, I do not have a big operation. I re-started with approx. 2000 worms last year. I can't seem to count them now, but there seem to be more. ;-) My set up can supposedly house up to 12,000 without getting too crowded. We'll see how that unfolds. I occasionally help care for two big worm bins that look a lot like coffins. (8' long x 2' wide x 2' high) These have got kazillions of worms and produce prodigious amounts of castings each year.

Don't worry about using them as bait. I suspect it happens a lot. I'd sure use some if I had a stocked pond near me!

Michael

February 10, 2009	#12
mresseguie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Oregon Posts: 159	Neva, It's not uncommon for worms to take a week or so to adjust to their new environment. It's could be different temps, different bedding materials, shock from the move/shipping, or even orneriness. Your sweet potato peels will have to first start breaking down before the worms will feed. Bacteria are the prime facilitators that make food 'edible' to the worms. Be patient with the worms. If you have any, mix in a couple handfuls of brown leaves just to add to the newspaper. If you have corn meal, flour, or oatmeal in your kitchen, toss in an ounce or so. Did you soak the newspaper first? 60 to 90 degrees is okay. I've been told 50 to 80 is best for making babies, but yours is close enough. Actually, I do not have a big operation. I re-started with approx. 2000 worms last year. I can't seem to count them now, but there seem to be more. ;-) My set up can supposedly house up to 12,000 without getting too crowded. We'll see how that unfolds. I occasionally help care for two big worm bins that look a lot like coffins. (8' long x 2' wide x 2' high) These have got kazillions of worms and produce prodigious amounts of castings each year. Don't worry about using them as bait. I suspect it happens a lot. I'd sure use some if I had a stocked pond near me! Michael __________________ Learning to speak tomato! Got compost?