Worm Composting

I spent the past month trying different remedies for getting rid of fungus gnats in the worm bins in one building from cinnamon, coffee grinds, Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth and more. Let me start at the beginning.

Last month I ordered some worms from a competitor which I do regularly to see what the competition has to offer. I even have my own network of secret shoppers which help me hide my identity.

What this competitor did was send me a bonus for free. Turns out the worm bedding they were shipped in contained loads of fungus gnat eggs. Unbeknownst to me, I added them to one of my beds. Within a couple days the fungus gnats began to flourish. Within a week or so they were out of control in one of my buildings.

Do not worry; we did not sell from this building!

This started my mission of trying to eliminate them as well as see what would work not just on the gnats but mites as well.

I began using some methods others state on their web sites that work effectively. Below are some of the methods which did not work and the one method that did work to assist you from using some remedies suggested by others that can be and are fatal to your worms!

First I tried apple cider vinegar mixed with water in a jar. I sat one on the window sill where I would see some fungus gnats as well as one in the worm bin. After two weeks this caught a total of 2 fungus gnats on the window sill.

I tried attaching fly paper to 2 popsicle sticks to stretch it out and placing in a worm bin adjusting it to rest just above the bedding material.  This was effective in catching some of the adults but was not going to eliminate the problem since it did not have an effect on the eggs and larvae.

Others state to vacuum them out of your worm bin daily. I tried this and perhaps my shop vac is too strong(felt like Tim “The Tool Man” Taylor – more power…) as I was careful but every so often the end of the hose got to close to the bedding and would suck up a chunk of bedding along with worms. This does help but by the next day the numbers were back because the vacuum does not handle the eggs and larvae unless you suck up all the bedding and worms.

Next I tried cinnamon which others claim will work since it can be used as a natural pest control. This is one that I recommend you avoid. It did scatter the gnats but did not kill them. A little later they would return. Once the cinnamon was watered in, worms began trying to escape from both the bottom and the top of the worm bin. The worms that ran through the watered down cinnamon died within hours. This remedy actually created the most worm loss of any.

Another trick stated on some web sites is to use coffee grounds. I was skeptical of this one for if you save any coffee grinds and they remain damp they will attract gnats within a number of days. At this point I had nothing to lose but some time so I tried it. When applying they scattered but returned only to enjoy the environment more. Hence there was not effect on the fungus gnats other than feeding them more food!

For mites I read in a natural remedy book I have to use onion, chives or garlic to chase the mites away. I placed some fresh cut chives from the garden into the worm bin and left it over night. The next morning, the chives were had about 50 mites on them. There were still plenty of them in the worm bin though. In effect the remedy worked to the opposite of what the book stated. I even went back to read it again to be sure I read it right.

Next I decided to try “Food Grade” Diatomaceous Earth (D.E.). Now I mention food grade as there are two main types of D.E., food grade and pool filter grade. The pool filter grade is harmful not only to humans and pets if inhaled, digested… but will kill off your worms.

Now as for the food grade, there are actually a number of different grades as well as some are more pure than others depending on where they are mined.  I actually purchased from two companies, Perma-Guard and the AFA Codex food grade. After checking on the mineral analysis from each web site, I found that the AFA Codex was more pure as well had a more neutral pH hence not messing with your worm bin pH level.

AFA Codex food grade Diatomaceous Earth are fossilized freshwater seashells which are mined from the earth and ground to a flour type consistency. The way the product works is it acts like shredded glass to pests. They walk or crawl through it and get cut, allowing the Diatomaceous Earth to enter the wounds and dehydrate them.

It is safe to humans and can even be used in the vegetable garden the same day you pick your crops. As always it is a good idea to wash any vegetables whether from your own garden or produce section of your local store.

I performed an original dusting and followed up with a second dusting about three days later. The mites have dwindled way down in numbers. The fungus gnats seem to have been eradicated after about one week from the initial dusting.

The worms have not been affected by the applications of the AFA Codex food grade D.E. I went one step further on the second application which is not recommended by applying some of the dust directly on some African nightcrawlers on the top of a couple bins. To my amazement, the worms are still alive and were not affected by the direct contact to the Diatomaceous Earth. My theory to this is perhaps when they burrowed back down they were able to cleanse themselves hence removing the dust.

Food Grade D.E. is all natural and is effective on

Adult Flea Beetles, Ants, Aphids, Bedbugs, Cabbage Root Flies; Carrot Root Flies, Cockroaches, Coddling moths, Earwigs, Fleas, Fungus gnats, Mites, Pillbugs, Sawfly, Silverfish, Slugs, Snails, Thrips, Ticks, Twig borers & More….

So there you have it. The one product that is all natural and effective on numerous pests in a worm bin and around the home. It can be used as a preventative as well as handle existing pest problems.

Be sure NOT to purchase pool filter grade D.E. Also be sure to get a better quality Diatomaceous Earth since it is mined from different parts of the country, some containing many impurities. You can always purchase some of the AFA Codex food grade Diatomaceous Earth from Organic Worm Farm. They offer re-bagged 8oz. for use on one or a few worm bins or 2lb bags for larger worm farms, use in the yard and garden since they purchase in large quantities…