Moisture Meters

worm castings

Canadian Nightcrawlers

Canadian nightcrawlers (Lumbricus terrestris) also known as Dew Worms are mainly thought to only be able to be raised in cooler climates such as Canada, the Appalachian Mountains with higher altitudes and colder climates.

Well as many of you know I am always up to a challenge. In fact when others stated you could not raise Alabama Jumpers in a controlled environment I set to prove them wrong and did. Well I did it again!

I recently went back on my notes which actually surprised me. Many websites state that to grow a Canadian nightcrawler to eight inches or so will take 7-8 years and cannot be grown in a controlled environment. Well I had to find out for myself what the actual growth rate was as this is the worm I originally started with when I was a teenager and knew it never took this long to grow out however never crowded my worm bin either as I was only raising enough for myself to fish with.

It was just two years ago I started raising Canadian nightcrawlers here. I originally placed 36 Canadian nightcrawlers in a five gallon bucket that I top fed. By late spring of 2009 I lost all my breeders as the temperatures rose to high in the uncontrolled building I had them in yet was left with numerous hatchlings running about ½” long.  I decided at this time to place them outside in a test bed I had with Alabama Jumpers… To date I have a good bed of Canadian nightcrawlers running about 4” in length before stretching out. These same nightcrawlers were ½” long just one year and seven months ago.

Canadian Nightcrawler

Canadian Nightcrawler 1-10-2012

One of the fascinating observations I have found with this test bed is what worms are readily available to dig up based on the time of the year. For instance, during hot summer months I do not see the Canadian nightcrawlers, however late fall through early spring they are easily assessable. On the other hand, the Alabama Jumpers become thick towards the top six inches or so once the night time temperatures hover around or above 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

During spring and fall especially, the European nightcrawlers become more active towards the top layers and are more prevalent than during the cold winter or extreme heat of the summer here in South Carolina.

Below is one of the European nightcrawlers from the same test area which are prevalent due to the warm weather this week.

European Nightcrawler

European Nightcrawler 1-10-2012

Now in order to raise Canadian nightcrawlers, much like the Alabama Jumpers, in hotter areas of the country one needs plenty of organic matter on top for which they will come to the surface to feed on when temperatures cool down and during the rain.

I also never allow this test area to dry out. During the warmer months I have a timer set to water the bed for one half hour every morning around 10am and again each evening around 9pm after the sun has gone down to allow the bed to remain moist and cool overnight.

We also feed weekly with some Purina Worm Chow as well as add Dolomite Lime (which is less harsh than other types of lime and contains a good amount of magnesium) once a month and water the lime in so as to prevent the worms from coming into direct contact with it as it will dry them out and kill off your worms.

Since Canadian nightcrawlers burrow down ten feet or more, it takes into consideration of digging down a couple feet in moist soil in the summer time. While the surface and few inches are warm, by the time you reach a couple feet the temperature drops dramatically. Basically it is the soils own natural air conditioner.

This brings me to another point. Canadian nightcrawlers do best in hard packed soil, even clay. I have not tried them in sandy soil but would imagine this would not be viable as their “skin” is not as tough as the Alabama Jumpers.

Organic Worm Farm offers nightcrawlers, composing and fishing worms.

January 11th, 2012 | Tags: , , , | Category: nightcrawlers | One comment

Shipping or Purchasing Worm Castings During The Cold Winter Months

Over the years I have stressed enough about first off placing worm castings in plastic bags as you render them useless for the castings contain beneficial aerobic microbes which require oxygen to survive. I have also stressed in the past the proper way to store worm castings since the beneficial microbes require certain temperatures to survive. Just for example some of the microbes in our worm castings survive at approximate range of 70-100 degrees Fahrenheit.

14 Day Worm Castings

So this brings me to a valid point of shipping worm castings in extreme heat but more importantly cold winter temperatures.

The cargo holds on planes and the trucks utilized for transporting the worm castings are not heated or air conditioned hence are reliant on the ambient temperature at the time they are being shipped. It does not take long for the water content in worm castings to freeze hence killing off the beneficial aerobic microbes as well. The castings do not even need to freeze but rather drop to low in temperature will make them useless.

I always forget or become distracted to write this article however when shipping or purchasing worm castings it is vital for maximum potential that they be shipped with heat packs. Here at Organic Worm Farm, we ship all our worm castings with a 72 hour heat pack being Priority Mail is a two to three day service.

So if you are shipping worm castings, be sure they are in a breathable bag and you include a 72 hour heat pack. If you are looking to purchase worm castings, be sure to do so from a reputable worm farm that treats your worm castings as if they were for their own personal use!

January 11th, 2012 | Tags: , , , , | Category: worm castings | Leave a comment

Worm Bin Heater Update

A couple years ago I wrote an article with pictures showing how you can make a simple worm bin heater. Since many have been asking how to keep their worms warm during the winter I thought now would be a good time to expand on this past article and how I modified a bit to insulate better, hence keeping the worm bin warmer.

The one issue with the worm bin heater in the past was the five gallon bucket containing the fish aquarium heater was not insulated hence a great variation of bedding temperatures. This was due primarily of the aquarium heater running around the clock trying to warm the water.

I have been monitoring the bedding temperatures for the last several weeks as this particular worm bin is located in an uncontrolled, drafty building. During milder temperatures, lows around forty-five or so and the highs in the mid to upper sixties, I have found the bed to maintain right around 64-65 degrees Fahrenheit.  During colder weeks down around thirty two degrees and highs around fifty to fifty five, the bedding has been maintaining a temperature right at 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Worm Bin Temperature

Worm Bin Temperature

I decided to include a few extra pictures for setting up the worm bin heater here, basically not shown in my previous article.

The first issue was to resolve the heater from over working. I thought about wrapping the five gallon bucket in insulation, however if it ever got wet, it would make a soggy mess. I then found a larger bucket which would fit the five gallon bucket easily allowing plenty of room. I proceeded to add a couple inches of dry Sphagnum Peat Moss on the bottom of the larger bucket prior to placing the five gallon bucket inside to help insulate the bottom. Next was to fill and slightly pack dry Sphagnum Peat Moss around the sides of the five gallon bucket to insulate the sides. I then placed a small piece of light wood, also could use plastic to help prevent evaporation through the top hole even though minimal and covered with an old beach towel to help insulate the top of the five gallon bucket.

Insulating Worm Bin Heater

Next displays how to spread out the worm bin heater hose throughout the bottom of your worm bin. For the sake of showing up in the picture, one would be better adding approximately one inch of bedding material prior to adding the heater hose.

Laying Out the Worm Bin Heater Hose

Laying Out the Worm Bin Heater Hose

Next was to cover the worm bin heating hose with approximately six inches of bedding material followed by adding the worms on the surface of the bed.

Worm Bin with Worm Heater

Worm Bin with Worm Heater

Lastly was to cover while still allowing air to flow to assist in blocking any windy drafts from directly blowing on the worm bed surface area. Note the space allotted so as not to crush the worm bin heater hose as well as allow air flow.

Covered Worm Bin with Worm Heater

Covered Worm Bin with Worm Heater

 

Organic Worm Farm

November 15th, 2011 | Tags: , , , | Category: worm bedding | 6 comments

Bokashi Worm Food Part 3

Well after several months of testing with many various setups using Bokashi for worm food, I realized where the main issue arose. Keep in mind I have not been using food scrap Bokashi but rather a grain Bokashi which is used to layer food scraps in what is basically the (fermenting of food scraps)third step in the process if you start from scratch.

What I had found is that the type of Bokashi I use actually produced from using activated EM-1 and Purina Worm Chow as a grain source cannot be used as a food source for the worms as it is very powerful as well as acidic. This is similar to the grain mix one would produce or purchase.

By using as a food source, even when mixed ever so slightly with other food sources, the results remained the same. The worms began eating, and then stopped. In all four types of worms tested, the results were very similar. Once they stopped eating, the worms would hunker down towards the bottom of the worm bins.

What I did find on the positive note is that this type of Bokashi is exceptional for setting up an environment to assist in breeding and growing worms out more rapidly. Of course it is just a single component I have found trying to encourage worms to breed more rapidly as well as grow faster however it was a very noticeable improvement.

Hence why I should have titled “Using Bokashi to Setup a Worm Bin Environment”.

If you try this with your own worm bins, one thing to keep in mind is that as mentioned above, this type of Bokashi is very powerful and will kill off worms if too much is applied. I have found that ½ teaspoon to one cubic foot of bedding material is more than ample to do the trick and must be thoroughly mixed into the bedding prior to adding worms. At the same time I add 1 tablespoon of dolomite lime (powdered form) to help neutralize any acid from the bedding and the Bokashi.

One of the first noticeable occurrences will be the establishment of a white fungus growth very similar to the texture of cotton candy for approximately the first week beginning within 24 to 72 hours. I basically have taken a garden claw upside down to disturb and mix just the top ¼” of the surface. I found by mixing the bedding too deep with the worms during the first week or so can be detrimental to the worms that are mixed up. Within a week or so the growth of the fungus begins to simmer down and grow at a much slower rate.

Fungus Growth From Bokashi In Worm Bin

Fungus Growth From Bokashi In Worm Bin

It is at this time the worms appear to really explode in size as well as reproduction increases. Once again I have to state this is very noticeable however not the only thing I have been doing in these test bins. I have also been working on a food mix which has been tested separately also, consisting of numerous ingredients mixed into the bedding material so as to supply the worms with enough food for 28 to 30 days, hence eliminating daily to every few days of feeding them. This enables me to harvest the worm cocoons once a month, keeping all the new growing worms roughly the same age and size in each bin which also makes a difference in reproduction rates.

So while there are numerous conditions that effect worm reproduction and growth rates, I have found the Bokashi grain mix I am using definitely assists in the success of these better rates.

Bruce

Organic Worm Farm

November 15th, 2011 | Tags: , , | Category: Raising Worms | 3 comments

Setup a Worm Compost Bin Now in Preparation for Next Year’s Crop

Setting up a worm compost bin is something most anyone can do in the comfort of their own home without the smell of rotting garbage or attracting numerous flies while producing either vermicast (worm castings) or vermicompost (a combination of worm castings and partially decomposed organic matter)..

Across the country and the globe, weather has raised havoc on some areas from drought stricken areas to major flooding. This has left us with global shortages of some major crops such as corn, pumpkins, peanuts and even coffee beans. Hence the price of these products, by products such as animal feeds is soaring raising the end consumer costs on everything from vegetables, dairy products to beef.

I remember last year my wife could not even locate a can of pumpkin at Christmas time to make her pies. This year she is stocked up!

What amazes me is the fact many times the news states the high prices will remain in effect until next year’s crop.

What if next year the weather patterns remain the same or even worse?

Now being many of us are not going to be growing our own peanuts or coffee beans, you can offset some of the costs by planning now to plant your own vegetable garden or container garden on your deck this coming spring.

The process of composting vegetable scraps, newspapers… takes approximately 3-4 months to complete with a worm bin unless you are utilizing a system such as the 14 Day Worm Castings. Hence to insure you have plenty of organic fertilizer for your plants this coming spring, now is the time to start your own worm bin.

I do not recommend the multi-tray worm farm systems which can cost a hundred dollars or more, but rather a simple worm bin which can be made from a Rubbermaid style bin within a matter of twenty minutes or so for around $10.00 – $15.00. A homemade system will breathe better and allow more room for burying food scraps within. The following link you can find a previous post with simple step by step directions on how to build a worm compost bin.

I was shocked this summer when I was checking on prices of tomatoes at the local grocery stores which ran on average $1.99 per pound for regular tomatoes. Organic bell peppers were selling for $4.99 each! And the entire time I was picking them daily from our garden for free…

Below is a picture taken on October 19th 2011 of a tomato plant over eleven feet tall still producing tomatoes using the Earthwormponics set up. In fact I picked the ripe one in the right hand side of the picture yesterday for my ham sandwich! I mention this as I was growing bell pepper plants and Romaine lettuce right beside the tomato plant in a five gallon bucket set up which utilizes a system with a constant drip and worms living within the rock growing medium.

Earthwormponics Tomato Plant Mid October

Earthwormponics Tomato Plant Mid October

Based on grocery store prices, this one container saved us over $250.00 this past year alone!

The savings can then be applied towards items most of us will not be growing the primary ingredients for, i.e. coffee, peanut butter… which will most likely continue to soar for several years to come.

Hence now is the time to begin worm composting to insure you have plenty of vermicast and or vermicompost on hand for you spring plantings. To locate which worm may be best suitable for your needs, visit Organic Worm Farm where I have built a special program to help you locate the worm that is right for you!

Bruce

Organic Worm Farm

October 21st, 2011 | Tags: , , , , , | Category: Raising Worms | One comment
 
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