DO This To Make Worm Castings FASTER- 55 Gallon Worm Bin

[@BE030170]

I must say- you are a free thinker. Not just worms... all the buddies who eat and process organic matter too. A lot of life in there. I just started a worm bin last month and I'm pretty excited about your approach to this.

[@PlantObsessed]

I'm glad you like it. I try to model it after what happens in nature. 🪱👍🏼😁

[@spinderella3602]

Yes. She thinks out of the bin. I like this, too. I might try both her way and a commercial five bin.

[@DIYGrow-c8x]

❤

[@KiserianRedwormsFarm]

You are not plant obsessed but Redworms obsessed 😅. Great passion I may say from kenya here.

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you so much for watching 😃🪱👍🏼

[@DIYGrow-c8x]

Me 2 now worm obsessed wanted the best fertiliser for my Weed now big worm Fan 😂😂😂😂

[@gregjardon9565]

I am new to worming and that video was by far the best I have seen. Thx for sharing.

[@PlantObsessed]

Glad it was helpful!👍🏼😁🪱

[@francis5518]

Yesterday i was asking myself what would be a starter composting design, you just answered my question. I really appreciate it! Implemented cleverness, indeed!!

[@PlantObsessed]

Happy to help!🪱👍🏼😁

[@francis5518]

@@PlantObsessed Yeess, and I implemented it a couple of hours ago (by holding a big metal sheet with a couple of wires to make a semi-tube).

[@sheezy2526]

That party in the avocado was hilarious 😂

[@PlantObsessed]

They love their avocado 🥑🪱👍🏼😁

[@codeependent]

Wormorgy!

[@mikeymakesmaps1849]

Great video, interesting that you have no issues with onions and citrus, people are always warning against that stuff but my experience is similar to yours. I like the method a lot, it seems way less labor intensive than stacking trays or bins

[@PlantObsessed]

Yes exactly. I'm getting too old to drag around heavy totes. 👍🏼😁🪱

[@tauceti8341]

dude thats so cool you have a lateral bin instead of a vertical bin, and that just makes sense, these guys loves shallow soil. Awesome. Gonna go saw a bucket in half.

[@PlantObsessed]

Yep that's all I did. Mind blown yeah?😃👍🏼🪱🪱

[@BlueMountainWormsInc.]

Anne, We are a new member of your channel. We are all about worms, and I would love to utilize one of these 55 gallon worm bins. Great video and lots of information. Thanks from a new friend.

[@PlantObsessed]

I hope you get to have a barrel of worms. It is the best👍🏼😃🪱

[@A-V]

A dozen eggs each day?! Sounds like you better forget about growing plants & farming worms and begin putting your energy into raising a bunch of chickens :)

[@PlantObsessed]

Yeah I wish I could. We live in an area that doesn't allow it.

[@A-V]

Oh well - too bad

[@katjoy9921]

Now thats a lot of worms.

[@julianandrefredriksen5848]

Can do both. I do worms. Chickens and mealworms (i started mealworms bc i use them to clean trophy skulls. But both worms and mealworms make great chicken food

[@kromsnavelfun]

@@julianandrefredriksen5848 A bit of fras as food for the compostworms 👌 For kinine

[@thenodiggardener]

I love just sitting here and watching you go through that system. It's very cathartic lol

[@PlantObsessed]

Lol for me too. It's like my own grown up sand box to play in that has 50k of my closest friends. 🪱👍🏼😃

[@jerrygallagher-y9n]

ive a few videos latley on worm casting and this is by far the best

[@PlantObsessed]

I'm glad I was helpful 😄🪱👍🏼

[@tedpreston4155]

First in, first out. Manufacturing, retail and accounting too!

[@PlantObsessed]

FIFO👍🏼🪱😃

[@tedpreston4155]

and LIFO! @@PlantObsessed

[@nes999]

Depends on the accounting firm. I've worked with companies that used lifo (pharmacies) and specific accounting (car companies)

[@trishoconnor2169]

I think this is the first time I have seen you move the castings down into the newly-emptied harvest end. This is the system I have been getting going, though on a smaller scale than Big Blue. I went from a five-gallon bucket to a shallow bin about 2 1/2 feet long and started working toward a horizontal migration system, where I add food and bedding at one end and take castings out of the other. I think of it as a "treadmill" system, because the worms stay in almost the same place from an outside perspective while they move one direction within material that moves the other direction. I was beginning to think I just was never going to get it to work quite as hoped, maybe because the bin was so small, until about ten days ago, when I was able to harvest about 1 1/2-2 cups of castings from the harvest end that had no cocoons and relatively few worms (which I separated by light migration and then dumped into the feeding end). While separating the worms from the castings, I found just a few small bits of their cardboard bedding, which I also picked out, but overall, the castings seemed pretty "finished." I'm hoping that over the next few harvests, I will start getting fewer and fewer worms in the harvested castings. I just need to learn to be patient with the system. And with the worms!

[@PlantObsessed]

Patience is not one of my virtues either. Lol. It does pay off. 👍🏼😁🪱

[@clivesconundrumgarden]

It’s not a passive system but it’s my favorite on the platform. Patrick’s outdoor bin is right there to. It seems once the perameters are in-line it’s super forgiving, produces a ton of high quality “drying” casting without a ton of work!! Awesomeness Ann!! Still no internet, so off to the garden lol Have a great 4th !! Cheers 🌱🤞👍👍👍🇺🇸

[@John-y8j4f]

Very easy very simple explanation, I am starting a single bed to learn and hope later to generate a little income .

[@PlantObsessed]

That is totally possible. Good luck 🪱👍🏼😃

[@jasonmarks4521]

just a heads up, Your playlist for the no grit bin is backwards. I was shredding paper and watching the experiment from finish to start..... I love your videos. Thank you!

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you for letting me know. I went and fixed it now. Thank you for watching 😃🪱👍🏼

[@لاشئ-ك2ن]

The photography is very wonderful❤❤❤❤❤

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you 👍🏼🪱😁

[@maggielayer3447]

Hi Ann, I like watching your videos. I started my own bin a couple months ago. It is a plastic storage tote with holes drilled on each side and canvas material on the inside to allow airflow. It has been working fairly well and I've harvested once from it. I recently added an avocado and found the mites gravitated right towards the shell. Is the mite population ever something to be concerned about in the bin?

[@PlantObsessed]

Think of the mites and springtails as guardian angels. they show up when needed and fade into the background when they are not. They are good at preprocessing food the worms can't eat right away. I don't do anything at all now. In the past I would treat with Neem or bt but I'm fairly sure they went away on their own.

[@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920]

Hi Ann, Sorry I missed you LIVE I hope it was a success ❤ I love watching you redo Blue. And I hope your summer is going well ❤Peggy❤

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you for the rain. We needed it. I hope all is well with you and your family.

[@NanasWorms]

Sorry I missed you live, Ann. Great makeover for Blue! ~ Sandra

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you. I didn't realize I had harvested that much. Whoops.

[@NanasWorms]

@@PlantObsessed I would love to see how you use your castings in your garden, Ann. I know you did a video a while back showing giving castings to hostas and maybe grapevine? Anyway, I'm overloaded with castings right now and wondering how best to use them. Because I have wood chip mulch everywhere, the mulch is full of worms. Do I give those plants growing in the mulch more castings?? I'm not able to do a foliar spray, but maybe that would be a better use of these castings. ~ Sandra

[@PlantObsessed]

@@NanasWorms yes. I used to toss 5 gallon buckets under my apple trees and grape Vines. You can't over do it. I try and work that into the next video.

[@SusanRogersMakingItWork4Me]

I have a place I dump all my scraps, the worms Naturally come and eat them. I "NEVER" BUY WORMS! Why people complicate this is a wonder to me!😬 My Granny did this and it worked!

[@PlantObsessed]

If you live in an urban area it makes more sense.

[@Tippler0611]

What was the plastic bag at the center joint? I just love Blue, and have modeled two of my own bins after it. I'm curious of there's any danger to overfeeding if you dont care about flies and such? My outdoor bin is getting the majority of the kitchen scraps so I can let the big compost bin mature for fall spreading.

[@PlantObsessed]

Yes, blue was a rain barrel in his last life. There is a hole there where the pipe went through. The glued on plug fell out. As far as over feeding, I would only worry about a build up of methane/ ammonia in the castings and bedding killing the worms. That being said it also depends on how fast the food will decompose and how many worms are in the bin. I keep testing the limits of how much food they can eat in 3 weeks. Make sure the worms have some place to go that is comfortable if you over do it. 😃👍🏼🪱

[@eulerizeit]

I've been waiting for a big blue harvest. Now I can see how fast they move through the new food half.

[@PlantObsessed]

Next check in will blow your mind. I bet half of it will be gone.

[@eulerizeit]

@@PlantObsessed I'm quite sure, looking forward

[@CB-ki4ov]

Great video! Do you have a video of harvesting/screening your castings? Thanks!

[@Brandtphenom]

Blend food scraps and mix with a carbon medium. You can also freeze food scraps in ice cube trays to feed them on hot days 👌🏼 worms ftw

[@PlantObsessed]

In the beginning I did blend everything but now I have so many worm bins there is no time. Thank you for the ideas 🪱😊👍🏼

[@theresarothenberger2264]

Thanks for ALL you do for us. I’m wondering, do you put the cover on your bins for your prepared bedding? And, I put the lid on freshly harvested casting and after a week I opened it and it was the worst smell ever. Like something died. I dumped it into a larger bin to make sure there was nothing else in it and it actually attracted large unwanted flies. I think they thought it was manure!😅. Seriously though. 😮

[@donaldstory105]

I recently did my first harvest and put very small airholes in the cover. So far, they have retained moisture and no odors.

[@PlantObsessed]

That might have been dead worms. They smell the worst. I don't put the lid on tight. Donald is correct it needs air flow. The worm bins often get a piece of foam or bubble wrap on the feeding end to preserve moisture. The other side is open in summer. When the furnace is on the whole bin gets a light cover.

[@PlantObsessed]

Yep that is a good idea.

[@kdog543]

I know coco and other stuff makes good bedding for worms but i don't have access to that stuff for my worm bin I started instead of worm composting in yardwaste composter to a bin to harvest wormcasting to cut down on the cost and or can't be gain quickly in area i live. I know fertilizer soils in bags you buy bad for worms or slows down metabolism to digesting for the worms but im hoping the nightcrawlers break down hardware store less desirable soil and fertilizer to lessor more digestible and microbiological life in the soil and nutrients building. What are your thoughts or using regular potting soil or peat moss and tropical soil mixes for worm bedding and no coffee grounds in worm box slows down on breeding of the worms in a videos study i just watch too?

[@PlantObsessed]

I use peat moss too. Another thing people use is bagged composted organic cow manure. The worms love that.🪱👍🏼😃

[@jeffshultz9869]

My worms love dandilions, they eat the green leaves, then the root after it softens up

[@paulhauchon2265]

Thanks a lot for these good tips. 🖐️ from 🇨🇵

[@PlantObsessed]

Im Glad they were helpful 😀👍🏼🪱

[@mikecrow565]

Really helpful. Thanks so much!

[@PlantObsessed]

Glad it was helpful!🪱😀👍🏼

[@codeependent]

That totally makes sense!

[@PlantObsessed]

I'm glad it was helpful 🙂🪱👍🏼

[@samuraioodon]

Omg Alvacado wormball!

[@PlantObsessed]

Nice right🪱😃👍🏼

[@mikkosgarden]

That is a huge producer, great results, too bad we didn't live closer, we are getting chickens. Have a great day.

[@PlantObsessed]

Now that egg prices are back to almost normal it is not too bad. Thanks for watching.

[@atwaterurbanhomestead1244]

Girl, I've been 24/7 watching your videos for 3 days!!! Can you send me a link to a video of starting a brand name farm?

[@PlantObsessed]

I'll do one better. I'll give you a playlist 😄. kzbin.info/aero/PLiDtxGXSEdZcIwGy6j_5P5l1pee36C0MY

[@atwaterurbanhomestead1244]

@@PlantObsessed thank you!!

[@jeepman1961]

Thanks for great vid!! I just bought a barrel to make a big blue!! But after a harvest, how long can castings survive before use? And is it beneficial to put them in the garden in the fall? or should I store them till spring?

[@PlantObsessed]

They are good to add to the garden any time. Storage is tricky. If they dry out you have to get them wet again and add some worms to refresh the microbes.

[@jeepman1961]

@@PlantObsessed Thank you!!

[@malgood9624]

​@@PlantObsessed Thanks!!!, I have been wondering about castings that dry out and what to do with them

[@serenityplantation7638]

I’ve never seen anyone so violent with their worms. Holy shit

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you for watching

[@DawahLand]

Very good video thanks

[@PlantObsessed]

I'm glad you found it helpful 😁🪱👍🏼

[@tammytamz3046]

What zone are you in? I heard you say Midwest. Just wondering how they do over the winter… I’ll watch more! 😅

[@PlantObsessed]

Most are in the basement but I have active live worms outside in March here in zone 5/6 Illinois.👍🏼🪱😁

[@Stiltz1291]

Do you keep a light on them constantly to prevent them escaping the container? Nice setup!

[@PlantObsessed]

Nope. I leave the light on for a few hours after I feed them then after that they calm down. Then the light can go off. 🪱👍🏼😀

[@michelleinthemeadow]

Thanks for sharing the wedge method; really helpful. For the eggshells, are you baking them before grinding them up?

[@PlantObsessed]

We microwave them for a few minutes then let them cool

[@michelleinthemeadow]

@@PlantObsessed Thank you. I realize I don't have nearly enough brown materials in my worm bins, either. Gonna work on it.

[@juntjoonunya9216]

How do you encourage them to finish a section before moving over

[@PlantObsessed]

It sounds silly but I have found they do what they want. Some worms will stay with the old food to the last crumb and others are in the new food the same day. I have to work at their speed. 🪱👍🏼😃

[@juntjoonunya9216]

@@PlantObsessed haha they're just like us

[@GraceEngineering]

Have you ever done a long time lapse video of worm activity?

[@PlantObsessed]

Nope. I leave that to AV. 😃🪱👍🏼

[@geandredasilvaxavier7061]

Muito bom mesmo excelente

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you for the kind words, I'm glad it was helpful 🪱👍🏼😀

[@pawelmirakowski1477]

So the main reason for separating is not to dry the casting's, but to get the worms to go over to the other side?

[@PlantObsessed]

It is both. I prefer to sift my casting so they need to be on the dry side. The worms won't leave the castings if they are still 50 to 80% moisture.

[@Doktracy]

Where do you get such long barrels?

[@PlantObsessed]

The 55 gallon drum. I cut it lengthwise and then stitched it together with screws. Cut the top off so it is actually two ends of a 55 gallon barrel. If you look at the European nightcrawler videos you can see what one half of the barrel looks like. 😃🪱👍🏼

[@tracygonsalves]

Hi Ann I like watching your videos . Just started with worm composting last 2 months. I saw that after putting food after 10 days there are maggots in food .is it okay for the worms. Need ur help. Thank you in advance.

[@PlantObsessed]

It sounds like you may have fed too much and didn't bury it deep enough. The flies will be very annoying for you I don't think the worms will be hurt. It takes about 6 months for the ecosystem in the worm bin to develop to handle large feeding. The mites, bacteria, springtails and fungi that help the worms breakdown the food are not in high enough numbers to prevent your maggot.problem. I would add as much bedding on top that will fit to prevent them from turning into flies. Good luck. All experience is good to learn from.

[@tracygonsalves]

Thanks a lot.

[@Pleasegoaway2024]

You can Make rhubarb pie. Tastes very similar to strawberry pie. Much healthier really good for you very sweet and yummy. Or you can juice it. It's really good that way too adds a lot of green and it adds the flavor of mild strawberry. And the sweetness of the plant itself. Excellent with kale and things like that

[@PlantObsessed]

I love rhubarb crisp. The plant was not healthy. Maybe Ill try again some day. Thank you for watching :)

[@ontherocksinthesoilmichael6739]

Awesome possum bin!

[@PlantObsessed]

It was a cute little thing. I'm glad it was calm as I took it outside.

[@jeepman1961]

Can someone link a video of the building the big blue? Just curious about how it was fastened and sealed? I am thinking about camper seal? and 10/32 screws and nuts?

[@PlantObsessed]

kzbin.info/aero/PLiDtxGXSEdZcmW5hb0J7uRzJ5FfiouwSK. Is the playlist. Close..but No sealant.

[@pawelmirakowski1477]

By drying the castings do you lose or kill some of the microbes in the casting?

[@PlantObsessed]

In the bin I don't let them dry 100%. Sometimes I forget about my stored casting and they can lose the microbes. In that case I add enough water to make it livable again and add a few worms back to rework the bin and refresh the microbes. Thank you for watching 😃🪱😃

[@michaelarchambault217]

Why are there all those plastic bits in the bin?

[@PlantObsessed]

It seems to be from either tape that was missed when the boxes were shredded or was in food that was donated. 🪱👍🏼

[@thisnthatwithYaya]

How long will it take for the worms to eat and process all that food?

[@PlantObsessed]

About 3 weeks except the hard seeds. Thank you for watching.🪱👍🏼😃

[@Rahilbhaiiiii]

Does species of worm matter? Does i cant use regular worm from my garden? What is your opinion?

[@PlantObsessed]

Species of worm does matter. If you have natural red wigglers on your garden or barn yes they will work. If you are looking at deep dwelling worms with a flat tail they will not work. In my area the worms that come up after a rain, those are the deep ones. If you don't mind stating very small the bait worms at Walmart are either red wigglers or European nightcrawlers.👍🏼😁🪱

[@Rahilbhaiiiii]

@@PlantObsessed If i m doing regular composting with that flat worms it will help or its waste .

[@sanjaydwivedi4003]

Funny way of explaining, as if you are teaching, how the flip-flops work in digital basics.

[@PlantObsessed]

Lol funny way of explaining how I explain things.. I hope you got something out of it. 👍🏼😊🪱

[@Vermicompost]

Holey Guacamole that was a lot of roley poleys scurring around in the feeding end!! Lots of great helpers in Blu!! Lots of good tips (beside the two main ones) and info in the video (love the discussion on biology versus NPK) Yay!! Party in the Avo-Condo!! What?? An Avo-Condo inside an Avo-Condo??? "The Pit" It's a night club inside the Avo-Condo!! Lots of W=urban legends gonna be busted with that feeding!! Looking forward to the kimchi results! Super awesome video Ann!! As always I learned a lot!!🪱🪱🪱

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you for watching 😃 yes the pit is super exclusive club. Lol. The rolly pollys are getting nuts and taking over. Pretty soon it will be a pill bug bin.

[@Vermicompost]

@@PlantObsessed 😂🤣😂

[@jamesthompson5581]

Hi Anne. Love watching your channel. I’d love to hear what you use when you start a new raised bed…. Other than the castings of course . Keep up the good work 👍🏻

[@PlantObsessed]

That has been a learning curve for me. The first ones I just used soil from the garden. Future ones I did huglekulture plus soil and compost. This year I ran out of my compost. I used cheap bagged soil and compost. That was a mistake. Too much wood chips. It has been sucking nutrients and the plants are not doing well. I'll go back to local soil and my compost in the future.

[@jamesthompson5581]

@@PlantObsessed awesome! Thanks for your reply

[@barbarareid387]

Thanks for such an interesting talk on worms. You've really got it down!! I see you don't wear gloves... Lots of biology in that vermiculite... Hope you've not got any nicks on your hands. Can you do a vid about volumes & problems pls?

[@PlantObsessed]

I do wear gloves if I have hand injuries. Thank you for the ideas 😃🪱👍🏼

[@wesnerdesir3168]

How do you shred your paper?

[@PlantObsessed]

In the description below I have an Amazon link to the paper shredder I use. Thank you for watching 😃🪱👍🏼

[@-ChrisD]

Fun fun fun 😃

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you!!

[@roywarriner8441]

I use a similiar method but don't put bedding in the worm bin, just food. I produce 2 to 4 liters of organic waste a day. I have a compost bin in my basement right beside my worm bin. The kitchen waste is layered into one end of that with shredded newsprint and cardboard. Worm food comes out the orher end. I turn both bins once a week and usually harvest castings every two weeks. Everything from my kitchen ex ept grease and fat goes into the bin, roasted and ground bones, ground eggshells, rock dust and neem seed meal are sprinkled into the worm bin when I turn it. I keep them covered with landscape fabric to keeps gnats and flies out. The kitchen waste breaks down much faster going into an active bin and the worms burn through the ready to eat food. Cheers.

[@PlantObsessed]

I'm glad you have a system that works so well. Good worms!! 🪱😃👍🏼

[@roywarriner8441]

@@PlantObsessed Can you tell me if the worm bin produces or consumes CO2?

[@PlantObsessed]

@@roywarriner8441 worms breath oxygen. 👍🏼😃🪱

[@roywarriner8441]

@@PlantObsessed Thanks,

[@allenk3410]

I love what you are doing, but you have an awful lot of shredded plastic coated paper. Please consider finding a better carbon source for your own health.

[@PlantObsessed]

I pick out any plastic I find. Thank you for caring about us. 🪱👍🏼😃

[@juntjoonunya9216]

Do they like cow she chicken manure?

[@PlantObsessed]

I feed the ANC aged cow manure. I think the chicken manure will need to be aged alot or may heat up. 👍🏼🪱😊

[@juntjoonunya9216]

@@PlantObsessed ANC? What's that? Thanks

[@PlantObsessed]

@@juntjoonunya9216 African Night Crawlers. Tropical worm. If you don't live in the south I don't recommend it.

[@tamishreves9891]

no onions-

[@PlantObsessed]

Yes onions are ok in small amounts.😃🪱👍🏼

[@davidearl8060]

Pineapple and pear and meats are a no no no.. Also Citrix is a no no,Some plants it's not good for.

[@PlantObsessed]

Not true. They are old wives tales. The worms bin ecosystem handles them all. The worms are unharmed.

[@WyzrdCat]

Why does everyone handle castings with no gloves? It's literally poop, people..

[@PlantObsessed]

It's not actual crap. It is more like soil. Anywhooo. You do you.

[@turkuaz6666]

hello like 1

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you

[@ericandrews7115]

A little less talk, a lot more action. A LOT of superfluous information and rambling. I fast forwarded after a few minutes to the point where the new bedding was added. Could have made this video 2 minutes long and conveyed the relevant information.

[@PlantObsessed]

Little known fact. People newer to worm farming often like the long videos. I believe you can sort by video length or watch the video at 2x speed like I often do. Happy worming 👍🏼😃🪱

[@jeromefridmann6108]

Now , what the hell is she babbling about ?

[@PlantObsessed]

😀🪱👍🏼

[@gregbutler9873]

Did you say “ Utes?” LOL 😂

[@PlantObsessed]

Um.. maybe 🤔

[@brucemoffatt]

Thanks for another helpful video. 😊 Thumbs up for Blue, cheers for the wedge system.

[@GardeningwithBarchuckin]

Great explanation on the wedge method and what you are trying to accomplish. Good move using the leftovers to start inoculating the fresh bedding. Hmm kimchi it will be neat to see on the next check in how that’s making out. 😁🪱🪱

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you for watching 😃 ps I went shopping on your links today. I hope it worked.

[@GardeningwithBarchuckin]

@@PlantObsessed thanks Ann I will check tomorrow. Have a good 4th of July.