Experimental Worm Bins: Blended vs. Whole and Freezing Food

[@glenmorrow1255]

Love your videos. Most KZbin worm farmers make a lot of claims about what worms like and dont like based on their wishes. You actually test out hypothesis.

[@shiningwizard1]

Please upload more videos These videos are just gold.

[@kater4052]

I used to be so jealous of you and others with such big fat worms, while no matter how much I fed mine, they always looked tiny and skinny. Once I started blending the food first and adding egg shell powder, they now look fat and healthy and are reproducing and producing castings at a fantastic rate. I used a nice layer of castings, then compost and wood ash, and leaf mold on my asparagus beds this year and the shoots are not only tender and sweet, but are growing at a phenomenal rate. Yesterday mid morn I harvested all the shoots that were longer than 4 inches and this evening (5 pm) I had to harvest again. The longest shoot was 33 inches - Wow!!! Love your vids and have been subscribed for awhile now. Just rewatching an older one.

[@markblairharley2890]

If you sprinkle on some corn meal The protein soon gets your worms fat I have noticed a big difference in a very short time

[@liliakogan3043]

Great update as usual. So enjoy watching those worm parties.

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Lilia Kogan aren’t they the best? 😍

[@abdennourseghir6359]

I’m definitely going all blended food since my bins can’t keep up with my scraps and my freezer is almost full. Thanks for the experiment.

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Abdennour Seghir you are welcome! Just be wary of overfeeding and err on the side of too small of a feeding until you get a grasp on how much your guys can handle!

*MORE WEURNS THEN*

[@tori7635]

Wow... didn’t expect that with the peppers! Great update worm sista!!

[@martysgarden]

They sure did smash through that food,,,it's all gone so quickly. The sprouts definately would be so healthy coming up in that vermicompost. BIG FAN of what your doing here Emily...as I am moving back into worm farming again for the micro farm it's inspiring to see how it's all going for you there. Happy Gardening Marty Ware (small space gardening/urban micro farming Australia)

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

martysgarden that’s awesome Marty! I am really loving the hobby, my plants (including microgreens by the way) are loving it. I am super excited to share my trials and tribulations! Have a great day.

[@martysgarden]

You too my friend,,can we see a video on how your growing microgreens and other plants with your castings? That would be super cool. Have an awesome day Marty

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

martysgarden you got it! I will post something here soon!

[@AstroGremlinAmerican]

My worms also take forever to eat an apple core and shun blended apple, at least for awhile. Love your experiments!

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Astro Gremlin thank you!

[@freewillchoice8052]

Thanks for sharing your experiences with the worms. Is there a specific reason you put the food in cans then add it into the bedding? I just started a worm bin about a month ago, learning all I can. ❤

[@RowanBriar]

I've been freezing my scraps because it kills fruit fly seeds and such. I leave some whole, things like banana stems and stuff that take awhile and are hard on my blender anyway. This week, I kept some frozen whole pieces of melon rind. I don't thaw the frozen whole stuff, because I know it'll thaw in the bin and they've got other stuff to work on before that. I blend up some frozen scraps and rinsed eggshells and mix them with some cardboard and shredded paper to soak up the extra water. I pour that over the whole scraps, then top with some used coffee grounds/ tea. I feed about once a week, and usually just have a few pieces of the whole foods left, because what I leave whole takes awhile anyway. Apple cores, banana peels etc. I've only had my worms for a few weeks, but I've had to sift out a bunch of castings because my bin was getting full. Probably half the weight of my bin was castings and cocoons. I'm looking forward to my first crop of hatchlings. I have some baby worms in my main bin already, so I'm just letting what I sifted out yesterday sit to see what else hatches over the next month or so.

[@thecosmicbug]

I was just freezing the food, but now I'll definitely be using my old food processor to break it down even more. Man I wish I could just go back in time 😥.

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Bri Gilmore Hall and now I have gone back to whole scraps to make things last longer! 😂😂. All in good time I assure you!

[@augustineschaefer5522]

I have rescue worms and am trying to dabble in vermicomposting I had 8 worms show up in a house plant. I was donated some bins and off I went. I might be doing something right because there’s no visible pests and my bin smells like spring time rain. They’ve kept me busy during covid quarantine winter. Thanks for these videos

[@alpinewhite]

I can't distinguish between worm castings and the brown bedding on my little bin. I see that most of yours looks like it's still coconut coir. How will you be able to tell if it's all castings already? I guess I need to see what worm castings look like when you pick it up and play with it.

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Augie Inciong I can do a video to show the distinction. But generally speaking, coco coir still looks fibrous and brown in color. The castings look like tiny grains of rice and are much darker, slightly sticky but flake apart easily.

[@allenedwin4877]

I totally agree with The Crazy Worm Lady here Augie. When you have alot of castings you cant mistake them for Coco Coir, the actual castings (sorry if this explanation seems gross being compared to mice poop, but its honestly the closest thing possible i can use as a comparison. But no were near as nasty or is there a ammonia smell to the castings if your taking good care of your worms and bins. And your worms are happy) themselves look basically like if you could make mouse poop spongy and damp and slightly stick together, yet crumble at the same time if that makes any sense lol. If my explanation still seems confusing, if you have a local Wal-mart or fishing bait shop that sells live bait worms (these are generally Euro Reds or Night crawlers instead of Red Wigglers though, due to the fact the Euros and African Night crawlers are larger and fisherman like bigger worms) you can get a little cup of worms out of their fridge and peek inside. Often as long as the cups weren't just made the bedding they are shipped in has been practically 99% (guesstimate😊) turned to wormy poo, aka worm castings, aka, black gold, aka the good shyt.😅 Black in color, each individual casting looks similar to a mouse turd yet considerably more moist and in clumps. Smells earthy not stinky, and is actually a delight to see/feel, esp if its your worms that did the work lol. Hope that makes sense, and sorry for my comment turning into a bookment🤐😉😁 P.S. I am nonliable for any money lost due to being like me and feeling sorry for the ill fated lil worms in the cups you find yourself helping to escape the Worm Prisons 🤔😕🙃 I know the feeling all to well and have fought to free many a incarcerated Worm myself, not to mention im sure there are many more to come. Lol

[@deeel3057]

Frozen bananas are actually a healthy replacement for ice cream and taste good af

[@chaniatreides9513]

Good experiment. I dont blend my worm food, I know, but I just can't bring myself to dirty dishes for worms, lol, but they devour food like crazy and I'm patient. So cool how organized and informative, great video.

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Chani Atreides thank you! I rarely blend anymore myself, but it is fascinating to see the differences, yes?

[@chaniatreides9513]

@@TheCrazyWormLady definately, I've learned a ton already!

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Chani Atreides that’s great to hear!

[@bobjackson4720]

I was alarmed to see some (past it's best) melon I had placed on top of my worm bed had gone mouldy by the next day. I removed it immediately, you added a mouldy banana is that OK?

[@juliankeller5030]

Yes worms feed on micro bacteria and funguses

[@ThomasBomb45]

The worms will eat any mold or fungus that grows. Your main concerns with fungus is spores and pests. Mold or mushrooms could release spores that might irritate allergies or cause harm if it's one of those nasty kinds. These aren't a problem if your worm bin is outside, but more so if it is inside. Also, some small flies like to eat fungus and lay their eggs inside (fungus gnats, they are small like fruit flies). If they get in a moldy bin, you'll have a big infestation on your hands. These are less of a worry if your bin is outside. You can also get rid of most of the issues if you just bury the moldy food, since the bugs cant get to it and the spores won't get in the air. Just be careful not to mix it too much and get the spore dust in the air!

[@suzihomeandgardeninnewyorkcity]

Hungry worms! Lol 😆!

[@MrJesseh24]

I rnjoyed this video your length is fine also

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Thank you!

[@Boodieman72]

What where the sprouts from?

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Boodieman72 the bell pepper seeds!

[@dagobaker]

had this issue with melon seeds NEVER again lol now i throw out the seeds unless im outdoor composting with some heat to kill everything

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Matthew Delsignore I get quite a high number of volunteer plants in my gardens from the compost. I just pull them out.

[@thecosmicbug]

My goodness, what are you using to crush your egg shells?! I NEED IT! 🤯😂!

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Bri Gilmore Hall cheap spice grinder. I bought one at Walmart I think for $12. I use it exclusively for the worms 😂

[@thecosmicbug]

I should have known! Btw, I've been using food grade dermacoccus earth powder from fresh water. No one is really saying anything about it, I forgot where I got to use it from. Do you have any knowledge on this? The wormies seem to be happy with it, but I wonder what the long term effects would be!

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Bri Gilmore Hall DE works well mainly when moist but it has incredible nutrient value so regardless it is a good addition to the worm bin. No ill effects whatsoever!

[@thecosmicbug]

@@TheCrazyWormLady so good to know and thanks for getting back you me! 😋❤️

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Bri Gilmore Hall anytime, anything you need!

[@aroonmohip448]

So I've tried the grounded or grined scraps and need up with a over heat in my bin. How can I fix that?

[@marthadoelle7585]

What's up with all those PLU labels?

[@cx-109a7]

Some are edible, so that could be the case.

[@christianvezina7292]

question I froze all vegetable and fruit and then I pass it all to the food blender I forgot it for 3 day in my garage when I opened it smell like wine woufffff I give a little bit to the worms and they seem to love it ????? is it bad ????

[@christianvezina7292]

?? any opinion

[@angelappmys]

Why do we need to add bedding and not just the food?

[@rigawzi848]

Can I use peat moss as my base for the worm to live in and then add the compost and scraps. Or is peat moss bad for the worms

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Caleb Fraser people are concerned about the sustainability of peat but my worms do fine in it. I exclusively breed in peat moss. Use a little buffer to prevent too much acidity and I think they will do well.

[@spoolsandbobbins]

I added wood ash to my peat and all’s well.

[@deannahayes4627]

a Cuisinart works so good (food processor).

[@veronicawilliams2612]

I'm bout to order or buy small bins for my worms so I can have room I got eggs coffee grins but I'm gone let them eat what n there cause I over feed them I got so many fruit flys this why I put them out doors it's warm out.

[@SwampyAcresHomestead]

Nice 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

Swampy Acres Homestead thanks for watching!

[@okpasha]

Have u tryed pineapple?

[@TheCrazyWormLady]

omar pasha indeed! Check out the Forbidden Foods playlists!

[@budpierce7443]

22👍

[@christianvezina7292]

hey

[@pzpz2135]

you should remove the plastic stickers on produce. they're harmful to the worms.

[@cx-109a7]

Some are edible, so that could be the case.

[@waynetadlock9719]

Time for a change Emily. Same 'ol- Same "ol... Not gonna rate this one with a "thumbs up." Not that there's anything wrong- I'm just too ornery to be honest. Okay, lol, changed my mind- Very pleased with your videos but you need to have a talk with 'em about not following protocol on those peppers- I wonder if the fact that peppers don't have as much "flesh or meat" as the other inputs has a bearing on why the two pepper stages were so close? Any way, good job and keep them coming.