Frugal Worm Keeping Tips, Tricks and Cautions Episode 3

[@NanasWorms]

Hi Jayne, petroleum based waxes can't be composted, but vegetable based waxes can. Chances are the tea lights in pumpkins are just cheap paraffin candles. I've got metal skewers and even once a razor blade in a donated pumpkin! ~ Sandra

[@RockinWorms]

@@NanasWorms Hey Sandra! Thanks for clarifying g that the usual pumpkin candles won’t compost. Worm wranglers can scrape off whatever wax they can and then be prepared to pick out wax bits over time or by sifting. 👍. OMG! Skewers and razors! 😱Wow! That’s scary. 😱

[@marymccusker8133]

Hi Jayne. I’m just checking in on you and Cameraman. I hope whatever you’re dealing with gets easier to handle. I agree- Family comes first. I think of you whenever I save the water I’ve cooked something in and when I add water to whatever food is left in a jar or can, swish the water around and let the worms have it. Drop a cracker on the floor? Put it in the coffee grinder and add it to the worm chow! The worms are thriving. I’ve tried to get others interested in vermicomposting without success. Oh well! I’m still enjoying my worms and seeing my food scraps turn into something useful. Take care. Mary

[@RockinWorms]

@@marymccusker8133 Hi Mary! Thanks for checking in on us 😍. I hope things get easier too! It’s been a wild ride the last several months 🙄. Things will start to settle down a bit after the new year I hope 🤞. Until then I do what I can, keep the worms going and keep the homestead ticking over. Everyone has rough patches. This is ours right now. I’m so touched by so many of you guys touching base with me 💕. I really appreciate all the good vibes 😎. Oh that makes me happy! Put that good cooking liquid to use! Just think of all the nutrients in that water that’s now going to the worms and then out to the earth! Almost nothing that’s food based should go into the garbage. If it’s not going directly into a worm bin then it should be going to the pre-compost tote 🤩. Love it! Worm wrangling isn’t for everyone. I get that. But we can feel sad for them, can’t we?! 🤣🪱

[@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920]

Hi Jayne, I did see a neighbor put out 2 🎃 🎃 so I drove by and collected them. I felt very productive 💪

[@RockinWorms]

@@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920 Woo-hoo! Score! You might want to cook them up a bit to kill any bugs that got in there before adding to your worm bin 😎. Jack and Jill are going to be so happy! 😀 🪱

[@marytalcott1531]

Congrats on the 5k subscribers! Thank you for this video. My dear neighbors gave me 4 big pumpkins! Unfortunately, they were not carved, but I got one done so far. A funny aside... My 50# labradoodle loves veggies, so I gave her a piece of pumpkin, and she gobbled it up. I call her my "Eisenia Doodus". I have been stuffing Kongs with a mix of canned pumpkin and yogurt with a bit of peanut powder and freeze them for a treat. Great for her gut. With all this bounty, I will be cooking up some to freeze for her. (Last year canned pumpkin was as high as $2 a can!!!) I have been drying my other scraps that I freeze/blend and then drain was much as possible through a paint strainer bag. then I dehydrate it in my induction oven on sous vide. I use a piece of screen to keep it raised for airflow, then blend to powder when it is dry. Since the pumpkin is soooo wet after blending, I am wondering if I can get the same result draining through the paint strainer bag. (I don't have an "official dehydrator". Thoughts?

[@RockinWorms]

@marytalcott1531 Hi Mary! Thanks so much! I can’t believe my channel has so many subscribers 🥰. Sorry for the late reply - I didn’t see your comment come in until now. Eisenia Doofus - love it 😍. What a good puppy, eating her veggies. I think the pumpkins being uncared is better - less rot and bugs 🐛. You can drain the pumpkin. I’ve actually placed canned pumpkin onto paper towels and rolled it to take out excess moisture. Works really well! Your sous vide setting will work quite well I think having to go thru extra steps. When I dehydrate my pumpkin slurry it’s slightly looser than yogurt. For some reason looser, more moist slurry dehydrates better than thick sludge 🤷‍♂️. If you make pumpkin powder you can store it on the shelf and reconstitute it as needed for the worms or the pup! 😊🪱

[@funnysods]

Thanks for another fantastic video Jayne. I really look forward to Nov 1st when the price of pumpkins drops so far. They've been on sale in our supermarkets for around £1.90, but I can buy them today at 10p each! I'll get 10, which is about as many as I can get in a trolley. I'll then do as you say, boil them a bit and freeze the majority of it. As you'll know, the worms love it, and I always find a big ball of worms under any pumpkin. Thanks again, and I love the tee shirt by the way.👌👌✌❤

[@RockinWorms]

@@funnysods Hello! Good to hear from you 🥰. That’s a huge savings on pumpkin!! Stock up as you say and feed out as you go along. A quick boil makes them easier for the worms to eat. You can use the boiled water to make pre-compost or simply add to your bins as needed. 🤩🪱

[@brianseybert192]

Nice video Jane, you are all too organized, lol. I am lucky enough to get uncarved pumpkins from neighbors, instead of throwing the guts and seeds in a hot compost, I am going to dry the seeds down and use as a worm chow. I did that with luffa and birdhouse gourd seeds this summer, worked great. Have a good day! Stay Well!!!

[@RockinWorms]

@@brianseybert192 Hi Brian! Nice to hear from you 😍. Pumpkins from neighbors are great! That’s nice of them to share the bounty. Do you give them castings? I scooped out most of the seeds too. I’ll also dry them down and grind them for worm chow 😎. Great minds think alike! 🤣🎃🪱

[@brianseybert192]

@@RockinWorms I have no room for growing pumpkins, blah. Never really offered casting, perhaps I should, my "free table" of produce is a neighborhood hit however, think next year I will bag up some castings. Going to grow some alfalfa next year as a companion crop for my potatoes, plan on drying that out and making into worm chow too. Finally posted a video on harvesting my 50 gal grow bag bins, here is a link if you want to take a peak, kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5W6dXtmr9GqedEsi=WlkM7u_r0MnkuOqZ Happy Halloween!!!!

[@RockinWorms]

@ I just bet your free table of goodies is a hit!🤩. Sure why not try to sell a few bags of castings or even as a trade. Bartering is great! Alfalfa would be an awesome cover crop over potatoes. Will you mow it or use a scythe? I just bought 2 50 pound bags of rye seed on super discount. Need to get that out of the garage and into the pasture as it’s past time to do it. 🙄 I’ll bounce over and watch your video now. I hope others will too! Thanks for posting it. 🪱🪱

[@RockinWorms]

@ Watched your video! Gave it a thumbs up and commented. Good solid content 👍😎. Thanks again for sharing that 🪱🪱

[@dnawormcastings]

Great video Jayne the worms are going to love the pumpkin 🇳🇿🪱

[@RockinWorms]

@@dnawormcastings Thanks! I think they will too 💕🪱

[@davidhumphrey171]

I chunk mine into cubes and freeze, puree some a freeze in large Yogurt Containers(also good for worm containers when a customers picks them up) andhave pressure cooked as well ! Thanks for providing everyone with more frugal tips !

[@RockinWorms]

@@davidhumphrey171 Hi David! Of the pumpkins are in good shape they shouldn’t have too many insect eggs and stuff on them. The ones I’m getting are nasty 🤮 😳. Insect eggs is a real concern. How much pumpkin are you able to store? Could you also dehydrate some? 🪱🪱

[@davidhumphrey171]

@@RockinWorms I have an 8 or 10 cu ft freezer that i keep for frozen worm food and venison if I am lucky the next 2 weeks ! It only operates mid Nov until Mar or April.

[@RockinWorms]

@ You feed your worms venison?! Just kidding. I know what you meant. 🤩. Good luck! I have a freezer that holds worm foods until I’m ready to cook and feed it out to the worms too. Very handy! It’s also holds chicken foods so it does run all year. I try to get old stuff out and dehydrated when I can so I always have space for a good score like a car full of 🎃 👍🤩🪱

[@johnclarkson-n6z]

just great to c you happy and smilley

[@RockinWorms]

@@johnclarkson-n6z Thanks John 🥰. Getting a little sleep really helps 😝. Things are getting better, slowly but surely 😎

[@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920]

Hi Jayne, I don't ask people around here for their pumpkins after Halloween. Bugs are definitely a problem. But I'm sure you are using them quickly ❤ Take care of yourselves ❤Peggy❤

[@RockinWorms]

@@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920 I get that. In some places it’s just not comfortable asking for throw aways. Some pumpkin patches, most attached to religious places, will often have leftovers that can be had for a small donation or even free. Most places have only to get rid of the pumpkin leftovers so would rather give them away. Bugs can be a big problem. Cook that food and solve it easily! Thanks for watching Peggy 😍🪱

[@CharlotteDorn-q1x]

Happy Halloween Jayne! It's so nice to see you looking so well! We are in between children and grandchildren as far as trick or treating goes. We don't get many children coming to our house, so it's usually a quiet evening for us. I hope to score a bunch of pumpkins too! Give cameraman a hello!

[@RockinWorms]

@@CharlotteDorn-q1x Happy Halloween to you to! I do wish we got treaters as most of them are too cute! But that’s not going to happen where I am either. It’s still crazy here, latest is getting PT set up and that’s been a whole thing 😡. But making progress and that means I get a little more sleep 🤩🤣. I’m literally on my way typing this (Cameraman driving) to get a big pumpkin haul! 🪱🪱🪱

[@emilyfleischmann]

As I watched this video the pumpkin from our jack-o-lantern is cooling on the stove from being boiled!

[@RockinWorms]

@@emilyfleischmann Excellent Emily! Is it going to be worm food directly or is it headed to the pre-compost tote or both?? 🤩🪱

[@conniebates4220]

How do you sift your cow manure? I bought some off a farmer and i have pound them down to small pieces.

[@RockinWorms]

@@conniebates4220 Hi Connie! I have a video that shows how I do it. It’s used a small cement mixer I bought used off of marketplace. I have tried this but I wonder if a nutribullet or similar would further powder down your pounded pieces…? I like my fine sifted manure a lot. It mixes in well and can be used to dry down wet castings too. More surface area is almost always a good thing. But as far as the worms go for manure being food, they’re happy to munch on larger pieces. 😆. Here’s the link to my cow manure sifting video: How I Make Sifted Cow Manure for Basic Worm Bedding kzbin.info/www/bejne/fIuYq52bnpeVd6M

[@davidguenzel1441]

I compost my pumpkins then add them later.

[@RockinWorms]

@@davidguenzel1441 Hi David! Have you been fishing lately with your worms? Cameraman is fishing right now but not with my worms 🤣. Composting the pumpkins, or any produce separately, works fine too. It’s a different approach and has different pros and cons. Bottom line is whatever works for you and your worms in the right thing to do! 😍😎🤩🪱

[@davidguenzel1441]

@@RockinWormsHa!! I would love to be fishing...but not with my red wigglers. I guess i'm trying to precompost my pumpkins then add them to my bins. We'll see what happens. Thanks for your show.

[@bobbyhayes1735]

Hy Jane. Can I feed alpha pellets to feed my rw. And enc. And how should I do. It.

[@RockinWorms]

@@bobbyhayes1735 Hi Bobby! Welcome! You can feed alfalfa pellets to the worms BUT you have to be VERY careful about the alfalfa heating up. I’d grind the pellets up and then sprinkle a small amount in one end of the bin so the worms have plenty of room to move into AND away from the alfalfa as they see fit. With the alfalfa being on the top, or lightly scratched in, you’ll be able to monitor the worm’s behavior more easily. What I’d think about doing instead is using the alfalfa as a heat booster in making a batch of pre-compost. This way the worms still get the alfalfa as food but in a much less risky way as well as the benefit of getting all sorts of added biota from the same amount of the pellets. More food for the buck! If you have few cups worth of ground alfalfa you can try both ways to feed it to your worms! A sprinkle directly into the worm bin as well as a tote of pre-compost mix with a cup of the ground alfalfa mixed in. I haven’t used alfalfa in my pre-compost mix so I’m frankly guessing on the amount to use. For 18-20 gallon tote I’d start with the cup - I think it may actually be more than what is needed. I hope you’ll report back on what you decide to do and how it goes so we can all learn from you! 🤩🪱

[@johnwood1099]

what size sifter do you use for the casting?

[@RockinWorms]

@@johnwood1099 Hey John 😎. I use a 1/8” mesh over a 1/12” mesh sifter. What goes thru the 1/12” is super fine and contains zero-ish cocoons. Never say zero! 🤣 The castings between the two softer is fine castings and will contain a lot of the cocoons. The stuff that doesn’t go thru the 1/8” mesh needs either more processing by the worms or is too damp to sift thru. These are ‘overs’ and go back into the worm bin. There will also be a lot of cocoons on this material too. The best current deal on sifters I’ve found is from The General Store Spokane. Google them if you’re interested in better pricing than Amazon 😎🪱

[@mikehansbrough8909]

I’m struggling to get my pre-compost to heat up. Cardboard shred, Coffee grounds, Vegetable slurry, A little unsulphured molasses. In buckets for now, and a kiddie pool. Daytime temperatures in the 60s. Nighttime in the 40s. Stirred daily. Any way to send you pictures of my setup?

[@RockinWorms]

@@mikehansbrough8909 Hey Mike. That can be frustrating 😡. You can send me pictures at my website email: [e-mail] I’m thinking your mass isn’t concentrated enough to keep the heat in and kickstart a strong heat cycle. Buckets are really small and may heat up some but quickly quit. Kiddie pools (which I use a lot for gardening) are big but shallow. If you’re heaping the mixture up into a tower in the center of the pool that would help. But if it’s spread out then it’s not enough to keep the heat in. The ingredients themselves are perfect! 👍 🤩

[@Freeland-Farm]

Also, you might not want to mix it up so often until it starts warming up. Introducing colder air might actually be slowing down your microbes and definitely dissipates heat in general. If you have a way to insulate it, you might try that. I'd pile it all up in the middle of the kiddie pool and cover it with cardboard or plastic or both and some old blankets or towels you don't care about. A bigger pile is still cold toward the outside but basically insulates itself. You're just trying to mimic that.

[@RockinWorms]

@@Freeland-Farm You’re giving some good advice - thanks for adding to the discussion 👍. I haven’t had good luck with plastic coverings over pre-compost - it restricts air flow too much. Old blankets or canvas tarps could work well though. Giving the mixture a chance to heat up before mixing, letting that heat build for a few days, is also good advice, especially with cooler ambient temperatures. I didn’t think about that cooler air being mixed in as a detractor 🙄. Thanks for pointing that out. Of course the mix isn’t heating up to begin with it’s less of an immediate issue 😝. But once Mike gets it cooking your idea to wait a bit before adding in cold air is spot on. 🤩🪱

[@thompsonje23]

Do you worry about your cocoons drying out when you are drying out getting ready to sift the castings? I’m concerned about how dry is too dry to make sure I still have viable cocoons. Thanks.

[@RockinWorms]

@@thompsonje23 It is a balancing act when it comes to drying down castings for sifting and not get too dry for the cocoons. BUT cocoons don’t dry out immediately. They have a fluid inside that keeps the developing wisps safe for quite a while. This florets the wisps from drying out AND getting too hot or too cold. So while I do try to not over dry the cocoons just because I prefer to be safer than sorry, my main challenge is getting the cocoons out before they hatch. The wisps are much more vulnerable to drying out and dying 😱😩. And they are super tough to sift out, at least for me! So that’s a big reason I reset my breeder bins at day 15-16 when I can. With this timing I have a few days to dry down castings for sifting before the first cocoons laid start hatching. Ok? 🪱🪱

[@vb2377]

Is cornmeal alone a sufficient worm chow? I just want to fatten them up some. I do not want expensive ingredients. Corn meal is cheap and I only have one worm bin

[@RockinWorms]

@@vb2377 Hi Vy! I prefer to not feed just one food to the worms if I can help it. One food might be predominantly fed because that’s what I’ve got but if I can add in nothing else I really try to do that. Corn meal is an ok food but I’m learning to be more careful with it. The worms love the corn but go lightly with it at first and in one section of the bin. See how the worms and the bin react. I don’t know exactly what’s happening but I’m leaning toward a virus or fungus that grows on corn and it’s not a good thing to have too much of in a worm bin. I’m thinking of the worm eat the corn fast it’s ok but if the corn (or corn cob) linger a long time the bin starts to show issues. The worms start to decline. That’s what I’ve seen as my feeding corn on the cob experiment went on for months. The cobs lingered and after several months I wasn’t happy with how the worms on those few bins looked or acted 😳😡. So…. Feed the corn meal a bit at a time, not a big feed all at once. Keep an eye on them. Try hard to add in some other cheap foods - like those maple leaves! Or oats or cheap old bread from a bakery..? If you try feeding just the corn meal I’d love to hear how it goes as time passes. Maybe I simply did something wrong and you’ll have great success! 🤞😎🪱

[@vb2377]

@ I see. Good warning. I wished people sold worm chow more affordably. Way too expensive.

[@RockinWorms]

@ I understand that wish. The time it takes to make and then package and mail, not even counting in the cost of ingredients…… it’s way more affordable to make it yourself. Do you have a farm store nearby? Are you making pre-compost with free ingredients? Those are frugal things to do to keep your worms happy on the cheap 🤩🪱

[@vb2377]

@ yeah I use maple leaves as those are plentiful here. Corn meal as worm chow (used once a month at most). Food scraps and shredded cardboard.

[@RockinWorms]

@ You’re fine then. If you come across a sweet deal on something grain based then pick it up 😎. I’d really suggest you give making pre-compost some serious consideration. It’s a game changer and for super cheap cost too. Have you watched the how to videos? 🪱🪱

[@juanitanoble3190]

Hi, Jayne! Haven't seen you lately, so I came back here to hopefully make contact. I've missed your smiling face and find myself hoping all is well in your world. Best wishes

[@RockinWorms]

@@juanitanoble3190 Hey there Jaunita! Yeah, I’ve had to step back from making videos for the last few months. Had some serious health issues arise in the family and I’ve been focused on dealing with that. I’ve also had to pretty much handle all the homestead chores myself as well - care and feeding of the animals plus the normal house chores. Something had to give and making videos was it 😩. I’m hoping that things will get to a new normal after the new year and I can start making videos then 🤞🙏. In the meantime I am able to answer comments and questions and chat with all of you checking in on me and Cameraman 💕. Your kindnesses have been a real light during the last few challenging months 💕🥰😍. I hope you are doing well??

[@juanitanoble3190]

@RockinWorms we're hanging in there. Thanks for asking. I'm sorry things are so crazy at your place, but relieved to hear it's nothing worse. I'll be praying for you and watching for your return.

[@RockinWorms]

@ I’m glad you’re hanging in there 🥰. We are too, it’s just been a very difficult hang for the past several months 🙄😝. Tough times happen. But better times come eventually. Thanks for sticking with me! 😍🪱 I wish you the best best holiday season 💕

[@OG_VeniVidiVici]

Sorry no idea how I commented no while watching the video. I wanted to say shouts out to Grateful Dead lol dig the shirt

[@RockinWorms]

@@OG_VeniVidiVici 🤣it’s ok, it happens 😎. I thought maybe you were anti pumpkin! 😝 Cameraman is the dead head. Been all his life. I’m a classic rock and roll girl 🤩. Hope you score some pumpkins for your worms! 🪱

[@RonileeScofield-Moore-m6k]

Hi Jayne. I could swear you did a video where you take breeders out to a new bin. The cocoons stay for a new cocoon bin and when they hatch they’re now a nursery. In other words you just keep moving breeders at end of cycle. Am I Wrong about that? If not can you link the video for me? Thanks!

[@RockinWorms]

@RonileeScofield-Moore-m6k Hi! Yes you have that exactly right! I pull breeders and put them into a new bin with fresh bedding and foods. The old bin has all the cocoons and any hatched wisps in it and is simply renamed cocoon or nursery bin. Either name works 😎. When I have several breeder bin resets at the same time I can often combine the cocoon/nursery bins into one super bin. I have to keep an eye on how the cocoon hatching is going as the bedding is somewhat used up by the breeders that used to be in there. The newspaper on top and how it’s getting eaten helps gauge the hatch. Of course once the wisps start growing I need to split those bins. Here’s an older video on this topic/method: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rJewlHqgiZuEl6csi=yzvcNtKuGWYVBJ5p If this video doesn’t give you what you’re looking for, let me know. I have newer videos that also show how I move the breeders but I can’t recall which specific ones 🙄😆🪱

[@RonileeScofield-Moore-m6k]

Thank you! It’s not the video I’d seen but as usual it’s a good one! 😊. Your reply answered my question though. I did this method a couple of weeks ago and my cocoons are hatching and I was worried about how much food was left in the bedding so I sprinkled a little bit of worm chow and dolomite on top and scratched it into the surface. I’ll check today and maybe mix it in. And add some new bedding to the top as I’ve seen you do recently.

[@RockinWorms]

@@RonileeScofield-Moore-m6k Oh I’m glad you got the information you needed 😍. I have started adding more bedding (pre-compost) to the cocoon bins than I have in the past. In the past I think I waited too long to add fresh bedding and therefore food in the form of biota. As for worm chow and other food-foods, a little goes a long way with hatchlings. A sprinkle does it and always error on the side of adding more bedding if your concerned about food availability 😎🪱

[@RonileeScofield-Moore-m6k]

I definitely did a light sprinkle and probably just will stick with the added bedding in the future! Thanks so much for your help! Roni

[@winthan7441]

Do you get mites

[@RockinWorms]

@@winthan7441 I get very few mites now. I’d never say none (I tried that but wasn’t 100% effective) but not even to where I get a clump of them. The big change was when I started to cook the foods. Most of the veg I get is nasty and has been sitting out or otherwise exposed to the great outdoors. So there were times when I felt I had more mites in a bin than worms! What I did was radically scoop them out and toss them out the front door. If there were a few worms in there well, too bad 😳. I’d get a whole bunch, do my worm bin tasks and then move on. Next time I went into the bin I’d scoop out the next big batch of mites. Rinse and repeat. It took 2 months or so and the mites really decreased. Doing a few total bin bedding refreshes in there helped too. A few mites would be on the worms but not many. And again, I wasn’t introducing more via the food. Do you have a mite overload? 🪱

[@winthan7441]

@thank you for reply and I have some , I scared to get a lot so I don’t feed a lot

[@RockinWorms]

I understand. Do you think you can try the suggested actions I took to reduce the mites in some of my bins to see if it works for you too? 🪱

[@winthan7441]

@@RockinWorms yes, I learn from you a lot, thank you

[@RockinWorms]

@@winthan7441 Good luck! Please let us know what you do and how it works. Lots of worm wranglers struggle with mite blooms. It’s very common. 😩🪱