Maintaining your wormfarm.

[@geraldnemanishen9123]

I have used a commercially made worm farm for several years. I like your model as it is inexpensive and easy to make. A few things I have noted: 1) too much moisture forces the worms out and they collect along my lid which slides inside - they eventually go back in - I think onion tops might force them out too. 2) I grind all my kitchen waste - about once a week and the worms break it down faster and there are fewer large bits after they finish - however this releases more moister so you need to drain frequently.

[@PunctualDuck17]

Worms certainly don't like onions which is probably why they're being forced out. They also aren't very keen on citrus either - citrus also goes mouldy fairly quickly too.

[@honeybacres]

Thanks James :) Even in my tubs compression can happen. Whether the weight in your tubs will result in too much compression I am not sure. You can always see how it goes without the pipe in the corners and add it later if you feel it is nessecary. Worms are surprisingly strong and can burrow through fairly compact soil. I hope that helps. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@AlanKempNM]

Thanks, mate! It's one thing to read about this method but it sure helps a lot to see it in action. It's not just "how-to" but motivational to see how well it can be done!

[@peterjc2121]

I bought my wife a worm farm because I always wanted one. Your clips on how to build a unit and how to maintain it have been very helpful. 'Great job, thank you.

[@honeybacres]

I am glad you enjoyed the video and it was of some help to you. I hope your worms continue to do well for you.

[@cowdaddy4595]

These are the best worm videos on youtube.

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much. I am glad you have found them useful.

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much. It is great to hear that people finding my videos useful. :)

[@muppet1487]

I've seen a lot of videos on vermicomposting and have my own been but wanted to find a good set up. your video is very easy to follow and explains most of what it takes to maintain the farm. thank you very much for your video and descriptions:)

[@honeybacres]

Thanks Mayra. I am glad you like the video and found it helpful.

[@bshallowes]

We watched your video on Saturday. The next day my husband built it to your instructions. We found a source for worms very easily and we are pleased with the result. Thank you for an excellent demonstration with easy to follow instructions.

[@honeybacres]

+Brenda Hallowes I am glad I was able to help you and your husband out Brenda. The worm farm I made in the video is still going strong nearly 4 years later :)

[@honeybacres]

I am glad you have your worms :) I use a small watering can to wet the hessian. It only needs about 1 cup of water at first, maybe not even that. Once it has been wet it should stay wet pretty well. If it needs a bit more from time to time then a good guide is to turn the hose on with the nozzle closed and trun the hose off. The pressure that is left in the hose will give you enough to wet it down. I am glad I have been able to help and I am sure your worms will continue to be happy :)

[@sharyncollins6742]

This has been great. I bought a worm farm and it only came with instructions on how to set it up. It needed to include instructions on how to maintain it and rotate the bottom layer.

[@Thaneii]

Thank you for getting back to me on this. It's greatly appreciated.

[@alaskansourdoughwormsgarde4392]

I have never had a drop of water come out of my bins. The castings are great for getting worms out because they are not soaking wet.

[@sunthrutree1201]

THANK YOU! Much more practical information than other worm farm videos available.

[@honeybacres]

Thanks for the feedback Allan. I am glad you enjoyed it :) Thanks for watching :)

[@AyannaShivers]

Great! Thank you sooo much for your speedy reply!!! My worms arrived today so I am assembling as we speak!! I will be checking in regularly on other garden tips as well!

[@honeybacres]

Thank you :) It is easy to make and I am glad to have inspired you to make on as well. It would be great to see how it goes. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@1DaTJo]

At last I found your channel! I looked at other worm farming videos, and I found them intolerable to watch. They were either too slow, too rudimentary, or not comprehensive enough. Your video is great; now I know what to do. Thank you :)

[@honeybacres]

I think hessian and burlap are the same, just a different name used in different regions so burlap will be fine. I am not sure how often a worm will lay eggs but you will have eggs in a happy worm farm nearly all the time other than if it is cold. During my winter I have nearly no eggs for a few months and worm activity slowed down a lot. The worms will breed many times before they die. They will live for about 2 years. Thanks for your questions :)

[@freakygeaktwo]

at the moment I've been feeding my bin once a week a banana peel and a bit of other stuff like potato or tomato and to cover I use either or both shredded newspaper and cardboard to soak up as much moisture to prevent worm drowning. This is my third weekend with the worms but I had the bin going for just over two months. Your video along with a few others has helped thank you for sharing.

[@honeybacres]

Thanks you very much. I am glad I was able to help. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

You are very right in what you say. I do have plans to get an old kitchen blender but a garbage disposal unit like you have described would be great as well. The pulp from a juicer is also very good to use. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@gwdaniels]

Have you considered chopping your craps into finer or smaller pieces? The worms have much easier access to the material and it will break down sooner. For our Compost Tumbler we have used for years, we took a used garbage disposal unit & plumbed sealed it into a 5 gal bucket, placed on a bench & let the hosed water & grated kitchen waist filter through a painters net inside another bucket below. Squeeze out excess water & then added to the compost Tumbler. It sped up the process dramatically.

[@gwdaniels]

Cont.from above: We have have now used the same grated kitchen waste to add to our worm bins & crushed dry leaf and to balance any excess moisture and it works GREAT! Yes it is little bigger scale for most folks but the main point is that smaller sized Kitchen scraps are the key to making composting or vermiculture

[@honeybacres]

When you put a container on top of one you have been filling there will still be some uneaten or partially eaten food. This will fine. The worms will usually finished this off before too many move up to the next container. I hope this helps.

[@honeybacres]

Thanks :) Yes they do but having some thing porous they can climb up supporting the tubs allows the to climb back most of the time. Thansk for watching and commenting :)

[@hollyxo.]

I love the valve and the multi tiered set up. Looks like it works very well and with ease. Thanks for posting!!

[@honeybacres]

Fischer Holly Thank you very much. I am glad you found it helpful :)

[@ChrisWarWalker]

awesome I can wait to make one.i looked at other videos on how to make a worm farm but i didnt feel confident on making one until i saw your videos in which you have explained it very well.thank you.

[@nottooclosepleeze]

I have looked at a lot of videos on homemade worm bins and yours (as well as your information for upkeep) is by far the best and easiest!!! Thanks so much!!! You have inspired me to start one this spring. I have subscribed to your vids. Peace.

[@honeybacres]

Companion planting sure does work in my experience. Planting some thing with the right plants can be of great benefit while planting something along side the wrong plant can be very detrimental. It is interesting that your beans started producing again after getting the worm juice. It just goes to show the benefit it can give.

[@honeybacres]

Thank you. Yes I got them from Bunnings and I started with 1000 worms. You may have to wait until bunnings get some suitable containers in but they usual have some with soild coloured sides that will block the light out. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

That is fine. I am happy for my videos to be shared with anyone who might want to see them. Thanks for that :)

[@dibyendumukharjee8822]

Subscribed & thumbs up. I am from India & was wondering about this subject. Looking forward to more. Thank You.

[@joyblore8427]

Thank you for going to the trouble to make this John. I can now go out and get started.

[@brotherray7970]

another healthy rule for your worms is: first you put the vegetables in a plastic bag for few days when they start decomposing you put a hand full of dry newspaper on the container and then you put the veggies so with this you absorb the liquids so you don't have any smell on your container and always only spray water on the top and after put dry newspaper to maintain the moisture and the good temperature for the eggs, all you have to do is move it when you put new food.

[@honeybacres]

That is worth a try but the idea is that the bottom of the feeding tubs should sit on the catsings in the feeding tub below. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@christinebeauchamp3115]

Thank you So So much!!! Now I know what I was doing wrong with my past attempts at composting, and failing my worms as well. In future, with your guidance I'll be a much better at maintaining a healthy worm bin. Your instructions have truly made a difference.

[@honeybacres]

Hi Christine, I am glad I could be a help to you. If you have any questions about your worms I am happy to help you out :)

[@honeybacres]

I only spray the worms if they are getting a little dry which is not very often. This moisture is really what comes form the food that is added for the worms. When I do need to spray them I use rain water from a little watering can only about 1/2 a cup is normally needed. Thanks for watching :)

[@honeybacres]

Worm keeping can be nice and simple & to encourage those that might not keep worms if it seems too hard, I like to keep my explanation nice and easy. If people want to have their worms eat through food quicker, reproduce quicker then they can do things that will achieve that but most people just want their worms to eat atleast some of their food scraps :) Smell in a worm farm mostly comes from too much food so adding food in smaller quantities at regular intervals will avoid this.

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much. I am glad you have found my video useful :) Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@lyndamisso8905]

I put vegetable scraps in my Thermomix to break down, they love it

[@honeybacres]

For this size I would start with no less than 1000 worms but 2000 would ideal. You need enough worms to be able to cope with a reasonable amount of food at first and after some time they will breed and increase their numbers according to the amont of food you give them. Thanks for your question :)

[@sumip90x]

Awesome Video! I just started a bin about a month and half ago. Like your setup.

[@nuthn2do]

Not sure if it's already been mentioned but I've drilled a 4mm hole in the side of the base (liquid catcher) just below where the first worm tray rests. That way i know if i forget to drain it acts like a vent and won't drown the farm

[@honeybacres]

Thanks for the comment. That is an easy fix if you dont get a chance to empty the liquid often.

[@honeybacres]

You can freeze it if this is a concern but I would let it totally defrost before giving it to the worms as they dont really like freezing cold. I dont worry too much about gnats in a worm farm. I realise some people find them unpleasant but they are really just part of the natural flora and fauna of a worm farm. Thanks for your questions :)

[@honeybacres]

It is quite normal for a worm farm to have a whole lot of other little bugs in there other than worms. Black soldier fly larvae are common as well as some little white bugs that I am not sure of the name of. The slugs would be a symptom of overfeeding of the worm farm. I would pick the slugs out and hold off on adding anymore food until the worms have eaten most of what is visible on the top. After that just add a little at a time so an excess doesnt build up. I hope this helps :)

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much. I am glad you found the video useful.

[@honeybacres]

The worms will start laying eggs quickly as long as they are happy. You will see them a few weeks after setting up the farm. If your farm doesnt get any light it should be ok. The worms do not like light & any seeds or potato peelings that sprout will be fed by any light. I recommend starting with about 1000 worms. It sounds like a lot but it gives you an amount that can deal with a reasonable amount of food right away & they will build upto about 5000 quickly depending on the size of the farm

[@honeybacres]

No problem. Thank you for watching :)

[@honeybacres]

Thank you. I started with 1000 worms. I dont remove them deliberately but some worms do go with the worm castings when I remove them and place them around plants. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@davidwallace9652]

Awesome video! I've seen ton on how to build worm farms but I'd been looking for one like this. Thanks!

[@annetteSA]

Are there any plants that don't like worm tea? Excellent video! I just made my worm farm today. here's hoping....

[@honeybacres]

Thanks Huw. I have some more videos planned very soon :) I have to get into the habit of doing them a bit more regularly I think.

[@allenevans7367]

I've not yet started my farming. I've grandkids that love to fish. How many worms can you say harvest before a weekend of fishing? Now we buy our red wiggle about 30 to container. $3 US dollars and 4-6 containers a week. Adds up!!! Awesome videos on how to. We also have a lot of tomato plants that could use that casting. Again awesome videos. Great job. Best I've seen so far!!

[@HuwRichards]

Hey there and a great video! I thought I've already subscribed but it seemed I have not so just did it. Can't wait to see more videos!

[@calliecutiepie]

Great video! Thank you for taking the time to explain how to maintain your worms. Just the information I was looking for.

[@honeybacres]

The worms in your compost bin will be different to the worms that people have in wormfarms. You could give the worms from your compast bin a try but you might be better in the long buying worms more suited to worm farms. They a have a more shallow tunneling habit and eat a lot more than your usual earth worm. They are usually known as red wrigglers or tiger worms. I hope this helps.

[@honeybacres]

I do get soldier fly larvae in the worm farm from time to time but they have never been a problem. If they are I would suggest reducing the amount of food you are giving the worms. Black soldier fly can be a symptom of overfeeding. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

You are right they do have voracious appetites but they really only eat dead organic matter. They should not do any harm to your plants, in fact they should do them some great benefit. It would be important to make sure that you have good potting mix rich in organic matter for them and thatthe pots do not dry out otherwise they will leave for a more suitable area. I hope this helps. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

The tubs full of worm castings can get a bit heavy but it is great for your plants especially potted plants.

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much. I dont have holes in my lid as it is not an airtight seal so they should be needed. The worms do quite well. If you felt that you wanted to add holes then there is no reason why you cant. The main thing to be aware of is that the holes are not to big that pests can get in. About 1 to 2mm should be big enough. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@kathypainter2211]

How often do you feed the worms

[@honeybacres]

I agree that the worms need oxygen to live. How much ventilation they need in a worm farm depends on what you are using. I ifnd my worms do really well with out any added holes in my container. If, however someone wants to put holes in their container then that is fine Ijust say keep the small enough that flys and other pests cannot get in through the holes. Chopping the food into smaller pieces is definitely worth while and the worms will eat through it much quicker.

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much. If you nights get below freezing and certainly if you get snow it would be a good idea to bring them in. My nights in winter will get to freezing but not often much below and they do ok even if they do slow down quite a bit. So if you get snow or you often get below freezing I would bring them in. I hope this helps :)

[@MusicbyMaris]

Great video! I didn't realize it is this easy! Thank you for the information. Gonna start a worm farm this week!

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much, I am glad it has helped and inspired you. I am sure your worm farm will do well :) Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@gardeningwithmomo]

Great informative video, your worms look very healthy 🪱🌱

[@honeybacres]

Thank you very much for your kind comment. I am glad you have found this video helpful :)

[@DonW1953]

+The Productive Garden what an awesome setup, very clear construction and maintenance video's, this is now on my todo list for this summer, a farm will complement the 2 recycled pallet compost bins I've just built, thank you again :)

[@honeybacres]

Don Williams I am glad the video has helped you. I also have 3 compost bins and all organic material gets used one way or another unless it has a risk of disease. Worm farms and compost bins definitely complement each other :)

[@honeybacres]

They arent actually fruit flies, they are gnats. The difference is they lay their eggs in rotten fruit and vegetable matter rather than in developing fruit. They can be a symptom of overfeeding which may have been happening just a little at this time. I havent really had many at all for quite a while which is a good sign. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

That is great that you started your own worm farm. They are a great way to convert organic scraps into useful nutrient rich castings for your plants. Thanks for your comment.

[@kimlongley3300]

Thank you so much for explaining this so completely!

[@honeybacres]

It is great to her that you will be making a worm farm with your kids. Kids love the worm farms and Ithink they are a great lerning tool for them. Your potting mix should be fine in the worm farm and will be improved by the action of the worms. Depending on how many pots you have you may need a big worm farm to hold it all. You would be right in adding vege scraps as the worms will need something to eat and the potting mix may not provide this. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

Yes that sure can help especially if it is stuff that is a little woody. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

No it isnt iportant to seal perfectly. If you get containers that are the same so that they fit snugly inside each other that will be just fine. A little gap is ok. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@DJMovit]

I haven't moved mine to the multi bin set up yet so I still have them in the single one. I try to bury to the food to keep smell down. I reached in and the bedding was fairly dry, I thought I was misting them too much so I added some wet papers. Tomorrow before work I'll have to check to see if I need to wet it down. I might be letting it dry out too much and need to keep moist better. I kept some scraps in the refrigerator...started smelling phew!

[@RobsAquaponics]

Looks like a healthy & active farm... Thanks...

[@honeybacres]

Thanks very much, I am glad you found the video useful. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

Thanks. They do seem to enjoy it in the wormfarm.

[@honeybacres]

The worm farm isnt exactly a sealed unit. Maybe holes may have some benefit in a worm farm that seals particulary well but they are doing quite well with the ventilation that my wormfarm offers in its current form. Thanks for your comment :)

[@Mrsweeza29]

Awesome Video!!! thanks for showing how to maintain a worm farm! I have just brought one and there where a few aspects I found a little confusing as a first time worm farmer! ;) you soon cleared up my confusion so thank you so much keep up the good work! :D

[@brotherray7970]

Aeration is an A+ in your worms farm, one rule is to open holes around the container so Oxygen can play his part in the aerobic decomposing of the food for the worms, you must open them about 1" from the top of the container, a second rule and this one is in favor of the worms is to chop very small the vegetables, and the egg shells transform them in dust, the best way is to blend them the finest possible.

[@honeybacres]

The bedding is only needed to give the worms somewhere to live while the worm farm is getting started. Once it is up and going and you finally get around to empty the bottom tub the worm compost that is in the remaining 2 tubs will act as bedding where the worms can continue to live. I hope that is helpful and good luck with your worm farm. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@alan30189]

Good video. Thanks for sharing. Chop that food up into fine pieces and the worms will break it down much more quickly.

[@honeybacres]

Yes I put the third bin up to the top and the sack or what ever cover you are using goes into that bin to continue as a cover over the food as it is added. I hope that helps :) Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

I am glad my video has helped you. A little bit of food added often will keep your worms happy.

[@honeybacres]

If you something they can climb up like a rock in the bottom bin that can help them get back up into the feeding bins. I have a brick holding the bottom feeding bin up and the worms can climb up that to get back into the feeding bins. It works well for my worms. I hope that helps. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@jiniefox6126]

great explanation, very clear for the beginners, thanks

[@nickthegardener.1120]

I've jus set up my worm farm. Good tip to blend up the veg. I've jus got a nutri bullet. 👍

[@madonnagriffin]

Excellent - thank you! I've only had a worm farm for about two weeks now, but not getting any fluid. There was some initially, but none at all at the moment. I will give it a bit more water and hopefully that will make a difference. Thanks again :)

[@honeybacres]

Just sprinkle about 1 cup of water every 2-3 days at the most. It can take a while for the liquid to come through sometimes but a little water can help :) Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@madonnagriffin]

Thank you! (Good to know there's someone on the other end of my computer :) )

[@honeybacres]

Donna Griffin Yes I am here waiting for your questions :) Happy to help Donna.

[@Haram-again]

Making farm today. Thanks for the video

[@sallysmith7675]

Thank you so much for sharing. I enjoyed your video and the one on creating a worm farm.

[@honeybacres]

They will be perfectly fine to eat and in fact they will probably taste better than ever before :). As will any veges you harvest give them a wash before you eat them as anything from the water that you water them with and worm leachate to bird droppings can be on them so it is always good to rinse them in water Sounds like your worm is doing well, Nice work :)

[@honeybacres]

Normal earthworms or nightcrawlers can be used but they work a bit slower than composting worms. You would be better off getting some composting worms from someone else with an existing worm farm or buy some worms. You were close with the name of the castings, they are called vermicastes :) Good luck with the worm farm. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

The worm farm in the video is one I made myself. I have a video showing you how I made this one. The link to the video is in the information panel. I dont have plans to sell these myself as making them on a commercial scale would be very time consuming. Making one like I do in the video is very easy though.

[@superslyfoxx1]

Thanks so much for all your instructions and help.I've learned alot. I am hoping to make one too.

[@promisebradley344]

...also, where should it go when outside temperatures drop below freezing? You mentioned keeping it cool, but does it ever need to be kept warm?

[@honeybacres]

If temperatures out side are going to be below freezing then moving the wormfarm into a shad or basement might be needed. Having the worm farm freeze will kill the worms also.

[@honeybacres]

True that would make it easier if you aren't able to use the worm liquid regularly. I prefer not to have the hole and use the worm liquid often. The other reason for not wanting a hole was to not make an opening for flys and other pests to get into the collection tray. If you were to go away or were not able to empty the liquid, you could leave the valve open and leave a bucket under it if you wanted to still collect the liquid. Thanks for you idea though. it is one that others may like to use.

[@davidtait9937]

I have a plastic container for my food scraps I use a clever to chop everything quite fine, I then put my scrap container in the microwave oven for 3 minutes on high this starts the break down of the scraps much quicker, when this cools I drain of any moisture this speeds up the process and kills any vermin eggs in the scraps. My drain has a plastic hose which feeds into a large glass jug my moisture content is aboutthe same top to bottom Dave Tait

[@honeybacres]

I little bit amongst other scaps is ok but they will not like too much. The same with onions, garlic and citrus. I hope that helps. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

The liquid or leachate should have too strong a smell. It would normally have an earthy smell similiar to the castings. If you feel that it has too much of a smell it may be worth checking to see that there is a build up of organic matter in the bottom that is going anaerobic. I hope that is helpful. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

Pro??? Thanks :) Newpaper is printed with soy based ink so it is ok for the wormfarm. It should be ripped up & soaked with most of the water wrung out before U put it in. If your worm farm is too wet then a small amount of dry newpaper can help dry it. Organic or non-organic food is bit of a personal choice I think. We place all sorts of vegetable scraps in there & have no trouble. The 2 things U should not feed them are meat and diary as they attract pests. Thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@honeybacres]

DE is not good for the worm farm as it does as much harm to the worms as it does to the gnats. Gnats are pretty common when you start up a wormfarm and can also be a problem if too much food is being put into the worm farm. If you can put the worm farm outside in a shady area until it settles down you will find they will become less of a problem in time. Putting a layer of dry material on top can help as can having a hessian blanket or old bit of carpet to cover the food. I hope this helps.