Worm Bin MYTHS vs SCIENCE- Red Wigglers

[@AJsGreenTopics]

Congratulations on reaching 10k.

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you so much 😀🪱👍🏼

[@ausfoodgarden]

My old Tumbleweed worm cafe came with instructions to not include citrus onion meat and fish. They've since changed the instructions to read "small amounts of citrus and onion" I've never had any trouble with citrus onion or chili either. I don't add meat or fats as I'm concerned about attracting rodents. Good on you for busting those myths. Cheers!

[@PlantObsessed]

Thank you 😁👍🏼🪱

[@rdraffkorn3184]

cabbage scraps hung around in my bin for months. rather amazing that it doesn't decompose faster. carrot greens are really fibrous and take a while too ... though i think the worms like the smell . they hang around the pile more than other stuff. and certain cardboard scraps get wet and soggy and don't break down for a long time. though it's the same in the compost pile so no surprise there.

[@PlantObsessed]

I have some cabbage stems that are going on about 6 or 8 months now. Luckily they don't smell anymore.🪱👍🏼😁

[@cherylhowker1792]

@@PlantObsessedjust a suggestion, I was sorting for the compost pile today in the garden, I chop stuff up small so it breaks down quicker giveing me compost quicker, I find taking the time saves time in the pile, if that makes sense. I had cabbage plants that gone to seed, not sure why but anyways, with my snippers I chopped them in to little rings- sorta like carrots ring size lol And they go quicker, maybe is you chop them up the worms will get to them sooner? It’s just an idea.

[@roywarriner8441]

I have a stable population that processes at least 95% of my kitchen waste including bones. I get all the castings I need for my container garden. I use two bins, one to compost and a larger one with worms to process the compost. Both continual flow through. I add ground eggshells, bones, bread crusts, neem seed meal and basalt rock dust to the worm bin. It's odorless, both bins are in my basement, I cover them with landscape fabric to keep the gnats out. Everything is in scale to process my the amount of organic waste I produce. And I get boutique quality castings. Cheers, I learned quite a bit about the worms from you when I was first setting up. I kinda fell into my system and it worked so I've been sticking with it. I have european night crawlers.

[@PlantObsessed]

The ENC are my favorites. Don't tell the reds lol. I can't imagine putting food waste in the garage now a days.🪱👍🏼😁

[@brianseybert192]

I personally have never had a problem with citrus, onions or hot peppers in my worm bins. I think the biggest problem in feeding worms is givin the bin more food than the worms can handle. Lately, I have been questioning more the potential for pesticides, herbicides and fungicides in the skins of bananas, citrus and pineapples. One of the main reasons I garden is, I do not trust what big AG all around the world is feeding us, curious what we may be feeding our worms. I do hot composting for these other food waste products. Nice video! Stay Well!!!

[@PlantObsessed]

I'm worried too. They are called forever chemicals for a reason. 👍🏼🪱🙂

[@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920]

Hi Ann, I hope your Garden is coming to life soon❤

[@PlantObsessed]

Me too. I'm planting out onions today.🪱😁👍🏼

[@NanasWorms]

Hi Ann, the published research I looked at also said pH 4.5 was the sweet spot - worms are drawn to it, but if the pH is lower than that it turns deadly. A low pH signals high microbial action, so we shouldn't be surprised that that's where the worms want to go. I liken it to moths drawn to the light (although maybe not unless the moths are actually eating close to the light!). I love the faint smell of citrus after I've given orange or lemon peels in a previous feeding. ~ Sandra

[@PlantObsessed]

I was hoping you would chime in on the science. 😁 🪱👍🏼

[@NanasWorms]

@@PlantObsessed i'm just glad I didn't miss watching this video. I'm in the middle of buying a house and trying to sell this one, so KZbin has to take a back burner. Luckily, worms are patient! ~ Sandra

[@patriciakane764]

How to make worm chow? New worm “grower”. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you!

[@ryansalayer2538]

I’ve heard that the theories about citrus was due to the essential oils in the peels having anti bacterial properties. I believe the same is for onions and garlic as these are often used as anti microbial home remedies.

[@PlantObsessed]

Yes, good call. The fire cider I made had all of them in there. It is supposed to help your immune system.👍🏼🪱😁

[@eileenbartnick7202]

Hello Ann! I really enjoy your videos and learn a lot from you. Thank you for sharing all your knowledge in an easy to understand ,down-to-earth way !! A question i am wondering is, do you think the ink used in printing phone books would be ok for my red wigglers?? I stopped before throwing them in the recycle bin, thinking of making them bedding, but then got to wondering about the ink. Thanks for your help! I like to see these myths busted!!! 😂

[@PlantObsessed]

If it was me, I would probably try to use the phone book. I'm not sure about the ink though. 😁🪱👍🏼

[@dnawormcastings]

U are 💯 right about citrus and onions and fruit scaps . I feed my worms all these the things in moderation when they finish the other scraps they will star on the fruits etc 🇳🇿🪱

[@PlantObsessed]

Exactly!!😁🪱👍🏼

[@ArtCrane-wu8cv]

Rhubarb is a killer! First hand info. Tried it and it wiped out a whole bin!

[@PlantObsessed]

Interesting, I fed an entire plant to blue. He does have 6 foot of real estate and 20# of worms 😁👍🏼🪱

[@timmcilraith8762]

I once had a 3 foot diameter 3 foot tall wire mesh cylinder red wiggler outside bin filled with fresh waste greens from the local vegetable shop. When I added meat, bones, and fat - that type of thing - the worms just swarmed these items. I wondered if the worms loved this type of food merely because their otherwise green only diet was lacking in protein. Any thoughts ?

[@PlantObsessed]

Interesting. I don't know. I think they just go to the food that is prepped and ready to eat by the local bacteria and microbes. 👍🏼🪱😃

[@A-V]

I think you covered the commonly discussed taboo worm farming rumor topics pretty thoroughly. I agree that the here-say on this matters are in large part incorrect. BTW... towards the end there, you mention how you plan to link to another video that dives into the capsaicin topic (peppers vs apples test) for which I never saw a card pop up :)

[@PlantObsessed]

Was there a card at all? Maybe earlier? So annoying to spend time finding a 2 year old video and the card doesn't work. Thanks for letting me know. 😁👍🏼🪱

[@A-V]

I never know if an issue is originating on my end, due to a technical issue or user error... but in this case, at around @12:32 when you mention linking above to the video, I expect a small string of text to pop up - which I never saw here. But when there is some sort of link at all, a small letter 'i' is shown which you can click on to see the link(s) in the video. And I can see the small letter 'i', and I can click on it & it takes me to the bottom of your description where the link can be found, but nothing ever pops up on my screen. Who knows - perhaps all I need to do is restart my computer or something to fix it... For the record, I *did* try it on another web browser, and I got the same result. What is the timestamp at which the card is supposed to appear?

[@leagesoffen5764]

Mine happily eat a lot of guinea pig poop (although not as much as they produce 😂). Multiple worm bin manufacturers tell you to never put any sort of animal bedding or manure in ever, but that's not true.

[@PlantObsessed]

I would think guinea pig poop would be okay because they're vegetarians. 👍🏼😁🪱

[@leagesoffen5764]

@@PlantObsessed That's right, it's basically just very condensed hay

[@KingVB]

I feed my worms semi-composted cowmanure and its the best compost 😁 i have mine in a bathtub) much love from ukraine)

[@chinatownboy3368]

I put all sorts of food scraps. No problem. Diversity works for me.

[@PlantObsessed]

Good to know it works for you too. 🪱👍🏼😁

[@vickibee8451]

Good afternoon fellow worm tender from Jesus and me ! 😊 Mikosgarden . . . Pre Freezing the cabbage and any of the other "tuff stuff" helps the worms eat it faster.

[@PlantObsessed]

Yes I agree that makes the food go faster. 👍🏼😁🪱

[@memprime]

Hello, I moved from a tower system to a single bin. Is cooked frozen rice considered a slow food? How about food that has been put into a blender and frozen?

[@PlantObsessed]

Rice goes pretty fast if it is wet. If it is left over dry then it is slow. The blended food goes faster but needs more bedding so it doesn't go anaerobic. 🪱😁👍🏼

[@kimthevenin8769]

Can we feed the worn freshly homemade bone meal instead of egg shells?

[@barhnineranch812]

Hello! There are critters in my worm bins that appear to be a red mite of some kind, a black jumping insect about the size of a gnat and what appear to be newly hatched house flies. Other worm people use mosquito dunk solutions to control pests- have you ever done that? I’ve tried the homemade gnat trap you recommend but the little black jumpers don’t seem interested. I’m uneasy about using the mosquito dunk method. Thoughts?

[@PlantObsessed]

Red mites are normal. If you have lots of them it is probably the food is not ready for the worms.i usually see them on avocado or hard stems. They will go away when the food is gone. I have never seen black jumping things. I would be tempted to use some fly paper or packing tape looped on a board or plate to try and catch them. 👍🏼🪱🙂

[@barhnineranch812]

@@PlantObsessed thank you! I’ll give the plate/tape a try. 😀

[@johnknowles6520]

I am new at worm composting but I red and article on Red Mites and they actually feed on your worms and cocoons please read up on this as I said I am new at this so I could have read the article and interrupted it wrong.

[@memprime]

I was trying to set up a worm trap, and after a week I checked back on it and found that it grew fuzz on it. 😢 Is it still safe for capturing baby worms?

[@PlantObsessed]

Yes worms love mold. You can top off the trap with more wet paper to slow the mold down 👍🏼🪱😃

[@ontherocksinthesoilmichael6739]

Citrus, onion and garlic myth is because of smell. They were trying to make indoor vermiculture palatable for everyone (thats my theory anyway).

[@PlantObsessed]

That makes sense because most people do it in their house and not outside. 🪱😁👍🏼

[@evelynknight5627]

I had read that someone ended up decimating their worm population with bay leaves. I think on Reddit? Which re-checking that information on Google I am seeing that was not an isolated event. The other stuff has antimicrobial and volatile compounds, but the worms et al end up getting to it all anyway so it's fine. Though I don't think I'd ever be brave enough to try meat! Learned from you! ;)

[@PlantObsessed]

Bayleaf wow I wonder if that is the actual one we use for spice or a toxic tree. I have to think that many of the things people believe kills worms are really a coincidence. If it is new worm farmers it is likely overfeeding 90% of the time. 🙂👍🏼🪱

[@mikkosgarden]

We eat a lot of onions,garlic, oranges and haven't had issues with the world eating the scraps/remains. The one thing that takes forever is raw cabbage.

[@PlantObsessed]

Yes exactly I had one try and grow back from the core.👍🏼😁🪱

[@chinatownboy3368]

I like when cabbage regrows. I eat it. Free food.

[@lindap9079]

I have illiterate worms. They never read the literature that said they shouldn't eat citrus or onion. They ate both and lived to tell about it. (though they don't read they do talk)

[@PlantObsessed]

That's okay. I talked to my worms too. 😊👍🏼🪱

[@andrewventer3013]

Hi Anna I feed my worms citrus onion even greens and I have had no problems, ask the people that comment what do the compost companies throw into their compost heaps

[@PlantObsessed]

Ooh good question. I will put that out there. I think there is at least one person in the worm family that has worked at one of those places.👍🏼🪱😁

[@cherylhowker1792]

This is something I just mentioned, when you send it to landfill what eats it there/ breaks it down etc… same as at home.

[@AvuncularMicah]

Maybe your worms are pepper heads also

[@PlantObsessed]

Hmmm 🤔 maybe 😁👍🏼🪱

[@dennisfrench8225]

Only thing I don’t feed is meat or grease all other stuff is fair game in small amounts I do a lot of banana peels it’s quick but it makes them active maybe a sugar OD???? Lol😂

[@PlantObsessed]

I think my worms get all jacked up on sugar sometimes too.😁🪱👍🏼

[@vickibee8451]

Sorry I misspelled your name Mikko.

[@PlantObsessed]

It happens to us all. 👍🏼😁🪱

[@ClickinChicken]

Myth busters! I'm shocked by what my fellow chicken raiser feeds her chickens. ha! That's not worms, sorry. I tell her, they're not pigs. Seems to work out though.

[@PlantObsessed]

I suppose everyone has to figure it out for themselves. 😁👍🏼🪱

[@Vermicompost]

1st Congrats on 10K Subscribers!!!🎉 2nd this is an awesome video Ann!! Great explanations and examples with experience to back it up! Believe it or not the latest W-Urban legend I've heard (form someone in my comments) is coffee will kill worms!! Crazy huh?🪱🪱🪱

[@PlantObsessed]

I believe with your latest experiment with the coffee chunk that is absolutely debunked. Thank you😁👍🏼🪱

[@Vermicompost]

@@PlantObsessed 😂 Yes!