Worms

• 1. Though Red Wigglers are a species of earthworm, they are rarely found in soil.

  2. Red Wigglers are photosensitive, therefore, they only work in the dark.

  3. Red Wigglers will excrete a foul smelling liquid when handled roughly.

  4. Red Wigglers when happy and healthy can eat about half of their weight in food each day.

  5. Red Wigglers have gizzards that need grit to help grind up their food. Soil, shredded leaves, coffee grinds are examples of things that support the Red Wigglers digestive process.

  6. Red Wigglers are hermaphroditic (they have both male and female sex organs) but two worms are needed to reproduce. The two worms join together and exchange sperm and both worms secretes cocoons that contain eggs.

  7. Red Wigglers are ready to mate when their clitellums are orange in color.

  8. “Red Wigglers — the Cadillac of worms!” was an advertisement that aired during a broadcast on the sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati.

  9. Teenage Red Wigglers eat more than adult Red Wigglers.

  10. Red Wigglers love watermelon, pureed pumpkin and corn meal. I’ve heard that corn meal encourages Red Wigglers to reproduce prolifically but I have not witnessed that myself. from http://www.soilthedirtguide.com/10-interesting-facts-about-red-wigglers/

Red Wigglers (Eisenia Foetida) are a very tolerant and tough type of worm. They are by far the most popular worm used for vermicomposting around the world. Red Wigglers are happiest living in a consistent temperature between 15 to 25C, which makes them the perfect worms to be used in an indoor system. They are prolific breeders- on average, in good conditions, the population will double within 3 months. But the most important fact for worm composting, is that Red Wigglers eat, on average, their own weight in kitchen scraps every two days!

With the purchase of one pound of red worms, after 6 months you can expect to be able to process up to 4 pounds of organic matter in your bin every second to third day! And you should still have enough to go fishing or feed your birds or reptiles!

You will find Red Wigglers under a lot of different names. They are also called Red Worms, Manure Worms and Tiger Worms.

Red Wigglers are hermaphrodites, but they still need to mate to reproduce. Red worms reach sexual maturity at about 3 months and you will see a thicker ring appear on the worm. During mating, liquids are secreted and exchanged between two worms. From there, each worm will be able to reproduce on its own until the surplus of sperm collected is used up.

Red Wigglers lay cocoons every week or two. These cocoons will take around 3 weeks to hatch. The number of worms produced in each of these cocoons seems to be based on a direct connection with the conditions of their habitat (temperature, moisture and food). It’s difficult to have a perfect number, but 3 to 7 worms seems to be a good average number coming from each cocoon. A mature Red Wiggler measures between 2 to 4 inches long.

In order for Red Wigglers to live in a comfortable environment there are few simple things to know:

1. What to feed your composting worms

In the beginning, feed your worms a small quantity once a week. If you see that they are not eating in the last feeding spot, stop adding food to the system because you are giving them more than they can process. Remember, the key is to be patient with your worms. Learn by observation. You will learn to understand what they need.

Don’t forget that softer and smaller bits of food are easier and faster for the worms to process. For this reason, we recommend blending the food that you give you worms. Blending is not necessary, but you will see a big increase in the speed that your worms will process your kitchen scraps.

2. Moisture Level

Red Wigglers like an environment of 75 to 85% moisture content, and will drown in too much water. Worms breathe through their skin and to do so, they need to be in a moist environment.

The bedding in your vermicompost system should always be as wet as a wrung sponge. In order to measure your moisture content, squeeze a fistful of your bedding material. You should be able to see a maximum of a couple of drops. More than 2 drops means that your composter bedding is too wet and you will need to add some dry bedding. Increase the air flow by fluffing up the bedding and by leaving the spigot open for few days. Often, the bedding will compact in the bottom tray if your system too wet. This will reduce the air flow, creating an anaerobic system and will likely produce an odour.

With the Vermihut Composter Bin, you shouldn’t need to add any extra moisture as the vegetables and fruits that you feed your worms provide enough. Keeping the lid closed will ensure that evaporation will collect and return to the bedding, regulating the moisture.

If you’re building your composter out of wood, be sure to check your bedding regularly because the wood is most likely going to “suck” the moisture out of your system. You may need to add moisture by spraying water on it. The problem is much more likely with any kind of “flow through” systems.

3. Temperature

Temperature is one of the most important factors in having a functional vermicomposting system. The ideal temperature for composting worms is between 15 to 25 C. Even though Red Wigglers can live through extreme temperatures (5 to 30 C), don’t expect your worms to do anything other than try to survive!

Composting worms should not be subjected to great or sudden temperatures changes. If you leave your composter outside in temperatures below 5 C or above 30 C, you will kill your worms. It is best to keep your compost bin in a location with ideal conditions and consistent temperatures all year round to encourage the overall health of your system- inside your house, living space, basement or garage.

It is also very important to not leave your composter bin in direct sunlight. The temperature will get too warm too fast and will kill your worms. If you have to leave your Red Wigglers outside in the summer, make sure to place them in a shady spot with good air flow to keep the system cool.

4. Light

Composting worms are highly sensitive to light. They will always try to protect themselves against light by burying themselves deeper and deeper. This fact gives us an easy way to harvest them. (see Using Your Composter to learn more)

The VermiHut Compost Bin is made of an opaque plastic material. The lid has a tight fit so no light will disturb your worms during their work. Minimal light coming into your bin creates the best environment for your worms.

5. Vibration

You will quickly realize that composting worms dislike vibration. It’s important to make sure your composter is placed in a safe spot, away from shocks and vibrations. At the most, you will need to access your bin twice a week, so a closet, the laundry room or your quiet basement would be perfect.

6. PH balance (acid vs alkaline)

Red Wigglers are not so particular in terms of PH, but you do need to make sure your bedding stays within 6 to 8 on the PH scale. That’s why it is not recommended to add citrus to your bin, but regularly adding crushed egg shells is very beneficial.

The first sign of too much acidity will be the presence of small white worms. These are not baby Red Wigglers! To remedy this problem, the first step is to remove citrus from your composter. Add dry crushed egg shells and a bit of crushed oyster shell to your bin. If you’re still not happy, you can use a PH strip test to check the PH level by mixing a bit of your bedding with some distilled water. Most of the time you will not have to go that far. In extreme cases you can add some lime (calcium carbonate, Ca CO3). When purchasing your lime, look for a Ca CO3 of at least 95%. The wrong type of lime could kill your worms.

As a basic rule, adding crushed egg shells regularly and avoiding citrus will create a balanced PH. Using peat moss as bedding can be a PH issue. For PH and ecological reasons, you are better off using coconut coir.

6. Bedding

The bedding is where the worms live. It will also be a source of carbon in your bin. A lot of different materials can be used to create your bedding, the most popular source being paper. Even though today, most newspapers are printed with a soy base ink, make sure the paper you are using is not printed with chemicals.

Coconut coir and a mix of shredded cardboard or paper is our choice. It’s important to get a mix that’s going to hold moisture as well as let air flow through. Through experience, we have found using coconut coir to be the best way to keep your worms happy as this bedding holds the perfect amount of moisture and is easy to fluff up once in a while to create a maximum air flow.

The most popular materials used for bedding are:

• Shredded newspaper

• Shredded paper from your office

• Shredded cardboard

• Shredded paper towels

Here is a list of other materials you could use for bedding:

• Coconut coir

• Shredded leaves (not treated)

• Chopped straw (not treated)

• Dried grass clippings (not treated)

• Manure (good source of carbon and nitrogen for your worms)

• Peat moss (not recommended for PH and ecological reasons)

If you are using sawdust, make sure to not use cedar, or any treated or painted wood. We also don’t recommend using peat moss or saw dust because of the PH problems.from http://www.worldofworms.com/worms/all-about-worms/

A Red Wiggler Worm's Diet

Red Wiggler worms like to eat any organic material, but prefer a more vegetarian diet. It is best to give the worms small quantities of new items, so you can see if they enjoy them or not. Here is just a short list of what you can feed your worms:

• • fruit & vegetable scraps, stems, peels

  • egg shells

  • grains, cereals, bread, corn meal

  • beans, rice, pasta

  • coffee grounds & filter

  • tea bags (remove staple first)

  • dead or wilted flowers

  • dry grass clippings & leaves

  • newspaper & junk mail

  • cardboard & paper egg cartons

  • hair, dryer lint, vacuum cleaner dust

A quick note about egg shells ... it is best if they are cleaned out and crushed up before adding to your worm compost bin. Egg shells provide calcium for the worms, as well as grit to help them digest their food. However having a few large egg shells pieces is good to have in your worm farm, since it provides a great habitat for baby Red Wiggler worms.

Potato peels are also great to add, but since they can sprout eyes you may begin to see plants in your worm compost bin. No problem, just pull the plants out (including the roots) and put back in your bin for the worms to feed on.

Treats For Your Red Wigglers

Red Wigglers are not particularly picky eaters, and will devour most anything your feed them. However, there are some foods that these little buggers are very fond of:

• • watermelon

  • cantelope rind

  • mango skin

  • banana peel

  • avocado skin

  • corn on the cob

  • pumpkin

Red Wiggler worms definitely have a sweet tooth. Adding naturally sweet food will bring the worms closer together, which means they will reproduce faster.

What To Keep Out Of Your Worm Compost Bin

Even though Red Wigglers will eat most organic matter, there are some foods you should avoid feeding your worms. Since the worms are living in a confined space it is important not let the pH level of the worm compost bin become too acidic. Also, since worms breathe through their skin it is bound to become irritated when coming into contact with certain food. Finally, some foods will go rancid and smell, which can attract all sorts of pests. Don't add these items to your worm compost bin:

• • meat, poultry, seafood, bones

  • dairy products (butter, sour cream, whole eggs, cheese)

  • oily or salty foods (peanut butter)

  • acidic foods (pineapple)

  • sauces or processed foods

  • citrus (lemon, lime, orange)

  • onions & garlic

  • spicy foods & chili peppers (jalapeños)

  • plants or grass that has been sprayed with pesticides

  • poisonous plants

  • glossy paper or with colored ink

  • soap

  • glass, plastic, tin foil, metal

It is important not to add anything that is not biodegradable. It will not be digestable and could harm your worms.

http://www.wormfactory.us/What-To-Feed-Red-Wiggler-Worms.html