Worms and Wormeries (Merged Discussion Thread)

Moggles_2

Originally Posted by sillyvixen
I thought wormeries were only for uncooked waste.

All kitchen waste, other than fish & meat bones, can be added to wormeries, cooked or otherwise.

Moggles_2

Originally Posted by sillyvixen
You can get worms for meat and the like, but they are carnivorous and, if they escape, they eat local common or garden worms and destroy the natural eco system!!

I'm not sure where this notion has come from. Perhaps you're thinking of the Australian and New Zealand flatworms which are thought to have escaped from imported plant material. They prey on earthworms and so pose a potential threat to our native earthworm populations in some parts of the British Isles.

Brandling worms, found in decaying organic matter, are used in wormeries.

rhonda_jean

Hi everyone! I use red tiger and blue wriggler worms in my worm farm. Even if they escaped, they would not pose a threat to anything. The problem with adding meat to a farm is that it will attract rats and cats. The worms will eat it, so if you want to go that way, chop up the meat fairly small and bury it deep.

Moggles_2

Originally Posted by rhonda jean
I use red tiger and blue wriggler worms in my worm farm.

That's the trouble with vernacular names. What I call brandling, you may know as red tiger worm. Other common names for this same animal (scientific name Eisenia foetida) are dung worm, redworm and red wriggler.

Eisenia foetida is found naturally in decaying organic matter and, as you say, does not pose a threat to other worms or anything else. They will eat any kitchen scraps you care to feed them, including coffee grounds and tea leaves. Btw, egg shells can go in as well.

jiblets1

Oh my god I have now drowned some. I'm not sure this is for me... I was showing my MIL what the sump tap was for and was completely surprised to see there was quite a bit of water in it. So I tipped it up to get more out and a load of worms came out the tap too! I picked them out and put them back in the top, and they're still wiggling (if a little bloated) so they may be ok. The wormery has now been moved into the garage, but that's a bit of a pain because now it's less accessible.

I think I need to toughen up. I feel really responsible for these bloody worms. And then I was digging a border yesterday and it took ages because I kept trying to let all the worms escape! Really, I'm not sure playing God with these critters is for me...

greyteam1959

I would say that if you are getting loads of liquid so soon you may be keeping your wormery too wet or rain is getting in.
Wormcity recommend putting a brick or something similar in the liquid tray so that any worm that fall in can climb onto it and avoid drowning.

jiblets1

Oh that's a good idea. Thanks mervyn.

judy2357

What do you do with the worms, do you go fishing or something?

jiblets1

They're intended to make me some lovely compost, because I've not got room for a compost heap, but at the moment I think I'm just providing my mate's hen with some free food!

ethansmum

Please don't give up- its early days yet. Remember that when it gets warmer, there'll be loads of love-making going on and you're bound to get hundreds more babies to replace the ones that have been lost.