12/12/07 Bruce B.  from Alabama Emailed me asking what to feed his worms.  This is what I found.  Click here.  http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/verm/msg0114291829623.html   Thank you for the question.  I'll list more info as I find it.   Thanks,  Janet

12/12/07  Found this Information from 'Santa Cruz County, Department of Public Works'.  Click here.  http://www.compostsantacruzcounty.org/Home_Composting/Worm_Composting/worm_feeding.htm  Thanks, Janet

12/12/07  Found This Info On How To Feed Your Worms.  This is from a fun Web Site-by the University Of Illinois Extension-'Urban Programs Resource Network'  Click here.  http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/worms/neighborhood/20-buryfood.html  Thanks, Janet   The Site is also in Spanish.  Check it out.   Great kid's site.

If you just lay the food on top of the bedding, it will attract Felix the Fruit Fly. At first, you may have to feed me once a week. At the end of the week check and see if my friends and relatives have eaten everything. As our numbers increase, you may need to feed us more often.

Worms love----

I love potato peelings, carrots, lettuce, cabbage, celery, apple peelings, banana peels, orange rinds, and grapefruit. I also like cornmeal, oatmeal, crushed eggshells, coffee grounds with the filter, and tea bags.   The Web Site Above has lots of infomation about worms.---And the picture on the left I found there too. 

One thousand (one pound) of my friends and relatives will eat about one half to one pound of food scraps each day.

Chopping these foods up will make it easier for me to eat them. You might want to keep a plastic tub in your refrigerator to hold food scraps so they will be nice and fresh for me. Don't let them rot and be smelly.

Do not feed me any meat, dairy products (cheese, butter) or oily foods. They can attract Felix the Fruit Fly to the neighborhood, plus these foods will rot and smell.

12/13/07   To avoid crowding and encourage healthy growth. Try to limit the worms to 1/2 pound or 500 worms or less per 5 gallon container or worm farm, depending on the containers size. Dig out a hole in the center of each container to be used and divide the worms up into each one. Then cover the worms with compost, and cover the top with weedblock or newspaper. We like the weed block because it lasts longer and can be reused without breaking down. Leave the new arrivals alone for a day or two so they can settle in to their new quarters. Lightly water the surface of the bedding and feed lightly after the second day. Feed only what the worms will consume in a day, two days at most to avoid mold. We feed a combination of ground corn, corn meal, and the well known Purina Worm Chow. Again, feed only what they will consume in that 1 to 2 day range. Always replace the cover after feedings to prevent excessive drying of the beds.  Hope this helps.  Janet 

12/13/07  Check bedding every week to see that it's not too dry or wet. Remember it should feel like a wrung-out sponge. If it's too dry, add water. If it's too wet, add more bedding. Also check to see if food is being eaten and decomposing. Check for odors. Odors may tell us that there is rotting food; if so, remove the extra food.   Found this information on the University of Illinois Web Site above.  Thanks, Janet

Place a sheet of plastic or a layer of newspapers over the top of the bedding. This will hold moisture in and will help reduce the chance of fruit flies.

12/14/07 I found this fun info on the Web Site from the University of Illinois.  To separate your worms from castings do this. 1. Pour the worms and castings onto a tarp.  Separate into several piles. [8-10]  2. Shine a flashlight onto each pile at a time.   Your Worms will want to get away from the light and go on the bottom of the pile.  Separate the castings from the worms by gently taking off the castings from the top of each pile.  I've seen giant worm harvesters. they rotate the worms and castings separating them.  I'll find a photo of one and post it.  Janet  Click here for the Web Site from the University of Illinois to see more.   http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/worms/neighborhood/20-buryfood.html

12/15/07  Worms are always shipped on Mondays..  This helps to make sure they arrive before the week end and  do not have a long stay in the postal system.  Worms are shipped priority mail.  It usually takes 2-3 days from shipping for you to recieve your worms.. There are 9 worm farm partners around the nation that we work with.  Your worms will be shipped from the worm farm nearest you to assure prompt arrival.   Live delivery of worms is guaranteed.   Janet

12/17/07 Everyone enjoys a good cup of tea, even your garden. 

Good compost, worm castings or vermicompost added to the soil carry to the root zone a rich compliment of soluble plant nutrients and growth enhancing compounds, a diverse and populous consortium of microbial life and a substrate of organic matter harboring a storehouse of nutrients that are not lost to rain and irrigation. The plant is delivered an ongoing, reliable food source when bacteria and microscopic fungi feed on the organic matter, releasing some of the nutrients to the soil and storing others for their own energy and reproduction. When nematodes and protozoa in turn feed upon them the nutrients stored in the bacterial and fungal bodies are released to the soil in a plant available form. According to Dr. Elaine Ingham, when soil, compost or castings support protozoa numbers on the order of 20,000 per gram of solid matter, 400 pounds of nitrogen per acre are released through their predation of bacteria. When we feed organic matter to the soil, the soil life feeds nutrients to the plant.  Janet 

12/26/07  You can continue worm composting all winter long if your bin is in an area that does not freeze (a pantry, laundry room, basement, or heated garage or porch). Or, you can let your worms rest through the winter outside by burying the bottom half of your bin in the ground and piling straw or leaves around and on your bin for insulation. You do run the risk of losing your worms outdoors during an uncommonly cold winter.   For more on winter worm care go here.   https://www.storesonlinepro.com/account  This a great site from the University of Illinois Extension.  Janet