Been farming my 1/4 acre yard for years - It came loaded with fishing worms (night crawlers) in the '50s. Somehow over the years composting worms showed up and could always be found in beds, compost piles, and just bagged goods waiting to be used. I started raising compost worms 5 or so years ago with wigglers and blues. Between escapees and nocturnal critters exploring the bins we seem to have had a multitude of migrations with only one constant. No matter what is available they head for the bags of Kellogs Organic raised bed mix and break back in to make their own worm bins. I leave half a pallet or so out now on the ground between uses just so they will get a start on that for me to re-fill beds with. Making some bigger bins today, going to use your excellent advice to improve on that raised bed mix and see how they like it. Excellent video, easy to follow, and no bad advice - Thank you.
Awesome tips!! My bedding of choice is also shredded cardboard!! Like you said, it is everywhere and keeps the bin nice & fluffy! I really liked the part on the ratio of carbon to nitrogen and keeping the bin fluffy and airy!! Excellent video!!🪱🪱🪱
Hi Theuns thanks for watching and your support glad you liked the video! I am going to start doing some work bin updates so everyone can see how I work my worm bin IRL.
My bedding consists of comfrey, cardboard, newspaper and paper bag paper, leaves, peat, old compost. I run 3 bins , 3' x 4'. 2 bins are active and the third is for my bedding. I use the bedding for my active bins and keep plenty for my new home for my worms when I harvest the worms from the active bins.
@@TheWormWhisperer Do you feed Comfrey to your worms? Comfrey as initial bedding is great as well. Of course you do need lots of comfrey. I have 30 of them. One of the best garden and worm helping plant out there.
Great video. Very easy to understand. I use the shredded cardboard as well as the coco coir. It is nice and fluffy. Would oak leaves work in the bin. They take forever to breakdown in nature so how would they do in a worm bin? I ask because I have huge Live Oak that must drop a couple hundred pounds of leaves each fall. I have 3 leaf mold bins and one compost pile loaded with what has dropped so far and my tree still has over 50% remaining. It's a lot.
Hey Alvin welcome to the channel happy to have you! I have used many maple leaves in the bin over the years they work great, however not many oak leaves. Hopefully someone else will know. They do take forever to break down though!
You do not want cardboard think cereal box material, very little air flow. You want corrugated board. Three plies of paper glued together usually with corn starch as the glue (something worms love). The paper used for the middle ply is a paper that is more porous.
Yes, peat will work fine, in fact many growers ship their worms in it and you can add it to your new bin. I just am not a big fan due to the way it is harvested and the effects on the environment.
Hi Drew thanks for visiting the channel, you will need to get some composting worms otherwise known as "red wigglers", you will also need the stuff in my video to get your bedding set up. Check out some more videos on my channel and it will get you up to speed and farming before you know it!
@@TheWormWhisperer Thanks to Tubers like you, things are going great after actually having worms. Having things ready was a key. Because of extreme high temperatures, I've kept my worms inside. I'm surprised how clean the smell. Thanks.
@@myrtlesapp4486 Hi Myrtle, you can use old compost it will work fine and they will enjoy it. I do wet it just a bit, so if you pick it up it will not drip water, but if you squeeze it will drop a drop or two of water. Hope this helps :)
Hi Worm whisperer, Great video! Thankyou for giving straightforward clear guidance on making worm bedding , worm bedding the worms will enjoy, feel comfortable in and thrive in. A question please, could you please tell me how often should the worm bedding be changed or refreshed ? Thank you for the helpful video, Wishing you well, Guy
Hi Guy, thanks for watching. I sure can help you out! It is very easy to know when you should refresh your worm bedding. Once all of it is processed into worm castings :) Once the bedding and food is completely broken down and the worm casting are ready it is time to harvest and remove the worms and create new bedding and add the worms back to it. I have a short, and video on how to know when your worm casting are ready to harvest please check it out :)
Thank you for such an informative video. Am I seeing correctly that your cardboard is dry and the coco coir is sponge wrung wet. I would absolutely love to see a video about how you collect your worm castings from a single worm box. I have only one and haven't yet figured out an efficient system.
Hi Alison, thank you for visiting the channel and watching! That is correct, I like to mix them both together for my worm bedding and they seem to work well together, you don't need the coco coir but I find my worm like it more when I mix it in and seem to move into my upper bins faster then they typical would. Great idea for a training video thank you! :)
Hi Angel thanks for visiting my channel! Sure you can add the food before hand that works great and I do that in my new worm set up video and I explain why it's a good idea. The 50 to 1 means if you added 50 handfuls of worm bedding you would add one handful of worm food like bananas peels or apple cores. Hope this helps!
Thank you I am a beginner ßo this is great information. I encourage you to be more careful when breaking up your coco coir as going towards your hand with the fork can quickly cause you to Stab yourself in the hand if the fork were to slip or the coco coir broke easily while pushing with the fork. I hope this gives you some insight. Have an awesome day. Thank you again for the education about worm bedding. So do I empty the bedding every month and replace it?
Thank you for watching and you concern for my well being. I have never had an issues personally, not much different then all those years using a pitchfork in my late grandmothers barn feeding 80 cattle. Everything has risks in life. I normally empty my bins once the worm have processed all the bedding and food. I just remove the worms and add them back to the upper new bin.
At 2:05 to 2:10 What were you doing with the grilling fork and cococoir? It looked like you were chipping the block off but really putting your hand at risk. Why bother?
Hi Eric and thanks for watching the video! Well I guess I only need a certain amount of coco coir so I just break off what I need instead of soaking the whole block I don't need. If you have some better ideas please let me know and thank you for the comment!🎊
@@TheWormWhisperer yeah those things sure are densely packed that’s for sure! No idea on how to break off a chunk except to drop some water on the side you want to come off, maybe it would come off easier? I just don’t want you getting stabbed!! :). Great vids!
@@TheWormWhisperer Use a hori-hori knife and work from the top down with the block standing on it's edge and not flat on the table. It is also possible to wedge the on-edge block between two wooden blocks and keep your hands clear of the path of the blade or fork. Safety first my man, safety first.
Hey thanks for watching. Not if you don't want to, cardboard, flyers and coco coir are working great for me over the years, the worms eat it right up and seem very happy :)
Thanks for the great advise I actually just did that with the new bin a few weeks ago and worm castings in it. Just added the new worms yesterday they they are doing awesome! Great idea!👍
Hey Joy thanks for watching. Not in this bedding recipe. I like to add the nitrogen in with feeding, though food scraps, and alfalfa meal as the worms eat and break down the bedding.
Been farming my 1/4 acre yard for years - It came loaded with fishing worms (night crawlers) in the '50s. Somehow over the years composting worms showed up and could always be found in beds, compost piles, and just bagged goods waiting to be used. I started raising compost worms 5 or so years ago with wigglers and blues.
Between escapees and nocturnal critters exploring the bins we seem to have had a multitude of migrations with only one constant. No matter what is available they head for the bags of Kellogs Organic raised bed mix and break back in to make their own worm bins. I leave half a pallet or so out now on the ground between uses just so they will get a start on that for me to re-fill beds with.
Making some bigger bins today, going to use your excellent advice to improve on that raised bed mix and see how they like it. Excellent video, easy to follow, and no bad advice - Thank you.
Thanks for watching John, and thank you for the kind words for my channel!
For this video. Great Contant well spoken very appreciative.
Much appreciated!
Awesome tips!! My bedding of choice is also shredded cardboard!! Like you said, it is everywhere and keeps the bin nice & fluffy! I really liked the part on the ratio of carbon to nitrogen and keeping the bin fluffy and airy!! Excellent video!!🪱🪱🪱
Thank you, sorry I never comment on your channel I always watch it on my TV! Enjoyed the mites video you did the other day nice job!😁
@@TheWormWhisperer No worries! I like watching your videos on my TV as well!! I really enjoy them and they are so well edited!!!🪱🪱🪱
Thank you this was very informative
Hi Theuns thanks for watching and your support glad you liked the video! I am going to start doing some work bin updates so everyone can see how I work my worm bin IRL.
My bedding consists of comfrey, cardboard, newspaper and paper bag paper, leaves, peat, old compost. I run 3 bins , 3' x 4'. 2 bins are active and the third is for my bedding. I use the bedding for my active bins and keep plenty for my new home for my worms when I harvest the worms from the active bins.
Comfey is awesome I use it to make fertilizer for my plants all the time! Thanks for visiting man! 😀
@@TheWormWhisperer Do you feed Comfrey to your worms? Comfrey as initial bedding is great as well. Of course you do need lots of comfrey. I have 30 of them. One of the best garden and worm helping plant out there.
Great video. Very easy to understand. I use the shredded cardboard as well as the coco coir. It is nice and fluffy. Would oak leaves work in the bin. They take forever to breakdown in nature so how would they do in a worm bin? I ask because I have huge Live Oak that must drop a couple hundred pounds of leaves each fall. I have 3 leaf mold bins and one compost pile loaded with what has dropped so far and my tree still has over 50% remaining. It's a lot.
Hey Alvin welcome to the channel happy to have you! I have used many maple leaves in the bin over the years they work great, however not many oak leaves. Hopefully someone else will know. They do take forever to break down though!
You do not want cardboard think cereal box material, very little air flow.
You want corrugated board. Three plies of paper glued together usually with corn starch as the glue (something worms love). The paper used for the middle ply is a paper that is more porous.
Hey thanks for visiting the channel Trevor, great cardboard tips very much appreciated!👊
Yeah, that's called card stock those cereal type boxes are made of. You're right not so good for worm bedding
Nice video. More worms video
Will do and thanks for you support and watching the channel!
Thanks for the tips...wondering if I can use peat moss instead of coco coir? Peat moss is easier to find where i live
Yes, peat will work fine, in fact many growers ship their worms in it and you can add it to your new bin. I just am not a big fan due to the way it is harvested and the effects on the environment.
Hi thank you the informative video! I’m starting up my bin and have nothing. Do I need an organic potting soil to get it started?
Hi Drew thanks for visiting the channel, you will need to get some composting worms otherwise known as "red wigglers", you will also need the stuff in my video to get your bedding set up. Check out some more videos on my channel and it will get you up to speed and farming before you know it!
NEW SUBSCRIBER and NEW to working worm bins. Eaglegards...
Hey happy to hear we have a new worm farmer! Keep me updated on how you are doing!
@@TheWormWhisperer Thanks to Tubers like you, things are going great after actually having worms. Having things ready was a key. Because of extreme high temperatures, I've kept my worms inside. I'm surprised how clean the smell. Thanks.
What is the best kind of Coco coir to put in worm bedding & can I use my old compost?
Any good coco coir is fine, just make sure to check that it is washed. Coco coir can be very salty if it hasn't been pre-washed.
@@TheWormWhisperer Thank you & can I use old compost & do you wet the Coco Coir before mixing it with the cardboard?
@@myrtlesapp4486 Hi Myrtle, you can use old compost it will work fine and they will enjoy it. I do wet it just a bit, so if you pick it up it will not drip water, but if you squeeze it will drop a drop or two of water. Hope this helps :)
Hi Worm whisperer,
Great video!
Thankyou for giving straightforward clear guidance on making worm bedding , worm bedding the worms will enjoy, feel comfortable in and thrive in.
A question please, could you please tell me how often should the worm bedding be changed or refreshed ?
Thank you for the helpful video,
Wishing you well,
Guy
Hi Guy, thanks for watching. I sure can help you out! It is very easy to know when you should refresh your worm bedding. Once all of it is processed into worm castings :) Once the bedding and food is completely broken down and the worm casting are ready it is time to harvest and remove the worms and create new bedding and add the worms back to it. I have a short, and video on how to know when your worm casting are ready to harvest please check it out :)
Please help me figure out which shredder is best to use to shred cardboard.
What do you use and where did you get it?
Any good one that can handle 7 or 8 sheets at a time would work well. Thank you for watching and commenting.
Thank you for such an informative video. Am I seeing correctly that your cardboard is dry and the coco coir is sponge wrung wet.
I would absolutely love to see a video about how you collect your worm castings from a single worm box. I have only one and haven't yet figured out an efficient system.
Hi Alison, thank you for visiting the channel and watching! That is correct, I like to mix them both together for my worm bedding and they seem to work well together, you don't need the coco coir but I find my worm like it more when I mix it in and seem to move into my upper bins faster then they typical would. Great idea for a training video thank you! :)
Should I mix In food scraps before the Worms come. How Should I mesure the 50 to 1 ratio volume weight don't understand. Thanks
Hi Angel thanks for visiting my channel! Sure you can add the food before hand that works great and I do that in my new worm set up video and I explain why it's a good idea. The 50 to 1 means if you added 50 handfuls of worm bedding you would add one handful of worm food like bananas peels or apple cores. Hope this helps!
Thank you I am a beginner ßo this is great information. I encourage you to be more careful when breaking up your coco coir as going towards your hand with the fork can quickly cause you to Stab yourself in the hand if the fork were to slip or the coco coir broke easily while pushing with the fork. I hope this gives you some insight. Have an awesome day. Thank you again for the education about worm bedding. So do I empty the bedding every month and replace it?
Thank you for watching and you concern for my well being. I have never had an issues personally, not much different then all those years using a pitchfork in my late grandmothers barn feeding 80 cattle. Everything has risks in life. I normally empty my bins once the worm have processed all the bedding and food. I just remove the worms and add them back to the upper new bin.
what paper shredder are you using to get those perfect shredded pieces?
I’ve read about & bought the Amazon 12 sheet crosscut shredder. It’s sooooooooo much easier than cutting or tearing by hand.
Thanks that's the one works really well for about two year now after the old one broke!😁
@@sammi-joreviews1135 thank you!!
At 2:05 to 2:10 What were you doing with the grilling fork and cococoir? It looked like you were chipping the block off but really putting your hand at risk. Why bother?
Hi Eric and thanks for watching the video! Well I guess I only need a certain amount of coco coir so I just break off what I need instead of soaking the whole block I don't need. If you have some better ideas please let me know and thank you for the comment!🎊
@@TheWormWhisperer yeah those things sure are densely packed that’s for sure! No idea on how to break off a chunk except to drop some water on the side you want to come off, maybe it would come off easier? I just don’t want you getting stabbed!! :). Great vids!
@@TheWormWhisperer Use a hori-hori knife and work from the top down with the block standing on it's edge and not flat on the table. It is also possible to wedge the on-edge block between two wooden blocks and keep your hands clear of the path of the blade or fork. Safety first my man, safety first.
@@AlvinMcManus Thank you for the tip Alvin appreciate it!
Zero dirt in bedding?
Hey thanks for watching. Not if you don't want to, cardboard, flyers and coco coir are working great for me over the years, the worms eat it right up and seem very happy :)
You should inoculate your bedding with live compost to begin the microbe population. Worms need a healthy microbial base
Thanks for the great advise I actually just did that with the new bin a few weeks ago and worm castings in it. Just added the new worms yesterday they they are doing awesome! Great idea!👍
So no nitrogen in his recipe?
Hey Joy thanks for watching. Not in this bedding recipe. I like to add the nitrogen in with feeding, though food scraps, and alfalfa meal as the worms eat and break down the bedding.