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| I just decided it was time to move the compost around and went to empty my old tumbler. There were ****loads of red wigglers in there! Probably 20 per shovelful! I guess I added some as I moved things around and introduced some to that tumbler! I'll be doing that from now on! I have 2 tumblers (1 is about to retire) and 2 free standing. Do the red wigglers die off once they are put into the garden? If so, I'm thinking of setting up a small worm farm! So exciting to see the reproduction over just a few months! Someone grumbled about tumblers not supporting worms! I now know better! Nancy |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by mustard_seeds 4 -Onalaska Wisconsi (My Page) on Sun, Feb 17, 13 at 17:46
| congrats! They should hang around in your soil and multiply, especially if you are keeping some mulch on the garden. The worms love a sprinkle of coffee grounds in the garden, too! |
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| I'm happy that you are pleased to have worms in your tumbler. But expect to get some comments to the effect that worms and tumblers are words not often in the same sentence. The average tumbler user is interested in fast compost and quickly getting the ingredients as hot as possible. Worms on the other hand are interested in feeding on mostly-done compost piles without excess heat. If you have a strong interest in worms, try a mesh bin directly on the ground. Worms will move in and out as they wish. And you will have saved a bunch of money! |
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- Posted by nancyjane_gardener USDA 8ish No CA (My Page) on Tue, Feb 19, 13 at 20:59
| The tumbled stuff goes into a free standing compost bin when it is partially broken down. I'm not really excited about heat, just convenience and keeping my back healthy. It was a plus to find so many healthy worms in there. Nancy |
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| Whether your red wigglers will survive in your soil depends on whether you have adequate levels of organic matter in your soil. Those worms eat organic matter and if there is not enough they will either go dormant or die if not move to some other place with adequate food. |
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| Never thought about it before, but my suspicion is that those may get too hot during the summer to sustain worms. It also may be that tumbling the bin may be harmful for worms, which may be why compost tumblers don't tend to promote worms. So perhaps your leaving that tumbler alone for a few months developed vermiculture conditions. Makes ya go hhmmm. I think if you were to top dress in the evening and then water your soil, they would burrow down and survive. If you till it in, I garantee there would be much lower survival. Worms are pretty sensitive to dehydration so make sure your conditions, when you apply them to your garden, will allow them time to survive. What I might do, is to place the pile of compost on top for a few days. The worms will find their way out and then you can spread it later. |
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- Posted by nancyjane_gardener USDA 8ish No CA (My Page) on Sat, Feb 23, 13 at 21:23
| Kevin, That sounds pretty much what I did/am doing. Laying a pile on the beds and leaving it for a day or 2. I can only work in the garden in 15 min increments (chiro's order!LOL) I try to tumble about 1x per week if the weather is decent. Otherwise...whenever! I'm going to have to look into the vermicomposting to keep my back in check! Nancy |
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