amending as you go?

that's mostly 1 plant

there is maybe25% of a second plant at the bottom

but there wide and maybe only 24" tall... I topped a couple times and then tied her up for a spank'in to keep her short

lights are on theyd look better with the lights out

im going to flip them asap

just gotta get clones from them first
maybe tonight

so I need to know
how many lbs of red worms per 18 gallon container?
im using three
I was thinking maybe 1lb per container? 3lbs total?

im4satori said:

so I need to know
how many lbs of red worms per 18 gallon container?
im using three
I was thinking maybe 1lb per container? 3lbs total?

Click to expand...

Yes, 1lb/container is pretty much standard for starting a bin.

But, I would HIGHLY recc that at least one of those 3lbs be Europeans rather than all Red Wigglers.

Now, I run a blend of RW and Euros, but when I first got them they were in a seperate bin. That was till the first harvest and I saw how well they worked the bedding from top to bottom and they got mixed in to all the bins. Being close relatives they play very well with each other.

Again, redwormcomposting.com FTW and a good supplier of worms.

im4satori said:

ok so my next task is to sort out teas

for now I want to keep it simple (or as simple as my mind will allow)

im going to have two bucket brewing at a time

one primarily for biology and
one for nutritional feeds

maybe rotating them

I was thinking some combination of (not necessarily all)
alfalfa meal
kelp meal
EWC
bat guano (bloom)
bird guano (veg)

for

biology alone
im not sure?
looking to up the microbes and or fungi so whatever doesn't reduce microbes


any input would be appreciated?

Click to expand...

my 2c:
don't mix "nutrient" teas with microbes - like you have in that combination.
It defeats the purpose of both nutrient AND microbial (you get the the benefit of neither) - and bad things can happen.

As soon as you have EWC/compost on your ingredient list, all you're going to need in that tea is a small amount of food to get the microbes to multiply more quickly.

Make, if you must, nutritional tea, period.
Or microbial tea, period.

Two different creatures, that you would make for different reasons.
The term "tea" is misleading in sooo many ways

Wetdog said:

Yes, 1lb/container is pretty much standard for starting a bin.

But, I would HIGHLY recc that at least one of those 3lbs be Europeans rather than all Red Wigglers.

Now, I run a blend of RW and Euros, but when I first got them they were in a seperate bin. That was till the first harvest and I saw how well they worked the bedding from top to bottom and they got mixed in to all the bins. Being close relatives they play very well with each other.

Again, redwormcomposting.com FTW and a good supplier of worms.

Click to expand...

sounds good

calliandra said:

my 2c:
don't mix "nutrient" teas with microbes - like you have in that combination.
It defeats the purpose of both nutrient AND microbial (you get the the benefit of neither) - and bad things can happen.

As soon as you have EWC/compost on your ingredient list, all you're going to need in that tea is a small amount of food to get the microbes to multiply more quickly.

Make, if you must, nutritional tea, period.
Or microbial tea, period.

Two different creatures, that you would make for different reasons.
The term "tea" is misleading in sooo many ways

Click to expand...

for now im think I will focus on the microbial teas

just want to do something to add back what im losing from the salt fertilizers until I can get my amendments on point

I read that egg shells make the worms reproduce faster

so I guess I will be adding a tsp or so to each bin when the get established

and im going to only give them some base scraps for now and later some veg/fruit scraps
nothing more until theyre healthy and established

I might pick up some peat,,,that it

I got my worm bins ready a few days back

worms are ordered to arrive mid week

I layered card board and paper with leaf trimmings
and wet it damp

the leaf trim is covered in mold... is that ok for the worms?

That 'mold' is what the worms actually eat.

They don't eat 'food', but the mold growing on the food as it decomposes. Plenty of mold = happy worms.

Wetdog said:

Yes, 1lb/container is pretty much standard for starting a bin.

But, I would HIGHLY recc that at least one of those 3lbs be Europeans rather than all Red Wigglers.

Now, I run a blend of RW and Euros, but when I first got them they were in a seperate bin. That was till the first harvest and I saw how well they worked the bedding from top to bottom and they got mixed in to all the bins. Being close relatives they play very well with each other.

Again, redwormcomposting.com FTW and a good supplier of worms.

Click to expand...

I really like putting out a tarp before a good rain, and letting them collect under it for a night or two, then go gather them up, they work AWESOME at aeration.
the reds seem to be more at the top doing their thing, but the native nightcrawlers burrow up and down constantly, pushing out their casts out the drainage holes.
I can't use the euros here though, they die when it gets hot out.

greasemonkeymann said:

I really like putting out a tarp before a good rain, and letting them collect under it for a night or two, then go gather them up, they work AWESOME at aeration.
the reds seem to be more at the top doing their thing, but the native nightcrawlers burrow up and down constantly, pushing out their casts out the drainage holes.
I can't use the euros here though, they die when it gets hot out.

Click to expand...

That's weird about the Euros. The local worm supplier does Euros exclusively now, saying they did better in this area than the red wigglers. I had reached the same conclusion several years ago with my basement bins. Would have figured the Euros would do better in the heat since they are usually deeper than the RW.

Outside? IDK There are worms everywhere from cocoons in the VC, but I do the same as you and snag natives after a heavy rain and toss them in the bins. So, IDK if the cocoons are native, RW, or Euros. The natives are way bigger than the others though. Don't really care as long as there are lots of them and there is compared to when we moved in. I know that the native population exploded when I started top dressing the flower beds, raised beds, etc. with organic amendments years back, plus the heavy mulch.

is having my worm bins in proximity to my indoor plants a possible hazard

could the spores from the mold in the bins infect my plants?

im4satori said:

is having my worm bins in proximity to my indoor plants a possible hazard

could the spores from the mold in the bins infect my plants?

Click to expand...

nah, a worm bin is almost exclusively bacterial, there won't be more of a risk involved than the normal ambient spores in the air.

so im having trouble sourcing either the basalt or granite rock dust

my local hydrogarden store only carrys azomite...asked them if they could order it they said no

the places I frequently shop only carry glacier rock dust

I found it on ebay but I don't know what there shipping practices are and im the paranoid type lol

found something at homedepot but not sure what it is and don't think its derived from either....
http://www.homedepot.com/p/AgraLife-Megamend-22-lb-Organic-Micronutrients-and-Trace-Minerals-Fertilizer-for-Plants-and-Lawn-MEGA22G/204414420

im4satori said:

so im having trouble sourcing either the basalt or granite rock dust

my local hydrogarden store only carrys azomite...asked them if they could order it they said no

the places I frequently shop only carry glacier rock dust

I found it on ebay but I don't know what there shipping practices are and im the paranoid type lol

found something at homedepot but not sure what it is and don't think its derived from either....
http://www.homedepot.com/p/AgraLife-Megamend-22-lb-Organic-Micronutrients-and-Trace-Minerals-Fertilizer-for-Plants-and-Lawn-MEGA22G/204414420

Click to expand...

when I have a customer who needs an item we cant get in I let them order it to the store and pick it up from there. talk to your guy maby he just haven't thought of that to offer it.

The Azomite is fine, the Glacial Rock dust is fine. Which is cheaper and can you source both locally?

Used Azomite for years, still do, but especially till I could find a local rock dust source. Then, I used a blend of both.

Azomite: 1cup/cf max
Rock dust 2cups/cf max

One thing to bear in mind is, kelp meal provides all the minerals and trace elements you need.

The Azomite and rock dusts are really just icing on the cake. Kelp meal IS the cake.

Just sayin

Dynamo626 said:

when I have a customer who needs an item we cant get in I let them order it to the store and pick it up from there. talk to your guy maby he just haven't thought of that to offer it.

Click to expand...

that's a nice policy to have

Wetdog said:

The Azomite is fine, the Glacial Rock dust is fine. Which is cheaper and can you source both locally?

Used Azomite for years, still do, but especially till I could find a local rock dust source. Then, I used a blend of both.

Azomite: 1cup/cf max
Rock dust 2cups/cf max

One thing to bear in mind is, kelp meal provides all the minerals and trace elements you need.

The Azomite and rock dusts are really just icing on the cake. Kelp meal IS the cake.

Just sayin

Click to expand...

what if Im only using azomite? how much total per cubic ft would I use then?

I did some reading comparisons on the different types of rock dust

granite was rated the better basalt very good

azomite was fine except certain metals....were high

glacial rock dust was considered the lowest grade