Vermicomposting 2

It has been more than two weeks and my Reds are still happily wriggling. There were no stench and instead there was a faint earthy smell to the bin. So far so good. I was feeding them minced potato peels, squash peels and carrot peels. I avoided fruit peels after my colony was invaded by ants the first week I set them up.

I decided to transfer them to a bigger home, and did some minor changes to the set up, after finding one to two Reds escaping. One big one even tried to slither out thru the cover. I figured it must be crowded inside.

Got myself a new bigger black plastic bin, which I bought in the supermarket. I had holes drilled top to bottom and side to side. First, I laid flat sheets of newspaper at the bottom of the bin to catch the poop and hopefully prevent the Reds from escaping. Then I hand-shredded a lot newspapers, drenched them in water and layered them on top of the flat newpaper.

Next, I spread a layer of used ground coffee which I picked up from a local coffee shop for free. This seemed to prevent stench and contribute to the earthy smell inside the bin. This also helps the Reds grind their food.

Then I plopped a generous amount of chopped vegetable peel in the middle of the bin and tipped the entire colony into their new home, lock, stock and barrel. Now that they're upside down, I found my Reds crowded together with some worms bigger than they were before. I'm not sure if they have multiplied but I sure hope they did. Then I covered them with another layer of hand-shredded drenched newspapers, topped with a layer of used ground coffee and a layer of flat newspaper and I returned them to their dark spot to do their job.

I'm glad to know my Reds are thriving and look forward to next weeks progress.

Comments, tips and suggestions most welcome