Back when I decided I'd pursue this second life of vegetable scraps, I saw an easy how-to for an indoor vermicompost setup. So in November 2015 I bought myself some (500 actually) red wigglers and created a home for them with two 11 gallon storage totes. Bonus dubious dog face:
Winter is a tough time for them to operate at full potential since they like warmer temperatures. I had to keep that in mind as my vegetable scraps would collect. I certainly overfed them a couple times, which became most apparent by odor. I've found that coffee grounds and shredded newsprint help dissipate any bad smells.
Seven months in and the bin is quite full now. I don't have a good space to dump the contents and start separating worms from castings, but I have taken a few handfuls out and let it steep in some water to feed my houseplants.
Here is a photo of my anemic calathea
And here it is after I've trimmed away all the sickly leaves
Good stuff, right? And those sickly leaves went right back into the worm bin.
However, this bin has other organisms that are really obnoxious:
Fungus gnats. I feel Amy's shame in that clip.
I hate them. I've researched for hours the best way to rid them of my home and I find the responses like "oh but they're just part of the whole worm ecosystem" to be patronizing rubbish. I walk into my bathroom and find hundreds of them crawling all over the tub window. I see them in their coupled state all through my towels -- the fluffy clean cloths I use post-shower! -- and have to smack the towel to watch them fall out with a disgusted snarl of my lip.
I have since ordered beneficial nematodes online. These nematodes are parasites of the gnat larvae but don't harm the worms. The delivery time was lackluster and I'm pretty sure my mail person suffers from a case of the lazies. After a stalled delivery, I finally just picked them up from the post office myself. Following the directions on the box, I was hopeful. I used a quarter of the container, which says can be applied to a maximum 285 square feet. I thought for sure a quarter of the container would be sufficient for a little worm bin. These are supposed to take effect within 24 hours. But it didn't. So I tried another application of another quarter of the container. Still: gnats, gnats everywhere. Yesterday, I dumped the rest of the contents of the nematode container into yet another watering can and let it sit. And I dumped that into the bin. I've had enough. Today, there seem to be less gnats. This had better not be a fluke. I want them gone.
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| Marles, Guardian of the Worm Bin |
Winter is a tough time for them to operate at full potential since they like warmer temperatures. I had to keep that in mind as my vegetable scraps would collect. I certainly overfed them a couple times, which became most apparent by odor. I've found that coffee grounds and shredded newsprint help dissipate any bad smells.
Seven months in and the bin is quite full now. I don't have a good space to dump the contents and start separating worms from castings, but I have taken a few handfuls out and let it steep in some water to feed my houseplants.
Here is a photo of my anemic calathea
 |
| Before, so sad |
 |
| After, new life |
However, this bin has other organisms that are really obnoxious:
Fungus gnats. I feel Amy's shame in that clip.
I hate them. I've researched for hours the best way to rid them of my home and I find the responses like "oh but they're just part of the whole worm ecosystem" to be patronizing rubbish. I walk into my bathroom and find hundreds of them crawling all over the tub window. I see them in their coupled state all through my towels -- the fluffy clean cloths I use post-shower! -- and have to smack the towel to watch them fall out with a disgusted snarl of my lip.
I have since ordered beneficial nematodes online. These nematodes are parasites of the gnat larvae but don't harm the worms. The delivery time was lackluster and I'm pretty sure my mail person suffers from a case of the lazies. After a stalled delivery, I finally just picked them up from the post office myself. Following the directions on the box, I was hopeful. I used a quarter of the container, which says can be applied to a maximum 285 square feet. I thought for sure a quarter of the container would be sufficient for a little worm bin. These are supposed to take effect within 24 hours. But it didn't. So I tried another application of another quarter of the container. Still: gnats, gnats everywhere. Yesterday, I dumped the rest of the contents of the nematode container into yet another watering can and let it sit. And I dumped that into the bin. I've had enough. Today, there seem to be less gnats. This had better not be a fluke. I want them gone.
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