10 Myths In Worm Farming
Healthy worms are fat worms
This tendancy to think only fat worms are healthy worms is probably due to the fact that those who grow worms for bait want to grow big worms because fishermen wants them big. Bigger worms are easier to put onto the hook and for the fishermen bigger worms attract bigger fish.
However in a domestic worm farm it is quite common to see a healthy bunch of itsy bitsy tiny weeny little happy wiggly worms, especially after having the worm setup bin for a while. This is because worms self-regulate
their population and when a certain density is rea-
ched, worms top breeding,
cocoons stop hatching
and worms start shrinking
to allow greater number of
individuals but maintaing
the same biomass.
So if your worms are get-
ting smaller, do not worry.
You should notice their
number has increased.
You don't need to do any-
thing. You can split your
existing worm bin into two
and they will start breeding and maybe getting bigger but only to eventually shrink down again when the population reaches the max density.
Weekly watering of the worm bin is a necessity
This is only needed if you have a highly ventilated worm bin such as a CFT (Continuous Flow Through) which has open top and bottom or a Worm Inn which is made of breathable fabric.
However in a plastic system, even those with draining holes, watering your bin can actually create issues:
- too much moisture can create anaerobic pockets which will get smelly
- too much moisture will generate leachate which will take away the nutrients from the vermicompost, eventually the leachate might stink if allowed to sit for a period of time
- too much moisture might contribute into creating the ideal condition for certain types of critters such as pot worms or mites. Eventhough they are part of a healthy worm bin ecosystem, an overpopulation can be an annoyance
- too much moisture will leads to muddy vermicompost that when dry will be like a hard
shell. Your vermicompost should be light at fluffy. See Larry Shier eBook "10 Biggest Mistakes New Worm Farmers Make"
Water your bin during hottest days to cool it down
It is a logic thing to do right? We jump into a pool on hot days so why not water the bin to cool it down?
The problem is water is better heat conductor than air and in a closed environment like a worm bin this can lead to the opposite of what you are after. You also run into the risk of creating anaerobic pocket which combined to the food scraps that you might be adding could be fatal to the worms.
To help things on hot days, you could do one or a combination of any of the followings:
- move the bin(s) to a shady and cool
- move the bin(s) indoor, becareful places like garage or shed can be hotter than outside
- freeze one or two bottle of water and place the bottle on the top tray. Don't use ice as it will melt and add water to the system
- remove the lid and blanket to allow heat to escape the system
- cover the system with a large and wet hessian (burlap) bag. Additionally, you can also dip the tends of the bag into two bucket of water. The water will wick up the bag and as it evaporates it cools down the worm bin
- place a fan pointing at the system to increase air flow
Wood ash is great for raising the pH
If you were looking for how to fix a smelly worm bin you might have discovered that you were overfeeding your worms and the excess food scraps has started to ferment and become acidic (low pH). So the advise usually is to stop feeding, add more carbon rich material and add some finely ground eggshells or garden lime (CaCO3, calcium carbonate).
Some sources, also list other material to use for raising the pH (lowering acidity) such as wood ash or calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2, slaked lime, hydrated lime, builders lime). Although this would work in the garden because Ca(OH)2 and wood ash are alkalines, you must however be aware that those two materials are caustic and might harm your worms if there is contact with their skin.
# Whole eggshells help lowering acidity
Eggshells are mainly made of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) which is an excellent [pH Buffer](https://thelittlewormfarm.com/en/learning#advice-and-tips/#tip-12). However, whole eggshells or roughly crushed ones will not work as well as one expects. In order for eggshells to be efficient, they need to be finely ground to powder consistency. Finely grinding eggshells increase their surface area to offer better reaction with the hydrogen in an acidic environment.
# Worm Chow and other grain mixes are the only way to fatten worms
Worm Chow and grain mixes are commonly used by worm farmers growing worms for bait. However, in a domestic operation, the use of those mixes is not necessary and can actually create problems if not used properly and would lead to protein poisoning where you can observe a "string of pearl" effect.
If you want to grow your own worm for bait and want to fatten them then all you need to do is give them more space (read surface area). As explained in the "Healthy worms are fat worms" myth paragraph, worms shrinks as their population density increases. By regularly splitting your bin you give them more space to grow. Alternatively, you can also grab a few of mature worms a couple of weeks prior to your fishing trip and put them in a separate bin for them to grow to a good size. They don't need any special diet.
[Brian "The Worm Man" Donaldson](http://www.thewormman.com.au/) is a professional worm farmer who breed African Nightcrawlers (ANC) for bait and has never used any special grain mix to fatten his amazing herd of ANC.
# Compost worms eat their weight in food scraps per day
This is not really a myth, but because it is hardly attainable in a domestic worm farm, I consider is as one. This has been noted as one of the main reason for the [biggest mistake new worm farmers make](http://gum.co/10vermistakes/). In ideal conditions and food type, this can be attained. However in practice a domestic worm farmers could expect their worms to consume their weight in food scraps per week.
# One single worm bin can process all a household food scraps
How many times have I seen new worm farmers join groups or forums and asked why their worms have died or why their bin stinks. People are attracted by all these publicity where you see the actor dump food scraps into a bin and soon harvest black gold. Truth is for the average household, a single or even two domestic worm bins will not be sufficient to process all the generated food scraps. So if you dump everything in your feeding tray, your worm will not be able to consume everything before it rots, ferment, heat and stinks.
Start will a small amount and increase as you see the worms consume it all.
# Compost worms cannot live in the garden soil
There is that big assumption that compost worms are not meant to be in the garden, raised beds, pots, planter boxes, you name it.
Eventhough compost worms, as their name suggests, prefer to be in organic matter and making compost, they can survive in the soil. Brian Paley have actually showed in [The Burrow](http://www.jetcompost.com/burrow/tbp1.htm) that newly hatched worms can actually adapt to the soil environment. Many domestic worm farmers have also been surprised to see worms appearing in both their indoors and outdoors pots after applying harvested vermicompost.
It is true that compost worms will most likely die in a non friendly garden soil or planter. However, if you take the effort to prepare your garden, compost worms will work on making it a healthier place for your plants. To make your garden a worm friendly environment cover the soil with a layer of dry leaves, mulch or wood chips or a combination of any of them. I have some pots where I have only put 1/2 inch thich of mulch and worms are thriving. They burrow down into the soil when it is too hot or dry and come up when conditions improve.
# White tiny worms are baby compost worms
Quite a few time there were people who were excited to find baby worms in their worm bin. It turns out those tiny little white worms are actually pot worms. Our compost worms are actually pink as soon as they hatch from their cocoons.
Potworms (enchytraeidae) are actually close relatives of the earthworms and are part of the natural composting community. They help breaking down organic matter. They are totally harmless to the worms, however their presence in high number is usually sign of overfeeding. If you see a population boom, stop feeding for a week or two, add much more bedding material and sprinkle some pH buffer.
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