Got me an aloe plant. Any tips on feeding the leaves to my worms? Better just to top dress plants with? Do I just cut a leaf and they regrow or wait till they die out? Best way to get it to my plants? Any help would be appreciated. I've been watering with aloe juice but I heard nothing beats the fresh. If there is a link to a thread to help me with this plant, please let me know. Thanks again! Buzz!
Just blend a 1/4 cup of leaf with some water whenever you water. Filter it if you want to spray as ipm. I don't bother trying to separate from leaf, just strain the big chunks. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Wet you got me on full alert here. I used some alfalfa hay(a lot actually) from the feed store when I started my initial compost pile. Coming from a larger distributor here in the south I'm certain it was sprayed by the farmer. It has been fully broken down for at least 8 months and I'm just letting it age until I need it. Is this going to wreak havoc on my garden? I've planted a few plants, mainly comfrey, using this compost and no negative affects thus far. Any manure that was used in the pile was cow manure and I know for a fact their field wasn't sprayed. Just wondering about this alfalfa... Thanks. Any input welcome. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Do a test run in a small tote and see how a handful of worms react. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
I will try that TM, I noticed wet mentioned in Stevebombs experience the herbicides didn't affect his worms but did do damage to the plants. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
I would assume that farmers wouldn't waste time and money on spraying crop for animal feed but there are a lot of stupid people out there so there's only one way to find out. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
SB's dad had did a weed&feed IIRC in the horse pasture, for broadleaf weeds. For the worms there was no problem, but it first showed up in his tomatoes and everything the compost was used in. It was in the Organic veggie thread, perhaps a year or so ago? Might be worth a search, there was a lot of info and pics. I pretty much just use Black Kow for manure with no problems. I just pass on manures that I'm not sure of. Like, not in a bag. LOL Mostly, it's neem cake, kelp meal and comfrey/coffee fed VC. I do think the alfalfa pellets I have are Ok, being feed, but don't have any alfalfa hay, so? HTH Wet
OK GC. I been running my worm bin since January and been doing good. Recently I came across rabbit and chicken poop. Been making compost pile out of it for next year but I thought I could feed my worms straight rabbit poop but it seems they don't like it. Been a few days and no worms in that part of of the bin. Any suggestions or tips would be much appreciated. Green
STRAIGHT rabbit manure, no bedding? Does is smell like ammonia (from urine)? Worms don't like ammonia nitrogen, and it's toxic to them at certain levels. I would not suggest using that chicken manure unless it's been composted first... You should download the first PDF in GiMiK's library (from post #2), Vermiculture Technology by Clive Edwards. That book contains everything you need to know about worm wrangling. Check out chapter 3, section III, subsection E, "Ammonia and Salts"... GiMiKs Library of Organic Gardening PDF Files
I didn't think it smelled like pee but I'm sure there is some on it considering the way rabbit bins are set up. I'll stick to what I was doing before and check out the PDF. When I was collecting I had a few buckets and the stuff on top, under the rabbit pins went in one bucket for worm food and the bottom stuff in my compost piles was in another bucket. Tried to pick the clean, just poop, for the worm food bucket. Thanks wak! Green
Can anyone point me to or give me recommendations on what to do with finished EWC? My bins getting pretty full and i feel i need to start a new one / migrate the worms to a new one. So, in this instance as i dont need the EWC now, how do i ensure that they are stored so that when i do use them they are still microbe rich? Its probably going to be a couple of months before i need to start using a volume again. thanks
Store it in a tote,trash can, or large fabric pot and keep it moist. The bacteria will go dormant but won't completely die off if left unattended but will quickly bounce back when you use it. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
In a similar situation as above. I have just started about 500 worms a month ago and have little ewc so far. It's gonna take forever before I get the amount I need. So if I just throw the ewc I harvest in tote and keep them moist and keep adding until I have enough it'll be good still? I plan on using it in a organic mix in the future. If I mix it with other items, will they really activate the microbes? If the ewc dry out too much are they worthless? doob's first indoor grow
Keep the worms going until you actually need to harvest some. Red wigglers multiply pretty quick, a few more months and you can transfer into multiple containers so your not relying on one bin. Keep it moist not wet, feed with MBP or coffee grounds occasionally and you'll be good. If your using compost as bedding then that is the main food source. There is nothing easier than maintaining a worm bin. If it drys out the worm will run or die but bacteria multiplies by the millions very rapidly in optimal conditions, so short of intentionally sterilizing the soil you have nothing to worry about. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app
Not even sure you need to keep it moist. Id say you just need a couple of holes in whatever container you store em in to keep it from going anaerobic would suffice.
Maby not but it doesn't take much to throw some water in once a week or 2 for good measure. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum mobile app