Baby Worms

[WormyMcWormerson]

Started the wormery in August. Had to give them the lid off/light on treatment for a week to get them to stay put after dark because I got tired of having to fish them out of the bin bag wrap every morning. Some of them even managed to get onto the outside of the bin bag even though it was tightly knotted off...Houdini worms. I'm sure we lost a few but it was their decision to leave and I'm sure they've come to terms with that in worm heaven/sparrow's stomach.

Anyway they've since learnt to love their new home and haven't tried to escape since. Around two weeks ago I started to see tiny baby red worms hanging around the lid and tray rim. I poked them back into the bedding with a bit of cardboard and left the lid off to get them to burrow down. However they reappear on the lid/rim the next day and there's more and more of them appearing every time I look. I don't think they're escaping, they just seem to like bathing where the condensation gathers.  I've only seen one dried up baby on the floor (RIP my wiggly friend).

My wormery was outside for the rest of Summer but has been inside since the start of October. It smells fine, they eat all of their food quite quickly, they get a pinch of powdered egg shell with each feeding and lots of shredded newspaper/cardboard bedding on top. If the wormery gets too moist I leave the lid off for a while and add more dry bedding. I am still on the first tray. There was a brief fruit fly invasion which was halted with a vinegar trap before they could properly breed. Lots of spider mites and fungus gnats, though.

So I'm just wondering why the babies are gathering up top and whether they telling me to start a new tray? There's around half a finger's length of space between the bedding and the top of the tray and the bedding layer is an index finger thick with everything below turned into castings.

[WillyWorm]

Hi Wormy. In general everything seems to be going very well. The bugs and things joining your worms in the bin are all part of the composing process. The best control is to cover the bedding with a piece of cardboard cut to fit snug. The other thing you could do is cook or freeze the scraps before putting them in the bin, this will  make it easier for the worms to eat and help prevent reinvestation by the bugs who hitch a ride on the veg and fruit peel. Always bury food in the bedding layer when you put it in the wormbin.

Congratulation on your new arrivals. Worms wanting to live in the lid or the sump is a fairly common thing but on this occasion I think you are right,  maybe they need the extra space another tray will provide. Your worms will stop breeding if they feel there is a lack of space to accomodate the young ones.

Enjoy your worms
Willy

[WormyMcWormerson]

Hi, Willy. Thank you for your reply.  8) Today I'm going to initiate operation new tray. Should I move some of the current bedding and castings up with a little of the powdered food that came with the wormery?

[WillyWorm]

Hi Wormy. Yea move a good handful of the old bedding and castings into the new tray plus some new bedding to fill the tray about one third of its depth. I would feed the feed you have been using in the old tray. The more familiar things are the quicker the worms will migrate up. I keep some of my own dry food mix but only really use it when going or returning from holiday and I have nothing else for them.

HTH
Willy

[wormcity]

The worms are still breeding and easting nicely due to the unseasonal warm weather


Ronnie

[WormyMcWormerson]

A quick update - worms are already moving into the new tray and eating the new food. The castings in the first tray look fantastic.

Baby worms still gathering on the lid and rim - I guess they just like it there because of the condensation, maybe they'll move down when they get hungry.

Thanks for your help!

[WillyWorm]

Hi Wormy, thanks for the update I'm glad it's all going so well. The young ones being up in the lid maybe be them just being rebellious teenagers, hope they grow up soon.

Look foward to the next update.
Willy