I was thinking about getting a worm farm going. Anyone do this, and do you put spent grains in there? Links, advice, anything is welcome. I'm looking at using them for fishing.
Worm Farm / Spent Grain
- Thread starter passedpawn
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I don't, but I did want to let you know that my compost pile, which most of the year is made up of coffee grounds and spent grains, has an amazing number of worms in it! I do occasionally add some lime or wood ashes because the spent grains does drop the pH and the pile starts to smell, but as soon as I add make the additions the smell disappears. And it's great compost!
Never done a worm farm, but I've dumped spent grain in compost piles a number of times. Watch those temps, as the decomp is exothermic. Don't want the heat to kill your night crawlers.
Anyway, cool idea. Add that to the list of uses for spent grains.
Anyway, cool idea. Add that to the list of uses for spent grains.
Transamguy77
Well-Known Member
I did a worm fam a few years ago, it was super simple and I started with just some moist news paper. I did a bin inside of a bin, drilled a bunch of small holes in the bottom of the inside bin so your liquid (worm tea) can drain and that is super good for your garden.
It did take several months to get going but once it did I had hundreds of worms that made great compost. I gave them away when I moved.
I would think once they were moved to a larger compost pile you could start adding spent grains, I traded my spent grains for fresh eggs and now I have chickens so my chickens get all the grains now.
It did take several months to get going but once it did I had hundreds of worms that made great compost. I gave them away when I moved.
I would think once they were moved to a larger compost pile you could start adding spent grains, I traded my spent grains for fresh eggs and now I have chickens so my chickens get all the grains now.
OP
OP
I assume pH of 7 is good for worms?
I have done a worm farm before but not with spent grains and it was very simple. I just had a trough of a dirt and cow manure mixture. I fed them corn meal by sprinkling that on top from time to time. I had an amazing number of worms that I started from a single box of bait (night crawlers).
I dont know if the worms would behave any differently with spent grain but I cant imagine it hurting them in any way...
FWIW, I didn't bother (or even know about) pH concerns with my worms.. They just thrived! A little K.I.S.S. principle goes a long way...
I dont know if the worms would behave any differently with spent grain but I cant imagine it hurting them in any way...
FWIW, I didn't bother (or even know about) pH concerns with my worms.. They just thrived! A little K.I.S.S. principle goes a long way...
I haven't measured it, but I assume so. When the pile starts to smell sour, it gets a dose of lime or wood ashes.
ancientmariner52
Well-Known Member
"Maggot rancher wanted, must have long fingernails."
Mad Magazine I think, a long time ago.
I dump my used grain out in the woods on my property. The one time I looked, it was working alive with big red nightcrawlers. I think they like it just fine.
Mad Magazine I think, a long time ago.
I dump my used grain out in the woods on my property. The one time I looked, it was working alive with big red nightcrawlers. I think they like it just fine.
My compost pile is just a pile. I intend to make a bin at some point and actually take care of it, but for now it's just a pile.
Might be good to add worms to it too! We had an old fridge buried in the ground when I was a kid. it was on it's back with a couple of inches sticking out of the ground to keep it cool. The lid opened up and you could dig for worms pretty easily.
That was back when we used to go fishing a lot. We'd hunt night crawlers in the rain and put them in the fridge. Since then I've grunted for worms and that is fun and thrills the kids if you do it right.
Might be good to add worms to it too! We had an old fridge buried in the ground when I was a kid. it was on it's back with a couple of inches sticking out of the ground to keep it cool. The lid opened up and you could dig for worms pretty easily.
That was back when we used to go fishing a lot. We'd hunt night crawlers in the rain and put them in the fridge. Since then I've grunted for worms and that is fun and thrills the kids if you do it right.
No doubt that they would strive on spent grains.
However spent grains attract more than just worms and stink so move it away from the house.
Fall leaves make the best worm beds, build an enclosure in the shade with fence boards and stack leaves 2-3' high.
Supplement with grains and you should have a worm bed in 6 months or so. All you have to do is gently rake the leaves around, the worms will hang out in the middle layer. Big night crawlers won't survive in the south, but you will have plenty of native earthworms.
However spent grains attract more than just worms and stink so move it away from the house.
Fall leaves make the best worm beds, build an enclosure in the shade with fence boards and stack leaves 2-3' high.
Supplement with grains and you should have a worm bed in 6 months or so. All you have to do is gently rake the leaves around, the worms will hang out in the middle layer. Big night crawlers won't survive in the south, but you will have plenty of native earthworms.
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But you could just have a zillion pet worms that turn spent grains into good compost.
I have tried the worm farming here in Colorado but I ended up with a whole bunch of spider mites taking over, and had to just add them to the compost pile! did not want those things running around the house.
I was just using them to convert the wet kitchen trash into worm dirt for plants.
The worms that I was raising were to small for fishing.
Uh... I've caught plenty of large night crawlers in East Texas. They do seem to like the leaves on the ground and at first glance seem like small snakes. But they are worms...
I have a worm bin but haven't put spent grains in it. It's been a long time since I've messed with it, though. From what I remember, you basically treat it the same as a compost pile - no meat or dairy. I would save egg shells and grind them in a coffee grinder til it was fairly fine for those times when the pH got off (could tell by mold forming), then just sprinkle a thin layer of the "calcium powder" over it and good to go again. I recall that adding calcium also boosts their reproduction.
On a side note, for those who want to keep reading.... I moved to this area a little over 4 years ago. The worm bin (which I was only halfheartedly maintaining at that point) was shoved into a corner of the garage and all but forgotten. I just moved again a few months ago. During the move, my bro asked what the status of my worm bin was when we dug it out of the corner. I unleashed my 4 years of guilt over starving the poor things on him while he opened the lid. There were still worms crawling around inside! I was amazed because all that was left in there was a disgusting sludge. He convinced me to keep the bin going and I've given them food and nesting paper since moving. We'll see if they survive the winter because the garage here isn't insulated and it's been below 0. They're apparently very hardy little buggers!
On a side note, for those who want to keep reading.... I moved to this area a little over 4 years ago. The worm bin (which I was only halfheartedly maintaining at that point) was shoved into a corner of the garage and all but forgotten. I just moved again a few months ago. During the move, my bro asked what the status of my worm bin was when we dug it out of the corner. I unleashed my 4 years of guilt over starving the poor things on him while he opened the lid. There were still worms crawling around inside! I was amazed because all that was left in there was a disgusting sludge. He convinced me to keep the bin going and I've given them food and nesting paper since moving. We'll see if they survive the winter because the garage here isn't insulated and it's been below 0. They're apparently very hardy little buggers!
OP
OP
We've got plenty of large worms down here. I think this is going to work out well. Will post pics as this little project develops.
