Worm Composting Question and Answer Area

Coming out at Night 
I have followed all of your instructions and videos to the "T", however every morning (the first 2) I have found anywhere from 8-12 worms that have escaped …

Pine Shavings 
Hi, I raise quail and I keep them on pine bedding. Can I feed this (or cedar bedding) to my worms? It's full of quail poop which I would like to be composted …

Worm Bin vs. Worm Bucket 
Hi Liz, How do you feel about keeping your composting worms in a 5-gallon bucket vs. a bin? Secondly, I've been feeding my worms for several months …

Cockroaches in worm bin 
how do i get rid of cockroaches in my worm bin? Answer from BigTex worms: I've found food grade diatomaceous earth to work well. Its safe for the worms …

What worm system do you recommend? 
I have watched your videos and appreciate your experience! I heard what you said about the Worm Factory 360. We currently compost about 3x what you do …

Worm composting in Texas summer heat.  
How can a keep my worms outside all year round in Houston? It seems the heat of the summer is worst than the mild winters. Last time I tried all my worms …

making worm tea 
Hi LIz! I have a few questions about making worm tea. The worm tea page says: Put 1 cup of castings in 1 gallon water. Add 2-3 tsp of unsulfared …

Feeding worms grass 
I grow wheat grass in flats and have a thick mat of roots in the soil after harvest. I'm told that the sod contains sufficient food for the worms but some …

worm towers in raised beds 
I have 14 worm towers in my square foot beds. My water is supplied underground drip irrigation. I wanted to try the worm tower directly in the beds, starting …

moving worms? 
I am moving at the end of the year (over 1000km north) and currently have two worm farms. Is it possible to move the worms in containers or will I have …

My worm bin disaster :( 
Hi Liz, First of all, I have to thanks for your helpful and informative site. I have coming to get to learn about worms your way for 3 days straight …

Bugs in Worm Bin 
Dear Big Tex, I'm still amazed that after 4 or 5 months everything is working so well. I was almost handing out cigars when I saw all the babies. …

Worm Food 
I bought the kids worm kit back in May for my classroom, and am running out of food. What exactly is the food? Where can I get it? HELP PLEASE SO My wormies …

a stange band formation 
hi there, I know that worms have band near there head formation for there sexual activities... but recently i found one of my worm having a band formation …

How to kill ants in compost pile and not hurt my worms 
Ants over running my compost pile(not fire ants), like to kill them. Are the ants eating my worms? Want the ants gone permentaly(as in dead). Jim …

wood chips and worm composting 
i have wood chip from tree companies that dump om my property would that be good for bedding for raising worms and do you have the Canadian earth worms …

Composting Bat guano 
I live in Austin close to were the bats live under the bridge. Can you use it in your worm composting? I don't have access to horse or cow manure. Thanks …

creating heat for winter 
hi liz i guess i've lost my touch last year i had no problem using dampened corn meal to create a hot spot this year i have not been able to get one started …

Todays "Worm Feeding" video Not rated yet
Liz, Good, instructive video. It occurrs to me, however, that one might be killing good decomposition microrganisms, nutrients, etc. in the freezing of …

Worms under the starter bag. Not rated yet
When I received my worms, the box was so badly dented that I didn't want to disturb the worms any more so I just tore the starter bag and put it into the …

My worms aren't getting plump Not rated yet
About 2 months ago I set up my worm bin with approx 2,000 red wigglers. They were very thin when they arrived and I was told they should get plump within …

booth at eco-fair Not rated yet
Hello, I work for PepsiCo in Plano, TX. We are holding an eco-fair in May and I'm looking for people to man booth in the area of recycling and composting. …

worm food Not rated yet
I have a massive amount of live oak leaves that I shred and compost but it takes a while. Can I feed these shredded leaves to worms? Also have lots of …

solder flies in compost bins Not rated yet
Hi. Last summer I had what I think were solder flies in my Can-O-Worms. The previous summer the same large hungry larva were present and I tried to …

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Coconut Coir Not rated yet
Do you purchase your coconut coir locally? If so, where? Yes, I purchase it at my local pet store in the reptile section

When do I harvest my worm bin? Not rated yet
I have made worm bins using your method from youtube and my question is when using peat moss I can't tell when to harvest because when you wet peat …

Buy Worms in Keller, Tx Not rated yet
I am interested in buying worms ASAP. Just bought a feeding trough that the guy there said he raised worms in the same thing for years. I read everything …

Liquid gold from the worm bin Not rated yet
I've been worm composting for three years and in the beginning the liquid forming at the bottom was rich and dark. I've noticed over the past few months …

Flow through worm bin Not rated yet
Hi Liz, I saw your flow through bins in a few of your videos. I like the concept and seems as though harvesting might be a little easier as well as …

Shipping to Hawaii Not rated yet
Aloha Liz, Can you ship worms to Hawaii? I hear from my local worm farm (who are charging a pretty penny) that it is illegal to purchase worms out of …

Perfect bin but worms trying to escape :-( Not rated yet
Why are my worms trying to escape the bin? I have my bin in a well ventilated garage. The bin has a mixture of food, soil, newspaper, and cardboard - you …

Shipping to Chicago Not rated yet
We are looking to do worm composting with our 5-6 year old girl scout troop in Chicago, IL and would like to have them experience a full cycle of composting …

easy harvesting worms Not rated yet
Is there an easy and fast way of harvesting worms when you don't have a worm harvester? I just started to only feed them in one spot for a few weeks so …

Tours? Not rated yet
I am going to buy a starter of worms from you. My daughter lives in South Lake near you and I would like to come by and pick up the worms and hopefully …

shipping Not rated yet
I am anxious to begin vermicomposting, but what about shipping? Will they freeze in transit? I'm in Northern Wyoming (right next to Yellowstone Park) …

Worms and Citrus / Onions / Garlic Not rated yet
Hi Liz, Thank you for your videos, I've seen most of them! Good tips and even better advice :) I just have a question about the citrus / onion / …

Horse trough Not rated yet
I have a worm bin in my garage and would like to move it outside into a horse trough. I am live in Hurst. Do you have any good suggestions on where …

How Many Worms? Not rated yet
Hi Liz, I've become interested in worm composting, and since our weather is so cold here in Pa.and I'll have to keep them indoors, I've decided to start …

Rain in my worm bin! Not rated yet
The worms I received from you about 3 weeks ago are doing just fine. However, it rained for the past three days and I just looked in my bin and it was …

Mites and worms not eating Not rated yet
I know you have an article on mites I have read it but now that I need it I can't find it. Also, I have had my worms now for 2 weeks and they still haven't …

Horse trough worm bin. Not rated yet
I am going to use a horse trough for my bin. How deep do you dig for the castings? How do you know when the castings are ready for harvest. Can I fill …

Adding worms to plant beds Not rated yet
I liive in Dallas. I am transforming my front yard into large beds for native plants (flowers and grasses). Should I add worms to my soil? If so, should …

Hybrid Not rated yet
I have started vermicomposting and I use Einsenia hortensis (European Nightcrawler) instead of Einsenia fetida (your red wigglers), I would like to raise …

Cow Manure and Worms Not rated yet
I started looking at redworms and compost last spring because of all the chemicals used by my neighbors in their farming operations. I believe it is hurting …

Yikes! Mites! Not rated yet
Hi Liz, was gone a few days a couple weeks ago and I returned to find my bin full of mites (white ones). How can I be rid of these ugly little critters? …

No Progress Not rated yet
I started my bin the first of May of this year and although my worms are alive and seem to be fine, I am not seeing an increase in the castings. My bin …

vermicomposting outdoors in AR  Not rated yet
Hello, I have composted with worms indoors when I lived in MI, but now live in Ar. Would it be possible to keep them happy and healthy in this climate? …

Worms in Freezing Temps. Not rated yet
I have two worm bins. One square one approx, 30 t0 40 gal. The other a large round plastic half barrel or larger approx: 80 gal. If I left them in …

Watering Worms and Coffee Not rated yet
Hi Liz! I just purchased your 1/2 starter kit - they arrived on Thursday, and so far so good. I put the worms/starter bedding into my 5 gallon bucket …

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Desired pH range in worm bin Not rated yet
Hi Liz, I hope your leg is much better. I'm looking forward to receiving my worms next month. You indicated that pH is important but I did not see …

How often do worms have young... Not rated yet
How often do worms have their young... How long before you can remove the young and place them in their own bin? Answer from BigTex Worms: This question …

Transfer to my tote, are they producing castings Not rated yet
Hi Liz, I am on day 21 of my first 60 days, and my worms are still alive! I did better than I thought I would for my first attempt, but a couple questions. …

moisture of worm bin Not rated yet
How often and how do I moisten the worm bin. Do I just spray the top or move the dirt around and spray and moisten all the way to the bottom? Can I just …

worm tower in raised bed? Not rated yet
willing to try a worm tower in one of my raised beds. Understand you might be concerned about it getting to hot. I will ventilate with holes, covering …

Just harvested worm bin Not rated yet
I recently harvested my worms and started a new bin. I put a little less than half a brick of cocoquoir and some aged cow manure. It seems like I might …

Getting ready for worms arrival Not rated yet
Hello, I am expecting my worms tomorrow or Sat and I have a couple of questions about my bin. I plan on using a blue rubbermaid bin, but I am only ordering …

worms escaping after harvesting Not rated yet
I just harvested the worm casting from my worm bin and transferred them to a coconut fiber bedding. The only problem is that I don't think they like it …

Worm castings as fertilizer Not rated yet
I have a question concerning the nitrogen content of worm castings. We have commercial greenhouses and I have been raising worms for about 6 months now. …

Worm compost tea Not rated yet
I was reading on another site about a guy who said you could pour 6 gallons of water a day over your compost bed throughout the day and let it drain through …

New bin experience and turning bedding every two weeks question Not rated yet
Hi, I recently purchased worms from you, and everything seems to be going well! I set up my plastic bin similar to your tutorial, although I used …

Next Class? Not rated yet
Hi Liz! Is it too late/hot to take a class with you? I keep clicking the link to take me to the "next class" page but it won't load. Thanks! …

Hard boiled eggs Not rated yet
Hi Liz! We got our worms on Tuesday and was so excited to see so many babies in the bucket!! I had never seen a baby worm before so that was way cool. …

worms crawling to top of bin Not rated yet
I have been worm composting for around 3 years with no real problems once I got the hang of it. I use two bins. One is an active bin. The other is a …

Herb Crate $24 Not rated yet
I used a produce crate as the planter here. I just love repurposing items to save the landfill. Makes my heart feel good. This crate has chocolate …

Herb Crate $24 Not rated yet
I used a produce crate as the planter here. I just love repurposing items to save the landfill. Makes my heart feel good. This crate has chocolate …

Can I add worms directly to the garden Not rated yet
Can I add worms directly to my raised garden beds and add organic materials between the rows to aerate the soil, and naturally fertilize? Answer from …

Worm environment Not rated yet
I made a huge mistake. I bought worms on Amazon.com. I thought I was buying them from you but now I realize it wasn't you. So they will be pretty much …

Worms dying  Not rated yet
Not sure if I haven't found the answer or if it really doesn't exist yet. We bought a worm starter pack from a hardware store, did absolutely everything …

Very wet at the bottom of my bin Not rated yet
I have had my worms since early January. I turned my worms today. I noticed near the bottom, the bedding was wetter than I thought it should be. …

little white worms Not rated yet
I got my worm bin a few days ago. I have only given them the dried food you sent and wet scraps that came with the bin. Today I opened it and there were …

introducing worms to my composter Not rated yet
I live in south florida, for many years I have been throwing all my scraps along with coffee grinds in a big 36" x24" composter. I don't pay much attention …

coffee grounds, green or brown, food or bedding ? Not rated yet
Hi Liz, My worms love coffee grounds ! Coffee beans are green until roasted . Kitchen wastes are green (or orange, or yellow, or red) until chopped …

Bottom of worm bed really wet Not rated yet
Hi Liz, I have had my worm bed up for two months now. I went to turn the bed a bit and it is really wet on the bottom. Is this natural? Should I add more …

Adding worms to lawn Not rated yet
I am buying a starter bucket. My intent is to take half or so of the existing worms and spread them around my front lawn....fairly close to each other …

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Outdoor bin Not rated yet
I live in the Metroplex and would like information on keeping an outdoor bin. What works best with the North Texas summer heat? Is it possible to have …

Can I put Red Wigglers into raised beds? Not rated yet
Can I just put some of your Red Wigglers into my raised garden bed containers? I use the bagged soil designed for raised beds. Thank you. Answer from …

missing worms Not rated yet
I have recently started my worm bin and all the worms were captured by me.... there were only 2 adult worms rest of them were small worms maybe baby worms.. …

do worms reproduce quicker under certain conditions? Not rated yet
Hi Liz, I read somewhere that the red wigglers will reproduce more quickly to save their species if they are in conditions that are not suitable for their …

worm problem and worm questions Not rated yet
Hi There, I was so excited to find you on the internet as I just started my worm compost this week and have some questions I thought you could answer. …

Saw dust in worm bin Not rated yet
Is it all right to add cedar saw dust to my worm bin? Answer from BigTex Worms: Check the ph of the sawdust and if it is neutral then it is "safe" …

Coco Husk vs Coconut Coir? Not rated yet
Hi Liz, I want to know if Coco Husk is the same as Coconut Coir. I will soon be starting a new worm bed and I am not sure if the Coco Husk is the right …

Why do worms try to escape? Not rated yet
I have had a worm bin in my Paris apartment for about two months, with few difficulties. They were in the unfinished attic briefly but now live in the …

Do worms prefer fruits or veggies? Not rated yet
Do worms compost better in vegetables or fruit?? Hmmm. Interesting question. In my observation, worms like both but prefer certain varieties of each. …

How many worms for a family of 5? Not rated yet
I have a family of 5. Do I need to order 2 starter bags? Also, I'm thinking about using an old horse trough for my worm bed. It doesn't have air holes, …

Worm Composting book recommendation Not rated yet
Do you recommend the book "Worms eat my Garbage" by mary appelhof? answer from wormbincomposting.com It is a good read, and is available to borrow …

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