Ah! I know where you are @Jenny_Aster … we go through Elm when we go to visit OH’s mum!
Back in pre-Covid days we had occasional East Anglian group outings to gardens in the area … some folk have become ‘real friends’ … hopefully we’ll be able to resume arranging garden visits in 2022 😎
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
People seem to go over from wormeries to general composting with lots of worms in. It often seems less of a faff and you still get lots of worm poo - which is kind of the point.
People seem to go over from wormeries to general composting with lots of worms in. It often seems less of a faff and you still get lots of worm poo - which is kind of the point.
Thought about this, and it would be fine but because I'm building a new garden, I don't really have the time to wait until a compost heap breaks down in say 6-12 months. From what I've read the first couple of kg will be ready in 2 months, then it's an ongoing harvest. The 'stuff' harvested is pretty potent I understand. Plus the other factor, I'm inquisitive and would welcome a new hobby.
People seem to go over from wormeries to general composting with lots of worms in. It often seems less of a faff and you still get lots of worm poo - which is kind of the point.
Not always the case by any means. I doubt I'm alone in having done both at the same time. Any form of composting depends on space, suitable material and time - whichever suits and is the most productive is really the way to go
I've had a wormcity wormery for nearly two years now, in addition to having a compost heap. I really like it, it feels a bit like a single organism, a pet that I'm trying to understand. As a hobby it works really well I'd say. The worm juice took a long time to get going, about a year (noting that the reservoir needs to fill a bit before for the overflow is reached), now it comes out at steady rate. Your experience may be different. I set the tap in open position, fixed a bit of hose and have it continuously dripping into a reservoir. I've harvested only three trays this year, but the stuff that came out was very rich. I try to give them a varied diet, so the usual mix of green and brown (including hand-shredded newspaper), but also variety in terms of decay rate, so not too many things that decay very quickly, and occasionally a bit of mulch from the shredder. There is a steady supply of coffee grounds and some spent tea. Just making it up as I go along of course, so far the worms haven't complained. During harvesting I usually collect some worms and release them in the compost heap, so if a worm really wants to there is a way out for it. In the early days I had a really bad habit of lifting the top tray to see what the worms were up to (as they are often not that visible in the top tray). I think by doing that I destroyed the fungal connections and disturbed the worm tunnels, so now they are left in peace.
I've decided to dive right in, after a lot of research and help from this forum, I've bought from Wormcity as recommended by Gardener's World.
It took me a while to decide whether to create a DIY wormery or buy a dedicated one. I could probably have saved about 30-50% of the cost going down the DIY route, but seeing I'm new to the wormery game I thought I'd stick to being 'safe' with a guarantee and support.
Just hope my 500 'new pets' will pay for themselves in free compost, fertiliser, and better plants. I was thinking about getting a shredder for confidential paperwork, but realise there's now no need, the little blighters can eat the papers, so already saving me about £25
Will let you know how I get on - they don't arrive until next week.
Exciting! I nearly bought one but got put off by people saying the amount you get out is too small to bother with, but hopefully you will have a different experience.
Exciting! I nearly bought one but got put off by people saying the amount you get out is too small to bother with, but hopefully you will have a different experience.
At the moment I feel like a kid who's just been given a puppy and being told to let the puppy sleep as it's only a baby and it needs its sleep
They're not very active as it's too cold, although today, with the weather warming up they do seem a little more active - at least I've seen a dozen or so having a wander.
To quote from the instructions received with the wormery:
"The compost that is produced by the worms is called vermicompost and is very high in nutrients (vermicompost contains 10,000 times the amount of bacteria and microbes than normal compost and is high in phosphates, nitrogen and potassium) therefore you'll need to use it sparingly. Add it as a top dressing, or sprinkle some around the plant roots to give them a real boost)"
I had imagined I'd have loads of 'compost' to mix (like peat) to give structure to the soil - therefore I guess I'll still need to buy compost to condition the soil.
After reading about worms, I've now got a high respect for them, and consider them as highly as we should with pollinators.
There has been a few escapees, and seeing that I don't like to touch them, I use a plastic plant label to pick them up without doing any damage to it.
Exciting! I nearly bought one but got put off by people saying the amount you get out is too small to bother with, but hopefully you will have a different experience.
At the moment I feel like a kid who's just been given a puppy and being told to let the puppy sleep as it's only a baby and it needs its sleep
They're not very active as it's too cold, although today, with the weather warming up they do seem a little more active - at least I've seen a dozen or so having a wander.
To quote from the instructions received with the wormery:
"The compost that is produced by the worms is called vermicompost and is very high in nutrients (vermicompost contains 10,000 times the amount of bacteria and microbes than normal compost and is high in phosphates, nitrogen and potassium) therefore you'll need to use it sparingly. Add it as a top dressing, or sprinkle some around the plant roots to give them a real boost)"
I had imagined I'd have loads of 'compost' to mix (like peat) to give structure to the soil - therefore I guess I'll still need to buy compost to condition the soil.
After reading about worms, I've now got a high respect for them, and consider them as highly as we should with pollinators.
There has been a few escapees, and seeing that I don't like to touch them, I use a plastic plant label to pick them up without doing any damage to it.
Hi Jenny
I recently purchased a wormcity wormery. I've been searching around for someone else who has one to compare information with. How long have you had yours?
I purchased mine about two weeks before Christmas and so far am seeing good results with the number of worms I have but also the worm eggs in the soil too.
Is yours being kept outside or inside? Mine is currently stored in the shed. If you continue to have escapees what helped with mine was to leave a torch on above it. The worms hate the light.
I'd love to be able to discuss more about them and like I said compare and shared tips and tricks :-)
Posts
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border.
Any form of composting depends on space, suitable material and time - whichever suits and is the most productive is really the way to go
I've harvested only three trays this year, but the stuff that came out was very rich. I try to give them a varied diet, so the usual mix of green and brown (including hand-shredded newspaper), but also variety in terms of decay rate, so not too many things that decay very quickly, and occasionally a bit of mulch from the shredder. There is a steady supply of coffee grounds and some spent tea. Just making it up as I go along of course, so far the worms haven't complained.
During harvesting I usually collect some worms and release them in the compost heap, so if a worm really wants to there is a way out for it.
In the early days I had a really bad habit of lifting the top tray to see what the worms were up to (as they are often not that visible in the top tray). I think by doing that I destroyed the fungal connections and disturbed the worm tunnels, so now they are left in peace.
It took me a while to decide whether to create a DIY wormery or buy a dedicated one. I could probably have saved about 30-50% of the cost going down the DIY route, but seeing I'm new to the wormery game I thought I'd stick to being 'safe' with a guarantee and support.
Just hope my 500 'new pets' will pay for themselves in free compost, fertiliser, and better plants. I was thinking about getting a shredder for confidential paperwork, but realise there's now no need, the little blighters can eat the papers, so already saving me about £25
Will let you know how I get on - they don't arrive until next week.
Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border.
I've not to feed them for 2 weeks, and to leave them alone while they get used to their new home. This is going to be hard not to spy on them.
Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border.
They're not very active as it's too cold, although today, with the weather warming up they do seem a little more active - at least I've seen a dozen or so having a wander.
To quote from the instructions received with the wormery:
"The compost that is produced by the worms is called vermicompost and is very high in nutrients (vermicompost contains 10,000 times the amount of bacteria and microbes than normal compost and is high in phosphates, nitrogen and potassium) therefore you'll need to use it sparingly. Add it as a top dressing, or sprinkle some around the plant roots to give them a real boost)"
I had imagined I'd have loads of 'compost' to mix (like peat) to give structure to the soil - therefore I guess I'll still need to buy compost to condition the soil.
After reading about worms, I've now got a high respect for them, and consider them as highly as we should with pollinators.
There has been a few escapees, and seeing that I don't like to touch them, I use a plastic plant label to pick them up without doing any damage to it.
Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border.
I recently purchased a wormcity wormery. I've been searching around for someone else who has one to compare information with. How long have you had yours?
I purchased mine about two weeks before Christmas and so far am seeing good results with the number of worms I have but also the worm eggs in the soil too.
Is yours being kept outside or inside? Mine is currently stored in the shed. If you continue to have escapees what helped with mine was to leave a torch on above it. The worms hate the light.
I'd love to be able to discuss more about them and like I said compare and shared tips and tricks :-)