Worms!

Yay! We went out this morning and got my worms! Ain't cheap to buy them from a bait shop. The guy waiting on me probably thought I was goofy examining them. I pulled off the top and poked at them. They weren't too lively. They were on a shelf and not in the fridge so they should be more lively. I asked him if he'd get me another pack and another until I got some wiggly ones. Hubby gets so annoyed with me when I shop. He said "They're probably mad at you for poking at them." I know what I want and I'll get it. I'm not paying for dead worms when my whole deal is to get live ones for composting. Right? At $3.55 for a couple dozen each pack, they better dance a jig when I say so. I bought two packs.

What's even worse, is I decided to get some meal worms for my chickens. They didn't look too lively, either. So I figured "What the heck! They're going to get eaten in a little while, anyways." The young kid behind the counter said "$14.14, please." What the heck! I looked at a little sign on the register that said "Wax Worms...$5.99" I paid $6 for a treat for my chickens!!! OK. Who's loco here?!!! (pointing at self) At least Hubby didn't ask why it was so expensive. I think he figured that everything else in the shop that he was browsing through was expensive, so it wasn't a surprise to him. Whew!

I brought the babies home and wet down the shredded paper and wrung it dry. We added some of our compost that I just sifted last week to the paper. Layer by layer for a couple of layers. Then I gave it a turn and put some veggie scraps in there. I let the babies loose and they made their way into the mulched paper. I guess they liked it. Anything would be better than a small container with a bunch of your buddies wiggling around you. Well...not so much wiggling was going on at the time I bought them. I checked on them and they are still under the mulch. I'll check to see if they've started eating tomorrow. It will be a while until we get enough worms bred for composting.

My Worm Farm

What My Worm Farm with Food Looks Like to Start

 Ah! The life of a homesteader...sort of. LOL!

Take care.

Thinking About Vermiculture

I've been reading on Squidoo about vermiculture. You know...worm farming. Now, don't go saying 'Yuk' just yet. Here is the deal on these little babies.

First, you'll get some good fertilizer from worm pee and poo.

Second, they'll eat most things that you'd be throwing into your compost heap. This would be like chopped paper, rotten veggies that wouldn't go to the chickens, banana peels, dryer lint, dust from the sweeper, etc. Some of the things not to feed them is citrus, plastics, onions and garlic.

Third, I'd be saving lotsa moola on buying fertilizer for my gardens.

Fourth, just like a good compost heap, they won't smell if you treat them right.

Fifth, they multiply quickly.

Sixth, Hubby would have a supply of fishing worms.

Seventh, I would have another thing to take care of. I like to take care of things. ; )

Eighth, maybe we could sell some?

I'm sure I could go on, but I'll quit for now. I think this would be a really sustainable project for us to try. Hubby is interested in this one. I'll let you know if I do or don't tackle this project.

Now...if I could just find a worm sitter...

Take care.