Your Cart

What to feed Composting Worms

Posted by Worm Expert on


When you’re breeding earthworms, it’s not enough that you provide them a nice and comfortable bin to thrive in. You should also be able to provide the right food supply to them. So, what to feed red wigglers then, you might ask? Read on further below to know more.

What to feed Red Wiggler worms


When you’re raising red worms, it’s best that you feed them only what is good for their diet. There are certain organic wastes that they can eat, and also can’t eat. So, you really have to be very knowledgeable about what to feed them with. So feeding them, comes with a little bit of care and maintenance as well. Feeding
composting worms is actually simple. You’ll just have to feed them decomposing organic wastes, that have been cut or chopped into smaller pieces already; and are then buried under the ground (to sway away from unwanted visits from pests and to also avoid odor build-ups). Moving forward, the best thing that you can feed your red wigglers is animal manure. Only feed them something that has been days old already; and have been produced by vegetable eating animals, like rabbits for example (manure from pets are not as healthy especially for worm consumption). Aside from animal manure, you can also feed them the following organic wastes:

  • Crushed Egg Shells – adds that much needed grit for the worm’s digestion. It also provides calcium, helps in the worms reproduction, and also helps in increasing the pH level of the worm bin.
  • Fruits and vegetables (uncooked or peels) – you can feed your worms any variation as long as it’s not citrus based (you’ll have to stay way from lemons, oranges, pineapples and all that since it has high acidity levels)
  • Starchy food wastes – these can be in the form of bread, oatmeal, and pasta.
  • Bedding materials – the materials that you place inside the worm bin can also be consumed by your red wigglers. You can also add pre-soaked peat moss and newspaper shreds (cardboard for some), some soil (avoid the sandy or clayey ones), and coconut coir.
  •  Garden wastes – these can be in the form of dried grass clippings and some fallen leaves.
  • Coffee Grounds - visit a nearby coffee shop, as they often give out there used grounds for free. Also add in those coffee filters and used tea bags.

 

The kind of organic wastes to avoid


There are also selected foodstuffs that shouldn’t be fed to worms. And as previously mentioned, it’s best not to feed them citrus-based fruits. The acid content will definitely aid in lowering the pH level of the worm bin. But other than that, there are other food scraps that should be avoided, and these are:

  • Raw eggshells with some egg white’s still stuck inside (it’s best to clean these before using them for your worms, as these may carry diseases that can harm your compost pals). It will stink up the whole bin too if you don’t clean these first.
  • Fats and Oils –also helps in lowering down the pH level of the worm bin; and also causes odor build-up especially when these start to decompose.
  • Processed foods that contains salt and other additives
  • Meat and Poultry products – these will only attract unwanted pest visits; and will also cause odor build-up.


 
So, always take note of these helpful reminders. You simply want nothing but the best for your red wigglers; and of course, to got nothing but the best results from them as well. Make it a point to take in these considerations on what to feed composting worms, before you put in any kind of organic waste inside their bin.