Are you convinced to raise worms?? I hope so! And I hope this video helps you to see how easy it is to add these little workers to your garden shed (or laundry room).  Here are a few takeaways to make sure you have worm success!

The 4 Most Common Trouble Spots

When your worms start trying to escape, take a look at these four common issues. It is almost a guarantee that your problem lies in one of these.

Your Bin Is Too Dry

Signs that your bin is too dry are easy to spot. Your bin will begin to look devoid of life.  The worms will go deep where there is moisture and the top layer will look like a barren desert. 

How To Fix It

This is simple.  To add moisture to a worm bin simply add fruits and vegetables that are more wet.  This is a great time to add extra fruit.  You can also wet your shredded paper before adding.  Or if things seem really dry, give the bin a drink of water using a spray bottle.  Never pour water into your bin.

Your Bin Is Too Wet

If your bin begins to drip liquid from the bottom, it is more thank likely on the road to being too wet.  This doesn't happen often, but when it does it is important to get back on track.  Worms can drown and will start trying to escape if you don't get the bin dried out quickly.

How To Fix It

You can easily get back on track by removing fruit or any other rotting food from the bin, adding dry ingredients only for a week or two, or taking off the lid for a few hours.  Again, as long as you are careful and conservative about the amount of fruit you are feeding your worms, this shouldn't be a problem.

Your Bin is Too Cold

Worms love for their home to be somewhere like your bedroom at night, so keeping them inside works really well, but in the winter months, you may need to move the bin to a sunny area to allow the soil to warm up a bit.  On nights that freezing temps are expected be sure to get your worms to a warm location.

How To Fix It

If you start to see that your worms are slowing down, and there is no good explanation, the answer is mostly likely temperature.  You can always use a thermometer to check for temps between 60 and 75 for optimum results.  If you are somewhere in this neighborhood, your worms are happy.  If, during the winter, you begin to notice a slow down just move the bin to a sunnier indoor location. 

Your Bin Is Too Hot

Again, worms love consistent room temperature, so in the hot summer months it is imperative to have your guys indoors. A hot worm bin will kill your worms.  You will see your population decrease very quickly and will see worms try to go as deep as they can.  Many times when the bin is too hot, the worms will attempt to escape out of the drainage holes on the bottom.  Keep an eye out for that.

How To Fix It

The garage is still a great option during the summer, just keep a thermometer handy if you need to check on those miserable summer days.  The answer is always to bring the bin indoors if needed.  Also if the temps are just a little above where the worms are most comfortable, add ice cubes to your bin. This will help out more than you think in keeping your worms cool. Any soil temperature above 95 is deadly for your worms, so be mindful during the summer.

Getting Your Worms

The best online worm farm, in my opinion, is Uncle Jim's with great customer service and excellent quality.  When you order your worms, you can usually grab a free bonus deal too!  

Make sure you are home when worms are delivered and plan to set up your bin the same day.  Your worms have travelled a far way to get to you, and they want to go straight to their new home!

Now you are ready!! Let's get to the good stuff....harvesting that black gold!!  I will show you how in the next post!  And if you need to go back to the first post in this series, you can do that HERE.