Question 1

I Have Ants In The Wormery, What Should I Do?

Accepted Answer

Whilst ants don’t harm the worms as such, they will take the worm eggs—this will obviously affect future generations, so you need to get the ants out.

**An effective treatment is Diatomaceous earth (DE) Powder**. it’s non-toxic to kids, birds, and pets. And yet it effectively sorts out ants in your worm bin.   As they move across the powder, it sticks to their feet and legs only to get into their joints and exoskeleton.

**Buy DIATOMACEOUS EARTH here: [https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/products/diatomaceous-earth](https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/products/diatomaceous-earth)**

If you can find and remove the queen, the rest should follow her. Watering the wormery, to keep it damp, often encourages ants to evacuate the kit.

You can help keep ants out by smearing some Vaseline on the legs of the wormery.

Question 2

How To Look After My Worms

Accepted Answer

Worms need nurturing just like all of us. There are a few basic requirements that will ensure they eat and breed and therefore make compost for you. 1: They need food. As with most of us worms like a varied diet, lots of different foods are great for worms and a few of their favourites are veggie waste, coffee ground and banana skins. They aren’t too fussy but it the waste is too wet there tends to be a lack of air. 2: They need moisture. This is usually not worth thinking about as most of your kitchen waste is actually water so unless you live in Alice Springs you have no need to concern yourself about adding water. Do keep your moisture mat or similar on top of the freshest waste as this helps to maintain moisture and soak up excess. 3: Air – Your worm bin isn’t airtight so as long as the waste doesn’t get too wet there will be air circulating. If there is any doubt every now and again it’s worth adding a layer of shredded cardboard which really helps airflow. 4: A neutral pH level… Most waste is acidic and if there is too much acidity this can affect your worms. You can tell if there is a problem if the kit smells or there are flies attracted to it. Adding a handful of the lime mix that came with your kit will sort this out and adding crushed eggshells will also help the balance. Worm kits are pretty simple – as long as the conditions are beneficial to your worms they will stay and compost for you. Remember your worm composting kit isn’t a waste disposal machine, it’s a complete ecosystem that turns kitchen waste into the best compost and liquid feed in the World! Watch this short video on how to look after your worms. *TIP: Click on the YouTube icon in the video to watch full screen*

Question 3

Are your wormeries rodent proof?

Accepted Answer

The great thing about a tray system wormery is that a: It's off the floor so very unlikely to be attacked by rodents and B: Worms compost waste as you add it so they really help to neutralise the odours. We have had no problems with rodents with Urbalive or other tray system worm composters.

Question 4

How Do I Use My Worm Casts And Compost?

Accepted Answer

### Using your Compost
The compost is very rich in nutrients and organic matter and can be used as an excellent medium to grow plants in. It is rich in soluble plant foods and its fine crumbly texture will greatly improve soil structure. It is not necessary to sterilise the compostbefore using it in the garden, its bacterial content comprises beneficial species which will not harm your plants. It can be
used in all the situations where fertiliser is normally used, for example when planting seeds or shrubs; or as a top dressing for
fast growing plants.

**If you want to make your own potting compost try the following mix:**
* 25% Worm casts
* 25% Coir or alternative
* 25% Perlite (or equivalent)
* 25% Sand

### Liquid Plant Feed
Don’t forget that the liquid that you drain off from the sump
can be used as a house or garden plant food. This is a highly
concentrated liquid feed and it must be diluted with 10 parts of
water before use.

Question 5

How do worms breed?

Accepted Answer

Red worms are hermaphrodites which means they are both male and female (although it does take two to tango). They produce eggs or capsules from the saddleback which you will see on the 13th segment on their bodies. The egg looks like a tomato pip and starts off a yellowy-green colour and as they age they go a brownish-red. Each one will have between 5 and 15 tiny worms inside, and these take about 10 days or so to hatch out.

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* [Complete Video Guides To Worm Composting](https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/pages/the-complete-wiggly-guide-to-worm-composting)

Question 6

How do I encourage worms in my garden?

Accepted Answer

If you can get a healthy population of worms in your soil they will make you an ongoing supply of topsoil so to encourage them to breed avoid disturbing the soil where you can and feed them!

You can add garden worms as well of course but also making your own worm compost and adding this to the soil will also encourage a natural increase in your worm population.

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Question 7

Should I Rake My Wormery Compost Regularly?

Accepted Answer

Not at all. The nosy among you beware and also make your children understand this - it's not useful to disturb the compost, particularly during the initial breeding. Add the food to the top. This prevents you from disturbing the worms and disrupting their homes, they only lay eggs in specific places. You can carefully rake the compost if it appears too wet or lacking air.

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* [Complete Video Guides To Worm Composting](https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/pages/the-complete-wiggly-guide-to-worm-composting)

Question 8

Is The Wormery Composting Method Different At The Beginning From Later On?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and it's very important to remember this. Give your worms enough time to settle and reproduce, don't swamp them with food from the get-go. You will know that the earthworms are well adjusted when they begin to process the food you give them more quickly and you will also be able to feed them more often.

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* [Complete Video Guides To Worm Composting](https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/pages/the-complete-wiggly-guide-to-worm-composting)

Question 9

Can I Add Cardboard To My Wormery?

Accepted Answer

Cardboard is great for your worm composter (as is a sprinkling of lime mix) A ratio of 25-30% volume of cardboard or equivalent will ensure speedier worm composting. Avoid the really shiny boxes like soap powder and go for newsprint, egg boxes etc.

Question 10

What should and shouldn't I put into my wormery?

Accepted Answer

Your wormery composter is particularly suitable for peelings and leftovers of fruit and vegetables, such as potato peels, apple cores, green tops of vegetables, etc. Don't forget tea-bags, as worms often reproduce in them. Just be careful not to put in the plastic types (usually in pyramid shape sold with more expensive teas). Coffee grounds and paper coffee filters are also suitable. So are left overs of cooked vegetables, crushed egg shells, paper napkins, dampened cardboard, dry baked goods and remainders of indoor and outdoor plants. Do not put intensely spicy foods into your wormery, such as ginger or an excessive amount of citruses, as well as milk products, meat products, bones, oils, lard and other fats.

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* [Complete Video Guides To Worm Composting](https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/pages/the-complete-wiggly-guide-to-worm-composting)

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