Worm Question

[jcoop]

I have had worm beds a couple times and both times I lost them in the summer due to heat, Sacramento can hit over 110 (F) in the summer.

I am doing an outdoor system and have no sump and pumping straight from a fish pond so I imagine that I will get a fair amount of solids in my growbeds. The GB's will be draining directly back to the pond.

So my question is if the the worms are in the growbed and it is getting filled every 15 - 20 mins then draining out will the worms be cool enough to survive the summer heat?

would really like to have them in the GB to help with the solids.

John

[urbanfarmer]

Mine survived the heat. What species are you using? Red wigglers seem to survive the best in my experience.

[jcoop]

Was planning on using the Red Wiglers again if I can find some local, or ones that don't cost an arm and a leg

[rfeiller]

good luck on the red wigglers around here. they are as adults 2" at the max instead of 3-4" like they should be and the prices are at the least $19 a pound, and that is for bed run (egg capsuls to "adults") some even include the weight of the wet bedding material as part of the pound.

red wigglers use to be about 1000 adults no bedding material per pound. now i am reading that 1500 adult red wigglers make up a pound. if i find a reputable worm farmer in the bay area i'll let you know. the red wigglers i have at the max are 2" and are well fed.

the only success i've had with red wigglers in the heat was when i made wood boxes, the black plastic worm farm boxes do not work around here in the summer. i asked one of the worm box manufacturers why they used black plastic instead of white. it was cheaper was the reply.

[keith_r]

i found 1lb red wigglers for $30, free shipping, pm me in interested

[urbanfarmer]

Amazon has 2 pounds for $28, which is where I have always purchased. I believe the company is called "Uncle Jim's Worm Farm" and they have excellent customer service (I had a mishap and they fixed it 100%). Anyway, that's just where I always get them, but I'm happy with it.

[rfeiller]

I have them in the greenhouse grow beds and will put them in the outdoor grow beds when the beds are more aged.
Even tho the green house has hit 90 the water has stayed in the low 70's.
I contacted paul Coleman, thanks Keith. He finds the European night Crawler less affected by the heat or cold. He said that the red wigglers require more proteen to fatten up to give them a richer diet and they will get bigger, but without a rich diet they will shrink down. He made no attempt to sell me, he spent a fair amount of time sharing info, which I appreciate. I am going to order red wigglers and the Europeans from him. They aren't the lowest priced around $30 per pound including shipping, but the info he share more then makes up the difference.
quantity price breaks.

[keith_r]

yeah, he answered many of my questions without trying to sell me anything..good people!

[urbanfarmer]

I have them in the greenhouse grow beds and will put them in the outdoor grow beds when the beds are more aged.
Even tho the green house has hit 90 the water has stayed in the low 70's.
I contacted paul Coleman, thanks Keith. He finds the European night Crawler less affected by the heat or cold. He said that the red wigglers require more proteen to fatten up to give them a richer diet and they will get bigger, but without a rich diet they will shrink down. He made no attempt to sell me, he spent a fair amount of time sharing info, which I appreciate. I am going to order red wigglers and the Europeans from him. They aren't the lowest priced around $30 per pound including shipping, but the info he share more then makes up the difference.
quantity price breaks.
I'm surprised he says the Europeans are better with the temps... I have had the opposite experience. I even killed off a batch in a side-by-side type setup outdoors whereas the reds survived. Very strange indeed. Genetics may play a part, who knows.

[rfeiller]

He is in So Carolina he says its in 90-100.
He is working toward aquaponics. Sells bait fish in large tanks.
That is some of the frustrations with livestock and horticulture so many variables. We go with the general information and branch branch out from there.

[jcoop]

Thanks for the info, found a local who sells 1lb of all sizes of worms that includes bedding for $8.00. will see how that works out

John

[rfeiller]

On a positive note they will reproduce. Were they bed run or adults?

[jcoop]

Bed runs so there will be everything in it I suppose.

Waiting to hear back from him, will let you know how it works out.

John