The worms have settled in and are now usefully converting our kitchen scraps and garden cuttings into highly nutritious worm juice and castings.
They're fussy eaters though. Mine prefer potato and pumpkin peels, tea bags and egg shells. We can't dispose of all our kitchen waste through the farm but since we're only a two-person household we don't generate that much either.
Keeping them cool on a sunny balcony has been a challenge . Since the sun hits the farm most mornings I've erected an umbrella to provide added shade. I also give them a good wetting down with the hose every week to keep them damp. Worms enjoy a very moist environment.
Most importantly my balcony edibles have never looked so lush. The worm juice is boosting their resistance to pests and diseases and encouraging faster growth.
A happy little ecosystem.
I want worms too! Our balcony is hotter than the sun so I'm not sure how I'd shade them/keep them cool?
ReplyDeleteFew tips below Mel xIndira
DeleteIt always pains me to throw out our vegie scraps after years of composting, but moving into an apartment I thought we had no choice! Does the Tumbleweed smell? We might have to keep it in the laundry as our balconies are also very hot and bright.
ReplyDeleteNo the Tumbleweed doesn't smell as long as you maintain the right amount of food scraps, pH and aeration. Indira
DeleteCongrats! Looks like a very good setup, & interesting to know that worm juice helps with boosting your plants' resistance to pests and diseases etc. I don't have a worm farm & I wonder why they like eggshells & how they consume it. Hmmm.
ReplyDeleteNot sure how they break down the shell. Packed with calcium so must be good for them! Indira
DeleteI love our wormies too!
ReplyDeleteA wet hessian sack draped over the worm farm might help keep them cool this summer?
Thanks for the advice. Indira
DeleteHi, thought your followers might be interested in this: last week I visited the Coal Loader Centre for Sustainability in Waverton. It's a wonderful place where North Sydney Council has converted a historic site into a community/native flower garden and resource centre. Worth a visit, here's site link: http://www.northsydney.nsw.gov.au/www/html/3313-about-the-coal-loader.asp
ReplyDeleteMany thanks. Good to know. Indira
DeleteHI there - I'm from Adelaide and have a worm farm - the best way to keep worms cool on hot days is (a) get them into shade, (b) cover them with a wet sack/towel and (c) freeze a 1 or 2 litre bottle of water (I keep several in the freezer for rotation during a heatwave), then wrap it in several layers of wet newspaper, and nestle it into the top centre of your worm farm. Works a treat. Unfortunately, I didn't know about icing your worms until I lost an entire worm farm during a heatwave which was devastating and smelled like I had a dead person in the backyard! THAT would be very difficult to get rid of on a balcony (I just buried the lot in my garden).
ReplyDeleteGreat advice! thanks Indira
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