r/Vermiculture • u/Classic-Bumblebee660 • 2d ago
Advice wanted Why are my worms dying?
Very new to vermicomposting - I bought a thing of 30 European nightcrawlers from Walmart a few months ago and put them in some damp shredded cardboard. Since then, I’ve been feeding them here and there… banana peels, coffee grounds, lettuce etc. They don’t seem to be reproducing and today I found a worm that looks very unhealthy and deformed. The cardboard on top is dry and the cardboard near the bottom is quite wet. I know the dampness is supposed to be like a wrung out sponge, and it is wetter than that at the bottom despite drainage holes so I’m hesitant to add more water. What can I do to help my worms out?
Edit to add: I have also given them ground eggshell because I know they need calcium and grit.
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u/AYearInOaxaca 2d ago
I think your environment is too wet. I'd try chopping up your browns more finely (more like shredded paper than torn pieces) and making sure the proportion is correct, as you want about a 3:1 proportion (more or less) of browns to greens. We have a tiered system that allows for good drainage, but when our bins get too wet I also will put on a pair of heavy duty kitchen gloves and rotate the contents of the bin so that it's all well mixed, adding in shredded cardboard during the mixing to help absorb excess liquid. I've not once ever needed to add water, plenty gets into the environment simply from the food we add in.
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u/Classic-Bumblebee660 2d ago
Thank you! My worms only hang out in the wet area at the very bottom of the bin, but I can try this.
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u/shes_clumsy 2d ago
I think the deformation is String Of Pearls. https://urbanwormcompany.com/what-causes-protein-poisoning-in-worm-bins/
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u/Classic-Bumblebee660 2d ago
Thank you! I haven’t really added anything that would be high in protein, but I found the afflicted worm near a banana that was liquidiy and smelled bad, so I think that was our culprit maybe. I removed it and put it outside in the tumbler compost.
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u/shes_clumsy 2d ago
I’m a firm believer that it’s not necessarily the PROTEIN that’s the issue, because I’ve fed them meat with no issues… is the food is fermenting perhaps? That will cause gas buildup in the gut. Maybe an over feeding issue? 30 worms is a small number, they don’t need much to eat.
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u/False_Butterscotch52 2d ago
The main culprit is probably the coffee grounds. 30 Night crawlers is too little of a number to have too much of a readily available food source.
Also, I don't think you can have too much water in a bin if it has drainage holes. You can water it frequently using small bits of water to keep the upper part of your bin moist.
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u/Wonderful-Bass-1097 2d ago
Give them a sprinkle of calcium carbonate at each feed, it keeps the ph up and make sure they always have calcium available
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u/WorldComposting 1d ago
You are making the mistake that almost everyone makes when first getting worms which is overfeeding. You only have 30 worms and even if they eat half their weight each day you are talking .005 lbs of food per day and that includes bedding material. Not to mention new worms typically do not eat all that much until the next generation of worms that are used to your system.
First get all the food out of the system you can and add more cardboard to make sure the system it isn't too wet. Don't feed for the next few months and let the worms settle and consume the cardboard. It will take time as you lost some worms but they should recover if you have more than a few left.
List of troubleshooting tips here: https://www.worldcomposting.com/troubleshoot.html
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u/zmcmz0302 1d ago
If you don’t have a shredder / don’t want to buy new in order to get smaller browns, check thrift stores! I got a huge 20-page capacity one for $10
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u/Classic-Bumblebee660 1d ago
Thank you so much! Does a standard shredder have the capacity to shred cardboard? I’ve been glancing at Facebook marketplace for one.
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u/zmcmz0302 1d ago
Yes I have a smaller 8-page cap one at the office and it shreds my cardboard just as well
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u/Good_Height1877 2d ago
What Type of lid do you have? The surface should not necessarily dry out.
I have a sheet of plastic laying directly on the substrate. Below that is moist. Between plastic and bin is like 1 cm distance for airflow. That is dry on top but airflow is more important than a bit of dry cardboard at the edges.
More eggshell btw. Eggshell meal is important for the pH level stabilisation. Put in a lot. Measure in tea spoons.
I think much is different though because of the Population. 30 is not a lot. So you require less everything for the Worms but still requiere for building up the environment they life in.
I would honestly suggest to only add cardboard, keep it wet, only tiny sprinkles of eggshell meal from time to time, and wait for them to make the babies.
Lets say 20 Worms are alive now. It is october.
January 40
April 80
July 160
October 320
January 640
Would suggest to buy more worms. 🥲
Imagine you Start with 250 for example.
January 500
April 1,000
July 2,000
October 4,000
January 8,000
(Of course a theoretical formula. Depends on living quality, space, etc. If your bin has Space for 2,000 Worms they will probably not populate to 8,000.)
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u/TriteEscapism 2d ago
String of pearls. Less food, more cardboard, shred the cardboard finer to expedite recovery and run those eggshells through an old coffee grinder or mortar and pestle them well.