Worm Tube for the SFG

The bucket is big enough to take up the entire square and extends through the bottom into the soil. I may attract garden worms in addition to the red worms I will stock after the last frost.



I have a plastic saucer on top of the bucket. My grids will go on next month.

This is perfect. I am going to add this to my garden. do you fill up the tube with food and put the worms on top? Or do you need to put a little shredded newspaper and the food?

do you fill up the tube with food and put the worms on top? Or do you need to put a little shredded newspaper and the food?

I put a little compost in first, then the worms, then the food, then a little bit of damp shredded newspaper, or more compost.

hubby and the kids are making our hotels today....

thank you josh for starting this thread! and all the in-put from everyone!

hugs

rose......

I am trying the Worm Tube as my first ever attempt at any vermicomposting because it seems so simple. The only large drill bit we have is a 1/2 inch, would that be enough? The tube is approximately 11 inches. Do you think I will need more holes? Below is a picture of what I have done. The pattern of holes you see goes all around half of the tube.

I think it will work fine roseinarosecity! Looks like the holes are big enough to me, and enough of them too.

My 4 worm tubes are made and I just placed an order for 1 lb of worms! Woot!

Looking forward to worming!

kittykat wrote:My 4 worm tubes are made and I just placed an order for 1 lb of worms! Woot!

Looking forward to worming!

Oh, if only you lived closer - my daughter LOVES to find worms. (She just turned 13 and still loves to.)

I've read through some this thread. If I have a raised bed with weed block at the bottom, isn't ok to have worms in there? I was leveling the area around my perimeter to put a flagstone walkway, and every worm I came across I tossed into the bed.

Kim

We had a Rubbermaid tote with holes drilled in it as a vermicompost bin years ago. I was such a wimp when it came time to harvest, because I just didn't want to touch the worms. With gloves on, I felt like I couldn't harvest the castings from the newspaper strips from the worms very well. After a few harvests of me being squeamish, I did an Elliott from E.T. and let all of the worms go free in the garden, lol.

Except for putting the worms in the tube, would I have to touch the worms?

Is there ever such thing as too many worms in a SFG?

My SFG box is actually a 4'x8' sandbox left by the previous homeowner that I filled with MM. The four corners have braced bits of wood for reinforcement, and these worm tubes would be great for two of the corners where I can't seem to grown anything.

Well, we did it. Hubby was quickly on board with this project since he knows the value of vermicompost. He picked up 2-4" PVC pipe in 2' lengths, which was the largest diameter he could find.

My largest drill bit is 1/2" so that's what I used.

For the lids, we had one clay pot, purchased another, and used used the screen from a window that needs to be re-screened anyway.

He stopped by the bait shop for the red wigglers, which came in little butter tubs filled with dirt/castings/brown stuff. So, I mustered the courage and dumped those worms down the hole. This was a fun project for us. DH will look at the garden and enjoy the harvest, but he's rather hands off. Glad we both worked on this project.

Thanks for this original post.

I don't think you have to touch the worms after they're in the worm tube... They just roam around and do their worm thing, from what I can fathom...

Here's a pic of my worm tubes set up in the raised beds:



I also found this link for a Worm Menu - do's and don'ts on what to feed your worms:

http://urbanwormgirl.com/worm-menu/

4 more sleeps until my worms come...

thanks for the worm menu!!

do you all think i will gross out my friends and family if i post this on my frig next to the kids school menu?

FamilyGardening wrote:thanks for the worm menu!!

do you all think i will gross out my friends and family if i post this on my frig next to the kids school menu?

Family - no, they already know about the worms. Friends will be ok if they know about your gardening and the success you have. Casual visitor might be a little offput, but what a conversation starter and and chance to pass on SFG info.

Kay

I'm using leftover flexible black daylight drains for tubes. The holes can be cut with scissors. Then put a bamboo stake inside to anchor it. Yesterday buried the first "worm corral" to catch then release worms into the tubes, here is the thread on how to make this very simple box:
https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t10588-corral-earthworms-for-your-garden

What happens when winter comes again? If you put red wigglers into these, will they freeze?
Or do you just use garden worms for these..?

Supposedly red worms die below 50 degrees. But elsewhere on the forum Plantoid said they survived his winter so the final (by the book) answer is??? Red wigglers will die. My guess is since there are over 4 thousand varieties of worms perhaps he had something different than the specific Eisenia fetida, sold/known commonly as
red wigglers. But I have no proof of course... I'm using red wigglers for the worm bin to collect the worm casts. Also using an outdoor worm corral started yesterday, to catch and release regular ol earthworms just for the worm tubes.

Do we have anyone here who installed the worm tubes and can give us an update on how they've worked out over time? Would love to hear...

Josh had them last year and talks about them in this thread:
https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t1603-worm-tube-for-the-sfg

Worms arrived today and are in their worm tubes... I put some of my mixed composted horse manure and rabbit manure in the bottom 5 inches or so of the worm tube, then the mass of worms and peat or whatever they were in for bedding, then some kitchen scraps to get them started... fingers crossed all those wigglers keep on wiggling...

for 's

I dunno about those worms... I can't see any of them in the kitchen scraps... It's been really wet since we got them - hope they aren't drowning...

Newbie here - I am planning a worm tube for each of my boxes (what a cool idea!). As this is my first season I have been trying to figure out components for the compost portion of my Mel's Mix and until I saw this post planned on trying to find worm castings...can anyone tell me if I still need to add the worm castings in the initial mix or if I can forego and just add four different types of other composts and let the worms do their thing?

Hi Elysia, for brand new beds and brand new Mel's mix, it is recommended 5 different types of compost for the mix. It takes a while for the worms to do their thing.

Hello Elysia ,

Like Camp said ,

Uuse the full Monty of five different composts when initially making the first bed filling of MM up ..

The use of the five are recommended because each type may not be quite full of everything that a good compost should be . So we use the belt and braces approach of five to try and ensure we cover all bases , even then once you start making your own composts you'll notice that there is a marked improvement in your crops and flowers .

So to me that proves that even with the five purchased composts there is likely to be something missing ( that you add when you use your home made stuff) .

Relying on the worms in the inital bed mix would most likely see the nutrient value of the bed to be even lower as the worms wold not be established and not have produced enough casts in the short time that they were in the beds . Your crops would therefore suffer alsorts of trace element deficiencies & maladies.

That makes sense. Thank you both for the advice!