“I have a family of 4 and a lot of veggie scraps and not so many worms. Will that cause a problem in my worm bin. Also I’m new at worming and all I put in my worm bin is vegetables is that alright. Thank you.” ~ Chris Vialpando
Hi Chris,
Vegetable waste is perfect for worms.
It seems that you have a small system for home use only, so don’t worry about having small amount of worms, they will grow very quickly in population over time!
In your home vermicompsoting system, you are correct that meat shouldn’t be added, not because worms can’t break it down (they can actually break down meat very well!) but because it will start to create a mess and a stink in your house which will attract vermin.
In terms on nutrition, vegetables are actually enough in providing what your worms need to grow happily and healthily (after all these provide nutrition for your family of four!). However there are a few pointers which you may need to be aware of.
Kitchen vegetable waste is high in nitrogen and high in water content.
If you only throw in vegetables, you will soon have a mush in your bin. You will need to add some carbon material as well along with your vegetable waste. Thin shredded cardboard, newspaper or waste paper should do very nicely. Adding a layer or two of paper after every layer of waste will help balance the C:N ratio.
Your waste will be high in water content so make sure that you drain off the leachate liquid periodically as it will build up really quick!
Otherwise it may flood your worm bin making it anaerobic, and this is not good for your worms and the system as a whole.
Last of all, vegetables and fruits are more towards the acidic side, especially if you throw in some amount of citrus fruit.
Do monitor the acidity of the bin from time to time, or even use your nose to smell if the bin is ‘sour’. A healthy bin should smell earthy like a garden.
You can always mediate your bin by using lime, or add some crushed egg shells which provides sodium carbonate for neutralization.
Hope you and your family enjoy your vermicomposting process!
