Redworm bed help

[boogullman]

I started my worm bed last week and I'm having alittle problem. I used a tote and put the pvc's in the corners with holes in them. My bedding is pete moss and dirt (more pete than dirt). I added water to moisten bedding put my worms in and started adding corn meal and covered with newspaper. So far every 3 days when I wet the newspaper and add corn meal if needed I have had mold growing on the surface of the bedding under the newspaper. I have lots of holes in the top of the tote to help ventalation but I'm still getting mold. How do I fix this?

[bobgill]

Haven't done much worm farming myself, but my Dad used to always have a couple of beds going. Like you, he used dirt with lots of pete moss and a liberal amount of fresh manure. He always kept his beds more wet than just moist and generally used corn meal for food. He never used a paper cover that I remember and had very little mold, though you are going to have some when the fresh feed gets wet. Try without the paper so you get more air movement and see if that doesn't help

[jonboatfisher]

I have mine in an old bath tub. I cover 1/2 the bed with news paper and put my coffee/tea grounds under the paper. On the side that I do not cover with paper I sprinkle chicken laying mash on top of the dirt. Start out with just a hand full and spread it thin. I also cover the tub with a piece of ply wood to keep it dark. I have found that mold is mostly caused by a combo of too much water and too much food. Hope this helps you.

[Tracker123]

Don't use newspaper. Also, you're feeding them too much. Only give them what they can eat until it's gone. Then, add more. That's what I do.

[boogullman]

Don't use newspaper. Also, you're feeding them too much. Only give them what they can eat until it's gone. Then, add more. That's what I do.

10-4, I will remove the paper and that will help see how much they eat. Now when I pick the paper up there is so much mold you can't tell how much they ate.

[RetiredRR]

10-4, I will remove the paper and that will help see how much they eat. Now when I pick the paper up there is so much mold you can't tell how much they ate.

Some thirty years ago I was in the worm raising business for selling to bait shops.
Your getting some good advice here from others, but I might add..........newspaper
is not good for worm beds, period. Ink in newsprint is not good for worms. Now, if
you want to use paper of any kind on your worms, use only soaked cardboard that
has been glued together. (Is there any other kind?) Yes, solid cardboard is a bad kind of
cardboard for worms. Glue in cardboard is a food source, but glue alone is bad.
Worms eat for a long period of time on peat, so supplimental feeding should start out
slowly, and the best food source for worms is old fashioned cow patties and horse biscuits.
Green table scraps is good. Coffee & tea grounds add acid to your beds, so go
lightly if you feel the need to add grounds. Now, your probably going to slap your knee
and fall backwards when you read this, but.............worms have 7 hearts, lay eggs from
the band and tie themselves in knots to breed. Told you didn't I?
When you start separating worms to go fishing, you look closely and you'll find
little okra seed type balls and you'll know your doing something right because they
will be worm eggs. Between 7 & 14 worms will come from each egg, believe it or not!
The depth of your worm bed should not be less than 12 inches. A pitch fork is best
for turning the beds to keep them loose and not allow them to become compacted.
A cover over the bed is recommended to keep the beds moist and cooler. The bottom
of the bed should never be wet enough for water to stand. Drainage is important.
Add peat if bed gets too wet. Dead leaves are a good top cover and will rot and provide
a food source for winter if your not using worms too much. Summer months are hard
on worms, so keep the food source at a minimum so it won't heat the beds too much
and thus cause mold. These are just some things to think about if your raising your own.
Like anything else, you get out of it what you put into it. Good Luck.