hello all, sorry i am new here and sorry if i do not use this in right way.
was hoping to find info on compost worms and cocolumber saw dust. i am soon starting my adventures with afc compost worms and i do read the worms love saw dust, of most trees but curious if coconut tree saw dust is ok?? that is about the only type of saw dust i have acess to here in the philippines
my plan is a bedding of that saw dust some and coco peat mixed with manure and have source of veggie waste to feed many
i am hoping to do at least 2000 sq feet over time which would be a stocking of 2 million worms. yes i am starting small and slow ( too small and slow but all i can afford -lol) i will test with coco saw dust but if anyone has info it would help thanks much
also any info on worm meal for swine would be nice as in time i will plan to feed worm meal to swine i have read it is equal to fish meal
Dennis, Thanks for your great post! You are using this forum just as it is intended so do not worry about that at all. We’ll be very interested in seeing what others have to share concerning your questions.
Hi Dennis,
Please what type of worms are afc worms?
Thanks
Hey Dennis,
As long as the coconut trees weren’t treated with anything that would harm the worms (pesticides, preservatives etc.) you should be just fine to use it in your worm bin! I have a friend who does larger-scale production so I will ask her just to make sure.
I don’t think you can’t make it the sole feed though. recommendations I found said to use it for between 20-35% of the feed/bedding for the worms.
What type of worms they are will impact the quality of the worms for pig feed. I think mealworms are the highest in protein, but they are not a good vermicompost species, so I imagine that is not likely the worm you are using. What type of worms are you growing?
thank you so very much for imput, i value that imput alot those with experieance
as far as what type of worms? i do not have yet very busy planting lots of moringa trees ( yes worms will get some moringa) i am in the Philippines for the most part afc African night crawlers are the main worm available here. yes thank you i do not plan 100 percent saw dust and coco peat as bedding or food-i do not have yet but well budget is tight, we will start next pay check i hope making our own hollow block and use hollow block to build worm beds so i hope in next couple months to start first beds. i am excited! seems i am crazy about worms - moringa and trying to organic garden but feel i know so little but lean each day and will input from people like you it gets easier
other food source for the worms - wow i found a local wholesale veggie market they have tons of veggie waste every day said come take all i can carry- i have a spot picked out i can do at least 2000 sq foot of beds but will take me a long time building slowly - which is probably good so i can learn as i grow- not sure about the market here i buy vermicast for 5 dollars per bad about 40 kilo. but i can use tons myself! even if i do not sell much. i am learning about food forest i think they call it i want to try that around some of my moringa verlicast bury under mulch and i want to even add the anc and feed them right there in the " forest" moringa is nitrogen fixing so i will plant such things as tomatoes in that forest- well sure i will make mistakes but that is how i learn- sorry it is early here 5 am a bit of coffee and i am fired up and excited lol
African night crawlers most here in the Philippines use. anc sorry my typing was bad -lol just as now it is 4 am and dark - typing is not my strong point
Thanks for the update Dennis! I’m glad to see you are excited about so many good projects!
My friend who produces worms at a larger scale said that she does not use sawdust at all, but that she does use coconut fiber and it is very good. She just said to be careful about the moisture level as the coconut fiber can cause a bin to dry out if there is not enough wet food for a period of time.
Very exciting about your food forest and that you were able to find some vegetable scraps to use on your farm. Please feel free to share your experience and what you are learning as well as ask additional questions.
thank you vry much for taking time to check with your friend and the extra info! i am actuall excited with the coco peat also i have tried a mix of vermicast and cocopeat in an expermental growing tower. a food grade blue barrel with about 40 slots cut into it . i buy the coco peat local from a producer that sells the choir long fibers and sell bags of coco peat to any that want it for about .50 cents us a big bag maybe 40 kilo.
another learning thing had to read up on that and learn about ion exchange etc and i am trying to buffer with gypsum and magnisum to clear out the salt- dont want the plants of worms to get too much salt -lol
even that has been hard it is so hard to find gymsum here i had to resort to plaster of paris ( which is gypsum that has been heated ) finlaay found some in manila 3 days from here but they say they can not ship so will renew my effort to find local on payday
the mix i used about 40 percent vermicast- i am trying what a lady on you tube did container growing with that mix- well she used about 30 percent vermicast i was going with that but it just looked and felt better at 40 percent so much for science huh lol doing it by feel -lol
i really want to do as she does and water with a mix of water with the worm tea or wash as i water the plants for that extra boost, but i can not find anyone local that sells it here. it is hard to find many products here that are easy to buy in the states. i even miss the big box store home depot -lol.
all i am doing is very slow baby steps due to budget on ss disability and feeding a family. cheaper here a bit but my project will help us very much and i really hope to show locals once i get things going in the hope i might help others a bit i think the wonderful people here are a bit like Missouri- the show me state -lol so once i am going a bit i can show meanwhile they probably wonder what the crazy American is doing
thanks for the advice on coco peat and moister level yes i am worried i will kill a few worms until i get the hang of it guess that is why i am asking questions now
i was considering to do extra wash and clean on the coco peat i use in the worm beds try to get rid of the fine dust so it does not fill the airspace and have even considered a small mount of the choir long fibers in the very bottom to maybe allow water and air to flow better if i could find the breathable soil cloth used in the states- what do they call it ??lol to cover the long fiber a pathway for air and water to exchange the full length of the bed
tell me your friend i understand worm bedding is also a food source for the worms and over a longer time they eat that bedding also are her worms eating the coco peat? over what period of time ?
hi, Dennis. I enjoyed reading your posts on setting up worm composting in Philippines. I liked your idea of using cement blocks and the coconut husks and sawdust.
But, it surprised me to read that moringa is nitrogen fixing. I don’t think that is correct—even though it is very productive plant. I wonder if you could check that out.
Tom is correct. That is a common misconception about Moringa. Despite the many valuable properties of Moringa, it does not fix nitrogen. Good catch, Tom!
hum thanks for that heads up, just learning all of this and the reason i came on to this site, thanks yes after looking a few web sites say yes and others say no lol
sad to say all this corona stuff going on everything is on hold