Table of Contents
What Not to Feed Your Composting Worms
If you’re interested in raising worms for compost, you’ve probably heard the laundry list of things not to feed to your worms. This can be a bit confusing for those who don’t understand why, after all, won’t they eat just about anything? The truth is that they won’t and that some food scraps simply shouldn’t be added to your composting setup.
But Why?
The simple answer is that the addition of the wrong things to your worm’s feeding can result in massive die-offs which will both halt your composting and begin to release a massive stench as things begin to rot.
The long answer has to do with pH levels, so pull on your lab coat for a moment and we’ll get right on explaining things.
Worms do best at a near neutral pH, or 7.0. When the balance of H+ and OH- ions are at a neutral level it means they’re in equilibrium. If things get too basic, which would be over a pH of 7.0 you’re going to run into problems. Unfortunately for those of us who just want a waste disposal unit suitable for everything, we also run the same risk if we make things too acidic, under 7.0 pH.
Either situation is a negative for your worms. Once a die-off begins it can be virtually impossible to make things right. The more scientifically minded among us might wish to frequently check the pH levels of our worm’s castings in order to maintain the balance.
However, some of the items which aren’t applicable have less to do with pH and more to do with the process itself. Meat and dairy products, for instance, will rapidly begin to rot and the smell can become overwhelming. This alone should be enough to discourage you from using them, and the risk of illness-causing bacteria is also an important factor in the decision not to include them.
So let’s take a look at some of the major items which aren’t recommended to be thrown in with your worms in order to ensure a productive setup that can self-sustain for long periods of time.
What Not to Feed
- Bones and Meat- While these might make up a sizable portion of the waste in most kitchens, they’re definitely not suitable for our useful, wriggling friends. They’ll most often rot before the worms get to them, creating an environment which will be rich in harmful bacteria. They’ll also make things stink quite a bit, so be sure to take these ones to the trash can. You wrigglers are also pretty much vegetarian, so you’ll just be relying on the microfauna within the material to take care of it.
- Dairy- For the same reason as meat, these are an absolute no-go. Dairy products have a tendency to rot even more swiftly than meat, and the resulting micro-organisms can create enough smell you may have trouble approaching your unit.
- Citrus Peels- These acidic fruits, while delicious, can make the soil your worms reside in much more acidic than you’d think. The peels contain a lot of citric acid despite their bitter taste, and that makes using them in any large amount a bad thing for your wrigglers.
- Cooking Oils- While a vermicomposting unit might seem like a great way to get rid of oils, this definitely isn’t a practice you want to try. Large amounts of oil can suffocate your worms, so be extremely careful about how much, if any, oils you add to the soil.
- Salt- If at all possible, try not to add heavily salted food items to your unit. Salt kills worms, and that can lead to a situation which will be hard to recover from without restarting the bin as a whole.
- Sugar- Keep sugar to a minimum, especially processed sugars. Your worms actually feed mostly on the bacteria cultures that develop on food that rots and sugar creates a rich environment for the bacteria. The problem with this is that an excess of sugar can cause the rot to happen faster than your worms get to it, which will lead to a smell and possible pH imbalances in the soil.
Summary
As long as you keep your worm’s diet in mind, raising worms can be a valuable and rewarding experience. The wrong foods can kill your worms and create a lot of stench though, so refer back to this list often to make sure that you’re not going to cause problems. With a bit of attention, though, you’re well on your way to a happy and productive colony of worms.
I’ve put all these items in my bin and I’ve had worm bins for over 40 years now. It has more to do with volume and environment. If you have a home bin with food in the typical amounts we eat any of your scraps can be put in there. If however you went to a slaughterhouse and brought back a five gallon bucket of guts that would be another matter. You could do it but I’d freeze most of it and add it in moderation over time. Worms are secondary feeders, they can only eat what bacteria and mold and other ‘first-feeder’ organisms have broken down. One problem with large amounts of meat scraps are the rats not worms. If your bin isn’t well sealed some items like meat attract rodents. My bins, because I’m in the SW of the US are in the ground with a solid heavy lid (keeping them in the ground was the easiest way to keep them cool on our 110* days), so I’ve never had issues with mice or rats, they just can’t get in. Cockroaches and crickets, yes. But I’ve found that if crickets establish themselves first in significant numbers the cockroach population never establishes. I prefer crickets over cockroaches and so they win hands down for me, (though I respect cockroaches immensely). The primary mistake I’ve seen in bins is too little food for the population of worms involved, or too much food for the populations involved and, this is the significant issue, not making sure there is plenty of carbon in there to balance out that nitrogen if putting in a lot of food.. Most of those food scraps represent a lot of nitrogen and can easy make the bins acidic, make sure to add lots of carbon like dry leaves or grass, newspaper or cardboard and you’ll be fine. You can’t go wrong having too much carbon as worms can eat it but too much nitrogen and the bin stinks, gets rancid, attracts mites, etc. add carbon materials and then add some more, you’ll be fine. There was an experiment where one guy only fed his worms cardboard. They survived however you couldn’t pick them up as their bodies would fall apart for lacking the nutrients necessary for a firm structure. So…the point is carbon is your friend and no food is the enemy to be avoided, just add in moderation to your bin and if you happen to eat a lot of meat, OK, that’s fine, you can put the scraps in there, just make sure there is plenty of carbon in the mix. The first feeders will break it down for the worms and they will be fine. Like all of us living organisms balance is key. And like you they prefer moderation. The bin is an environment, and if you add carbon, in at least equal or double the amounts to what you are adding in food scraps, all will be well. Also, if you dump too much of something in one part of the bin, the worms will simply avoid it until it becomes more hospitable. So again, another check and balance on the system. My bins are 4 feet long and 2 feet wide there is plenty of room for them to move if there is any reason they don’t like what’s been added in any one area at any given time. In my case I only put food into the bin once or twice a week. I’ve seen a lot of bins and a lot of successes and failures. I used to work as a volunteer years ago for a garden association visiting people with worm bins who had questions, concerns, failures or fears and honestly, it was often not enough carbon that was the problem and after that it was either too much or too little food as the issue. It’s not difficult to let worms eat our scraps, just use common sense. If you can eat it, so can they and add that carbon and then add some more.
Can i give my w
Orms fish