That should work great! I don't use leaves because I keep the bins inside and don't want any creatures ending up inside the house. Composting it should help keep those issues down
I collect all the fallen leaves from my maple tree in the fall. When I bring them in, I set my oven on the lowest temperature and put a huge pile on a baking sheet and leave them in the oven for about 20 minutes. Not only does this fully dry out any moisture but it kills any critters. At 170°, nothing is going to live through it. They crumble up quite nicely after that and I must say that the smell of warmed maple leaves makes the house smell wonderful! I do batches of them every fall and usually have enough to last me through the year
I use leaves from my garden but I let them dry before crushing them simply with my hands. I then mix them up with water and I find the final compost is lighter and flakier than when I use card board.....The advantage is that it's totally free. I really liked this video!
I've heard leaves work really well and I do notice that the castings with cardboard tend to be more waterlogged than when I use other materials. Free is a key factor and I really feel people shouldn't buy things to compost unless necessary. Thanks for watching!
I use sawdust from local carpenter mixed with cardboard. I usually mix them together with spend coffee grinds and water and let them sit for a week or more, sturing each day to prevent anaherobic condition. once the mixture stop heating it's ready for use. I've been have great success, Worms love this mixture.
I’m experimenting with material from a paper factory. It’s pulverized sawdust and cardboard but there isn’t enough airflow. Maybe I should mix it with coffee grounds. It’s a free resource that I want to find a use for
I use wood pellets in my compost tumbler with food scrapes. It is the best stuff because of the small particle size and it balances the moisture and C:N ratio. The compost is “smokin” in no time and it stays that way as long as I keep adding a little food and a few pellets every day and turn it. The worms love that pre-composted material. I think the bedding nutrient value to the garden should also be a consideration. I suspect that leaves would be the best bedding in that regard. Have you seen the video NW redworms did on paper vs leaves bedding? 6-23-13. I don’t put them in my worm bins either for the same reasons you don’t.
That is a good idea to use the pellets in a hot compost tumbler as well. Above ground composting is banned in my county or I would be stealing that idea! 👍😁 I'll check it NW redworms video. Thanks for watching!
@@joansmith3492 essentially hot composting is illegal but worm bins are specifically stated to be fine. I agree it is really a strange rule and probably causes more waste to go into the trash stream than they realize as you can't buy any composting equipment in the county because of the rules.
Glad you covered bedding topic. I had red wigglers for almost 3 years & making batch bedding now using mixture shredded cardboard, shredded brown bags, shredded paper towel & toilet paper rolls with broken up dried leaves, finished compost, with touch of dirt. The later 2 kick start the microbial activity nicely. If I have peat moss left over from the garden I add just a little but is expensive (and dusty). I use newspaper sparingly but never sheets of paper, envelopes for fear would shred up the plastic part, cereal boxes, nor anything waxy or glossy. Not sure you mentioned in this video, but best to use water without chlorine, well water, or rain water. My tap water has chlorine & fluoride so I try put in a bucket for couple days before making bedding or when using to keep bedding moist in dry winter months. Thanks for the video.
I found a mixture of coco coir and shredded corrugated work the best. The bag of coco coir, as fiber, not brick, was cheap at the home center and the only thing I buy for the worms. Since you only need new bedding to start a bin and a small a bag lasts a long time, price is not a problem. The sawdust pellets should work too if coco coir isn't available. Coco coir is the most popular.
My favorite cardboard to use is paper towel tubes. They shred easily and break down fast. Also, wood pellets are heated when compressed so they're very clean. I wonder how that plays into it not going anaerobic
paper towel and toilet paper tubes are great. A lot of times I use those when I really need airflow or you can stuff the tubes with food and make a food tube for the worms to climb into! I've had zero issues with wood pellets going anaerobic they actually absorb a ton of moisture and take a while to breakdown. They are very similar to coco coir in many ways.
I have a lot of dried leaves from someone who raked up a ton of leaves in the fall. I crumble them up outside and put them on an aluminum foil-covered cookie sheet, them bake them in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or so. This kills any living organisms in/on the leaves, and I have no problems. I also use very aged horsed manure. It hasn't been composted, per se, but it is aged such that it does not heat up in the bin. Because it is so well aged (like me) it is not necessary to "pre-compost" it. The manure, mixed with shredded cardboard, makes great bedding material (and is free) and can be a food source for the worms.
While I like the idea of using leaves but baking them in the oven is risky as they can catch fire and you are using a lot of energy to heat them up. Also I'm not sure I want to risk ruining my kitchen oven just to have clean compost bedding. The well aged horse manure is great and works as a bedding and food source you really don't even need the cardboard!
Leaves from the outside have a chance of bringing in other pests which is why I don't do it. If I had my bin outside I would probably use leaves although as I have few trees near my house I would probably need to supplement with other bedding materials.
@@WorldComposting Not if you buy in a big bag like at Tractor Supply. I use them for the rabbits and cats . I will now add to the worm bedding too . Thank you .
@@WorldComposting start with one corner and gently tease the shiny layer up with your fingernail. Is there a way of uploading an image to the comments, then I could show you?
Hi davis, I got nightcrawlers 40 count. Need your advice to make bin for them. How big they need? Do I need to drill holes to the bin? I am also doing red wigglers compost. I didn't make any holes to it. Thank you brother, Bhargavi.
Does your bin have a lid if yes drill holes in the sides. If no you might need a slight cover to keep the moisture in. With that many I would use a small bin to start with so they can't spread out too much.
I got scared after seeing them😱. I got small tout, but bedding itself is taking so much space. So I changed them into a big tout. Hope they won't bother me by coming outside. If they do.... me nd them also get into trouble with my husband.😥
I have hampsters and I use a paper bedding for them, would you say it would be ok to apply the used bedding from the hampsters in the worm bin to reduce waste?
Funny you mention that my son got a hamster about a month ago and I after figuring out the best way to clean the cage I'm going to try and compost the bedding that comes out. I will hopefully be starting that test soon!
@@WorldComposting I just figured that it doesn't have a high yield of feces and urine content its like 99.5 % or more paper bedding. I actually also have a minut about of sand in mine as I have my ham hams and gerbils litter trained. Typically I'm throwing away 26 gallons of paper bedding in the garage can. 😃👍🥰 Thank you for responding and good luck!!
I count those as cardboard similar to corrugated and they work really well. I have used them in the past but all the organic eggs seem to come in plastic containers near me 😢
I would be wary of using sawdust shavings in composting. The small particulate size when wet tends to pack and compress easily and create anaerobic layers preventing oxygen from getting to the rest of your pile. Ideally you want a particle size a bit bigger to prevent a lot of sticking and packing so the pile can stay aerated. Maybe the pellets are fine but I wouldn't use sawdust shavings in my piles or vermicompost.
Be very careful and only use a little at a time of the pellets. I do mix with shredded paper or cardboard because the pellets absorb so much it makes the bin VERY heavy.
I have run bins on just pellets without issue but you are correct that they can hold more moisture than expected. I also primarily use 10 gallon totes so that they never get too heavy to move!
You don't need 8 inches to start but I would measure when wet as it will compact down. If you have 8 inches dry then wet it and have 2 inches you will need to add more to get it above 4 inches at least. That is a large bin how many worms are you starting with? You will need a lot for that size system or you should just be doing a small corner.
@@bishmyst09 I was suggesting you start in a corner in the bed you built thinking you might have purchased only a 1kg of worms like many do. With 6kg you can spread out but I'm thinking you shouldn't fill up the entire system and try to run it. Maybe start with half or a quarter of the system then spread out once the worms are settled. Many people jump in with too many food scraps before the worms acclimate and you can end up having a lot of issues when first starting.
@@WorldComposting thanks for you're reply..I am using sherreded cardboard and paper and coffee grounds with a little bit of multi purpose compost.. and I will be feeding the a supplement of golden yolk layers meal. I dont intend to feed them many food scraps to be fair maybe a little every now and then. Would you still recommend starting in the corner if I will be controlling the moisture (like a rung out sponge) thanks for your help with this
I would still recommend starting small. Maybe half the area for a couple months to make sure you don't have any issues before expanding. Especially with the shock of shipping.
Not covered in this video is why bedding is even desired at all. Think about it. It's necessary only for new worm bins and unnecessary for mature worm bins (although for unknown reasons a lot of worm owners keep adding bedding to mature worm bins. One of those persons will one day have to explain why they do it). Bedding takes the place of soil in a new bin because you're developing a home for the worms free from toxic factors and where worms can retreat to escape such things as anaerobic conditions when food decomposes, heat or cold and possibly lack of moisture. In other words, this should be "home" where ideal conditions exist. This means that food should never be mixed into bedding. Food should be located in a corner or edge of the bin so that the anaerobic effects of aerobic microbes breaking down food is confined. This means that the bedding should be at least highly moist since worms generally like as much water as possible, sometimes even swimming in water. You'll often find worms in the wettest part of a bin. This means that the bin should never be in full heat or cold although I like to expose sunlight to one side of the bin where the food is placed to enhance microbial activity. But when you do this, be sure to leave part of the bin in shade so that not all the bin is heated, especially in a brand new bin which has little mass so temperatures will spike greatly with ambient temperature changes. When a bin gains mass(primarily castings) the bin will retain more of its own temperate temperatures different from ambient temperature spikes during the day and night. Regarding cardboard and corrugated cardboard, Worms love the organic glue used in corrugated cardboard, so in general delivery packaging can be a great source for bedding. Food packaging can be a problem so should be inspected carefully. The problem isn't usually a waxy coating but a thin layer of plastic that's often applied to foods that might be frozen or bought from fast food restaurants to provide increased resistance to liquids. These "forever plastics" of course won't break down in your bins and will have to be manually removed if they get in your bin. Regarding all papers, Like every other "food" the ratio of surface area to mass determines how fast it will break down. With non-paper that usually means grinding or blending but with papers it usually means how large the pieces are, and if they're cut up or torn into smaller pieces. A big sheet of paper will take far longer to break down than than if it's cut up or torn into tiny pieces because every edge provides a better way for water to be absorbed into the paper and for microbes to gain access to the whole of piece(s). It also makes a big difference whether you rung the paper through a paper shredder that actually cuts the paper or whether you hand shred the paper. Compare the edges of each, the cut edge has very little exposed surface area to absorb water and microbes, and a torn edge provides massive access to the paper's inner fibers. Regarding hardwood pellets and other chunks of wood of any size... I would think this is the type worms would be least happy living in. Rubbing and crawling through these wood pieces would have to be tough on a worm's skin and wood chunks will hardly decompose. It's a kind of "forever bedding" that might take years to decompose not likely from bacteria and fauna but from mold and fungi. Sawdust might be considered, but one would have to be careful not to create a dense block of sawdust the worms might have trouble living in. Perhaps given enough moisture and air, the conditions could be created for microbial activity but in the meantime compaction would have to be watched and prevented. Surface area to mass is the magic formula that applies to all consumable foods including the bedding which is why coco choir and peat are favorites, just look at how much surface area and how light and fluffy the material can be when it's not sopping wet or compressed. The same goes for everything else. So, what do I use for bedding? Plenty of whatever is available in a new bin. Sometimes I use various small, torn up pieces of various papers, sometimes I use a small amount of topsoil, sometimes I use a few handfuls of cold compost. I hardly ever use peat, choir or anything else that costs anything. But after the initial bedding is consumed, I just let the worms live in their own poop (castings). They're perfectly happy living that way and they continue to process the castings and remaining debris until its fairly pure. I have never found a reason to add castings to a worm bin after it's been started.
Reply to this with what bedding you plan on using now or in the future!
is sawdust ok?
Toilet paper cones.
I use the same coconut coir you use and I bought it from Walmart. Works like charms. My worm stays inside the bin
Half composted leaves. I’m hoping it works
That should work great! I don't use leaves because I keep the bins inside and don't want any creatures ending up inside the house. Composting it should help keep those issues down
I plan on using the pre-composted leaf compost along with my micro shredded amazon boxes and the local free paper.
I collect all the fallen leaves from my maple tree in the fall. When I bring them in, I set my oven on the lowest temperature and put a huge pile on a baking sheet and leave them in the oven for about 20 minutes. Not only does this fully dry out any moisture but it kills any critters. At 170°, nothing is going to live through it. They crumble up quite nicely after that and I must say that the smell of warmed maple leaves makes the house smell wonderful! I do batches of them every fall and usually have enough to last me through the year
Your bags of shavings was a good find, Noel! I just started using leaf mold as one of my browns. I think it’ll make a fantastic bedding!
~ Sandra
Finally found a good tutorial after 4 years of trial error.
Thank you for sharing your hard work.
Glad it helped you along! If you have questions let me know!
I use leaves from my garden but I let them dry before crushing them simply with my hands. I then mix them up with water and I find the final compost is lighter and flakier than when I use card board.....The advantage is that it's totally free.
I really liked this video!
I've heard leaves work really well and I do notice that the castings with cardboard tend to be more waterlogged than when I use other materials.
Free is a key factor and I really feel people shouldn't buy things to compost unless necessary.
Thanks for watching!
I use sawdust from local carpenter mixed with cardboard. I usually mix them together with spend coffee grinds and water and let them sit for a week or more, sturing each day to prevent anaherobic condition. once the mixture stop heating it's ready for use. I've been have great success, Worms love this mixture.
That is a great mixture and it is a great idea to let it cool down as coffee grinds can really heat up if you let them!
Thanks for watching!
That sounds like a great idea and a free resource too . Way to recycle. I love that . I know a carpenter.
I’m experimenting with material from a paper factory. It’s pulverized sawdust and cardboard but there isn’t enough airflow. Maybe I should mix it with coffee grounds. It’s a free resource that I want to find a use for
Those are some great ideas I'm going to implement to my bins. Thanks
Glad I could help! Thanks for watching!
I use wood pellets in my compost tumbler with food scrapes. It is the best stuff because of the small particle size and it balances the moisture and C:N ratio. The compost is “smokin” in no time and it stays that way as long as I keep adding a little food and a few pellets every day and turn it. The worms love that pre-composted material. I think the bedding nutrient value to the garden should also be a consideration. I suspect that leaves would be the best bedding in that regard. Have you seen the video NW redworms did on paper vs leaves bedding? 6-23-13. I don’t put them in my worm bins either for the same reasons you don’t.
That is a good idea to use the pellets in a hot compost tumbler as well. Above ground composting is banned in my county or I would be stealing that idea! 👍😁
I'll check it NW redworms video.
Thanks for watching!
@@WorldComposting above ground composting is illegal in your county? That's insane, completely insane!
@@joansmith3492 essentially hot composting is illegal but worm bins are specifically stated to be fine.
I agree it is really a strange rule and probably causes more waste to go into the trash stream than they realize as you can't buy any composting equipment in the county because of the rules.
Glad you covered bedding topic. I had red wigglers for almost 3 years & making batch bedding now using mixture shredded cardboard, shredded brown bags, shredded paper towel & toilet paper rolls with broken up dried leaves, finished compost, with touch of dirt. The later 2 kick start the microbial activity nicely. If I have peat moss left over from the garden I add just a little but is expensive (and dusty). I use newspaper sparingly but never sheets of paper, envelopes for fear would shred up the plastic part, cereal boxes, nor anything waxy or glossy.
Not sure you mentioned in this video, but best to use water without chlorine, well water, or rain water. My tap water has chlorine & fluoride so I try put in a bucket for couple days before making bedding or when using to keep bedding moist in dry winter months.
Thanks for the video.
You are right on the not using tap water or using a water conditioner as you would for a fish tank.
Thanks for watching! 👍😁
Nice video! Keep them coming!
Thanks! Will do!
I found a mixture of coco coir and shredded corrugated work the best. The bag of coco coir, as fiber, not brick, was cheap at the home center and the only thing I buy for the worms. Since you only need new bedding to start a bin and a small a bag lasts a long time, price is not a problem. The sawdust pellets should work too if coco coir isn't available. Coco coir is the most popular.
My favorite cardboard to use is paper towel tubes. They shred easily and break down fast.
Also, wood pellets are heated when compressed so they're very clean. I wonder how that plays into it not going anaerobic
paper towel and toilet paper tubes are great. A lot of times I use those when I really need airflow or you can stuff the tubes with food and make a food tube for the worms to climb into!
I've had zero issues with wood pellets going anaerobic they actually absorb a ton of moisture and take a while to breakdown. They are very similar to coco coir in many ways.
Good synopsis, Newell. 👍
Thanks Wayne! 👍
I have a lot of dried leaves from someone who raked up a ton of leaves in the fall. I crumble them up outside and put them on an aluminum foil-covered cookie sheet, them bake them in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or so. This kills any living organisms in/on the leaves, and I have no problems. I also use very aged horsed manure. It hasn't been composted, per se, but it is aged such that it does not heat up in the bin. Because it is so well aged (like me) it is not necessary to "pre-compost" it. The manure, mixed with shredded cardboard, makes great bedding material (and is free) and can be a food source for the worms.
While I like the idea of using leaves but baking them in the oven is risky as they can catch fire and you are using a lot of energy to heat them up. Also I'm not sure I want to risk ruining my kitchen oven just to have clean compost bedding.
The well aged horse manure is great and works as a bedding and food source you really don't even need the cardboard!
Very useful video, thank you👍
Thank you for watching!
Great video, very helpful. feeling leaves reuce the chance of pest. thanks for sharing, like the wood pellet idea,.
Leaves from the outside have a chance of bringing in other pests which is why I don't do it. If I had my bin outside I would probably use leaves although as I have few trees near my house I would probably need to supplement with other bedding materials.
I plan to mix in Vermont Compost Fort Vee with cardboard, paper and coir. Any problem with that?
You can also use the wood pellets in rabbit cages and cat littler boxes.
Yup I think those are a little more expensive
@@WorldComposting Not if you buy in a big bag like at Tractor Supply. I use them for the rabbits and cats . I will now add to the worm bedding too . Thank you .
@@Dee.C I might try them too from TSC as seem to work well without clumping which does happen to me when bed gets too wet.
I thought the big bag at tractor supply was labeled for horses but yes those will work.
I peel the waxy or shiny coating off cereal boxes and shred the cardboard underneath for worm bedding. I do that with all shiny boxes, big or small.
How do you peel off the waxy layer? I know it will break down in a bin but takes a lot longer.
@@WorldComposting start with one corner and gently tease the shiny layer up with your fingernail. Is there a way of uploading an image to the comments, then I could show you?
I don't know if any way to post pictures in the comments but I'll try it out!
Hi davis, I got nightcrawlers 40 count. Need your advice to make bin for them. How big they need? Do I need to drill holes to the bin?
I am also doing red wigglers compost. I didn't make any holes to it.
Thank you brother,
Bhargavi.
Does your bin have a lid if yes drill holes in the sides. If no you might need a slight cover to keep the moisture in. With that many I would use a small bin to start with so they can't spread out too much.
I got scared after seeing them😱. I got small tout, but bedding itself is taking so much space. So I changed them into a big tout. Hope they won't bother me by coming outside. If they do.... me nd them also get into trouble with my husband.😥
Very informative.
Thanks!
I have hampsters and I use a paper bedding for them, would you say it would be ok to apply the used bedding from the hampsters in the worm bin to reduce waste?
Funny you mention that my son got a hamster about a month ago and I after figuring out the best way to clean the cage I'm going to try and compost the bedding that comes out. I will hopefully be starting that test soon!
@@WorldComposting I just figured that it doesn't have a high yield of feces and urine content its like 99.5 % or more paper bedding. I actually also have a minut about of sand in mine as I have my ham hams and gerbils litter trained. Typically I'm throwing away 26 gallons of paper bedding in the garage can. 😃👍🥰 Thank you for responding and good luck!!
@@WorldComposting How did that work for you?
Thanks for the info 👍🏼because I never thought they would eat wood and coco coirs 😂!
Happy to help answer those questions. I actually have some new bedding to try but haven't gotten around to setting up the bin yet.
What do you think about egg cartons?
I count those as cardboard similar to corrugated and they work really well. I have used them in the past but all the organic eggs seem to come in plastic containers near me 😢
I would be wary of using sawdust shavings in composting. The small particulate size when wet tends to pack and compress easily and create anaerobic layers preventing oxygen from getting to the rest of your pile. Ideally you want a particle size a bit bigger to prevent a lot of sticking and packing so the pile can stay aerated. Maybe the pellets are fine but I wouldn't use sawdust shavings in my piles or vermicompost.
You are right really fine sawdust probably won't work and what wood they are made from probably makes a difference.
Thanks for watching!
Be very careful and only use a little at a time of the pellets. I do mix with shredded paper or cardboard because the pellets absorb so much it makes the bin VERY heavy.
I have run bins on just pellets without issue but you are correct that they can hold more moisture than expected. I also primarily use 10 gallon totes so that they never get too heavy to move!
I'm new to worm composting, is it meant to be 8 inch deep when the cardboard ,paper etc is wet or dry my area will be about 7ft x 3ft
You don't need 8 inches to start but I would measure when wet as it will compact down. If you have 8 inches dry then wet it and have 2 inches you will need to add more to get it above 4 inches at least. That is a large bin how many worms are you starting with? You will need a lot for that size system or you should just be doing a small corner.
@@WorldComposting ive got 6kg of worms coming so 6000 ish I think that would be? What did you mean when you say just start with a corner
@@bishmyst09
I was suggesting you start in a corner in the bed you built thinking you might have purchased only a 1kg of worms like many do. With 6kg you can spread out but I'm thinking you shouldn't fill up the entire system and try to run it. Maybe start with half or a quarter of the system then spread out once the worms are settled. Many people jump in with too many food scraps before the worms acclimate and you can end up having a lot of issues when first starting.
@@WorldComposting thanks for you're reply..I am using sherreded cardboard and paper and coffee grounds with a little bit of multi purpose compost.. and I will be feeding the a supplement of golden yolk layers meal. I dont intend to feed them many food scraps to be fair maybe a little every now and then. Would you still recommend starting in the corner if I will be controlling the moisture (like a rung out sponge) thanks for your help with this
I would still recommend starting small. Maybe half the area for a couple months to make sure you don't have any issues before expanding. Especially with the shock of shipping.
Not covered in this video is why bedding is even desired at all.
Think about it.
It's necessary only for new worm bins and unnecessary for mature worm bins (although for unknown reasons a lot of worm owners keep adding bedding to mature worm bins. One of those persons will one day have to explain why they do it).
Bedding takes the place of soil in a new bin because you're developing a home for the worms free from toxic factors and where worms can retreat to escape such things as anaerobic conditions when food decomposes, heat or cold and possibly lack of moisture. In other words, this should be "home" where ideal conditions exist.
This means that food should never be mixed into bedding. Food should be located in a corner or edge of the bin so that the anaerobic effects of aerobic microbes breaking down food is confined.
This means that the bedding should be at least highly moist since worms generally like as much water as possible, sometimes even swimming in water. You'll often find worms in the wettest part of a bin.
This means that the bin should never be in full heat or cold although I like to expose sunlight to one side of the bin where the food is placed to enhance microbial activity. But when you do this, be sure to leave part of the bin in shade so that not all the bin is heated, especially in a brand new bin which has little mass so temperatures will spike greatly with ambient temperature changes. When a bin gains mass(primarily castings) the bin will retain more of its own temperate temperatures different from ambient temperature spikes during the day and night.
Regarding cardboard and corrugated cardboard,
Worms love the organic glue used in corrugated cardboard, so in general delivery packaging can be a great source for bedding.
Food packaging can be a problem so should be inspected carefully. The problem isn't usually a waxy coating but a thin layer of plastic that's often applied to foods that might be frozen or bought from fast food restaurants to provide increased resistance to liquids. These "forever plastics" of course won't break down in your bins and will have to be manually removed if they get in your bin.
Regarding all papers,
Like every other "food" the ratio of surface area to mass determines how fast it will break down. With non-paper that usually means grinding or blending but with papers it usually means how large the pieces are, and if they're cut up or torn into smaller pieces. A big sheet of paper will take far longer to break down than than if it's cut up or torn into tiny pieces because every edge provides a better way for water to be absorbed into the paper and for microbes to gain access to the whole of piece(s). It also makes a big difference whether you rung the paper through a paper shredder that actually cuts the paper or whether you hand shred the paper. Compare the edges of each, the cut edge has very little exposed surface area to absorb water and microbes, and a torn edge provides massive access to the paper's inner fibers.
Regarding hardwood pellets and other chunks of wood of any size... I would think this is the type worms would be least happy living in. Rubbing and crawling through these wood pieces would have to be tough on a worm's skin and wood chunks will hardly decompose. It's a kind of "forever bedding" that might take years to decompose not likely from bacteria and fauna but from mold and fungi. Sawdust might be considered, but one would have to be careful not to create a dense block of sawdust the worms might have trouble living in. Perhaps given enough moisture and air, the conditions could be created for microbial activity but in the meantime compaction would have to be watched and prevented.
Surface area to mass is the magic formula that applies to all consumable foods including the bedding which is why coco choir and peat are favorites, just look at how much surface area and how light and fluffy the material can be when it's not sopping wet or compressed. The same goes for everything else.
So, what do I use for bedding?
Plenty of whatever is available in a new bin.
Sometimes I use various small, torn up pieces of various papers, sometimes I use a small amount of topsoil, sometimes I use a few handfuls of cold compost. I hardly ever use peat, choir or anything else that costs anything.
But after the initial bedding is consumed, I just let the worms live in their own poop (castings). They're perfectly happy living that way and they continue to process the castings and remaining debris until its fairly pure.
I have never found a reason to add castings to a worm bin after it's been started.
how about hemp bedding?
I'm guessing hemp bedding out and it works really well! Didn't even know that was an option when I recorded that bedding video.
@@WorldComposting The RWS really love the hemp blanket I got for insulation!
This guy reminds me of the 'apparently' kid.... Substitute typically.