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greyowl77

winter survival

greyowl77
14 years ago

Should i be concerned with worm survival with minimal protection through the winter months. I have started a small outdoor worm farm and found that it has frozen almost solid. If anyone has tried to do the same thing,perhaps you can give me some hope come spring.

Thanks

Comments (7)

  • singleton165
    14 years ago

    I have an indoor bin so can't answer you directly, but have read that even if the worms perish in an outdoor bin the cocoons will most likely survive and hatch when the conditions are right (meaning when the temps are warm enough).

  • fam62cc
    14 years ago

    Similar problem; I have indoor worm bins but also outdoor compost bins. I think that outdoors, the worms sense the lowering temperatures and just burrow down below the frost line then come back up when the weather warms. Those outdoor worms of course are different than the EFs in the indoor bins. I have never planted any worms outdoors. I have only the naturally occurring ones.

    Dave Nelson

  • mwudan
    14 years ago

    i guess we'll all see soon enough. i also have a frozen outdoor bin.

    luckily, just before winter i took out a handful of worms and put them in a (very) small indoor bin as a seed population in case the outdoor bin doesn't recover.

  • PRO
    equinoxequinox
    14 years ago

    mwudan, your method has the added advantage of during the long, dark, cold winter, you get to visit some of them in the comfort of your home.

    I would miss mine if I had to wait until spring to check up on them.

  • greyowl77
    Original Author
    14 years ago

    It might be a good idea to have a feast ready to attract them back in the spring. I will have to come up with a better plan next fall. Harvesting some worms in the fall is a good idea. Oh well this is an interesting learning experience.
    Thanks for the input

  • mywildfower
    14 years ago

    The worms will bury into the warmest part of the pile, and most likely survive. And, when pile temperature and moisture are right in the spring, the eggs will hatch and you'll have bunches of new babies to play with!

  • tobytub
    14 years ago

    There is a similar discussion on another thread, "I Want to go Large", where amongst other issues, they discuss insulation and other winter protective measures.

    I liked the novel idea of using an aquarium aerator pump to push warmish air from inside the house (at room temperature) directly through a half inch pipe to the outside worm farm. It would use a trivial amount of electricity (after all these little air pumps are designed to be left running continuously for months).

    If you wanted even warmer air in extreme conditions - put the air pump into a cardboard box with a low wattage light bulb. Obviously you should always bury or insulate the feeder pipe and put at least some insulation around your worm farm.

    Here is a link that might be useful: I Want to go Large

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