Worms Eat My Garbage (WEMG) Page 62 Mites

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/verm/msg042232432421.html?12

That's a great thread, I just wanted to add for the newbies. There will be lots of different types of bugs in your bin. They help with the decomposition. The only ones I try to get rid of are the flying ones. I'm in fruit fly heaven, so I freeze everything before putting it in the bin. As the thread linked above says, if the bin it too wet, you might get LOTS of mites, but just leaving it uncovered for a few days solves that quickly if you also have drainage holes. You want it as wet as a wrung out sponge. No dripping.

So I looked closer and the white things are not mites. They have no legs and never move. So I don't know whats going on in there.

acenjason:
I have the same in my bin but they are BROWN. I think they are some sort of mites because they sometimes go to the top of the bin (seeking oxygen? I read the link from mndtrp) - I don't see legs either! Maybe I'll look with the magnifying glass!

This weekend, none were on the sides or top but I noticed a lot in the cast when I went to feed wormies.

Since I started the bin (August 2007) I haven't added water, except maybe a MILD mist-spray when I put in the shredded newsprint and the bottom 1/3 of the bin is sticky/wet & depending on the foodstuff, will leak out (I have holes on the bottom). I guess I'll leave the bin open today - but the link said the mites would travel up?? When my cover has a lot of them, I shoot them off with the hose (away from the bin!).

I'm looking for pictures - I know I saw a post with pictures.

These are the mites I get most often in my bin. They gather on the cardboard, in the compost and gather on my watermelon rinds. I rinse the rinds off, then put them back in the bin.

The things in my bin don't seem to ever move. I don't have a magnifying glass so I can't look to close, but they don't seem to have legs so I don't know. it's been over a month since I first saw them and they don't seem to be bothering the worms, in fact they seem to be only near the top layer and my worms are hanging out deeper where there food is. Thanx for all the feed back though. Still don't know what they are, so can anyone tell me if you can see mite legs with the naked eye? Thanx again worm lovers!!!!!

Since you don't have a magnifying glass, try one of these experiments:

1. Place a small piece of melon or white bread on the top layer. Close the lid. If the next day it is covered in the "white spheres", you have mites.

2. Place a piece of something non-absorbant (e.g., inverted jar lid, piece of plastic) with a spoonful of the "white spheres" on the top layer. Close the lid. If the next day the mystery objects have moved, they have legs and are mites.

If neither of these tests gets a result, you have aliens in your bin.