tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-137945872024-03-14T07:52:37.410+00:00Simon Sherlock's WeblogSimon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.comBlogger85125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-39365668969096042102023-11-25T10:02:00.001+00:002023-11-25T10:05:35.154+00:00Using A Boox Handwriting Tablet To Create Trello CardsI bought the Boox Note Air 2 Plus (details can be found at Amazon - note this is an associate link - <a href="https://amzn.to/40wHL9m" rel="sponsored" target="_blank">https://amzn.to/40wHL9m</a>) because I am constantly scribbling down notes and designs for projects I hope to start one day. The fact I never get round to half of them is another issue, but still it means I have bits of paper all over the place. <br /><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://euroshop.boox.com/cdn/shop/products/noteair2plus_compact.jpg?v=1658993059" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="160" data-original-width="160" src="https://euroshop.boox.com/cdn/shop/products/noteair2plus_compact.jpg?v=1658993059" /></a></div>The joys of this tablet are:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>It's e-ink so battery life is amazing</li><li>All notes can be backed up to a cloud provider of your choice - I use Google Drive because it enables me to OCR my scribbles into typed text</li><li>It is basically an Android tablet so you have access to other Android apps</li></ul></div><div>This enables me to keep said notes in one place on a device that can also be backed up.
I also use <a href="https://trello.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Trello</a> for creating reminders and job cards etc so have written a couple of scripts to enable me to do it from lists on the Boox device. </div><div><br /></div><div>The full writeup, and link to Github repo, can be seen at <a href="https://dev.to/ssherlock/boox-to-trello-20jo">https://dev.to/ssherlock/boox-to-trello-20jo</a></div><br />Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-40619552443477614552021-08-14T09:54:00.004+00:002023-12-19T15:44:56.070+00:00Over-wintering Mason Bees<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><img alt="Permaculture magazine, issue 109 Autumn 2021" border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="424" height="320" src="https://www.permaculture.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/PM109_cover-724x1024.jpg" title="Permaculture magazine, issue 109 Autumn 2021" width="226" style="float: left; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" /></a><span style="font-family: arial;">The following post has been published in the Autumn 2021 copy of, the quite brilliant, Permaculture magazine, which is available to buy from <a href="https://www.permaculture.co.uk/issue/autumn-2021/">https://www.permaculture.co.uk/issue/autumn-2021/</a><br /><br /></span><span><a name='more'></a><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">For years now I have had bee nesting tubes in my garden for solitary bees (mainly the Red Mason Bee - Osmia bicornis) and left them out all winter to manage as best they can. Mason bees are wonderful, being one of almost 250 solitary bees in the UK (that’s as well as the 25 types of bumble bee, plus the honey bee of course).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Last year I decided to see how many tubes they would fill if allowed, and also to see if I could get some of the later leaf-cutter bees (I didn’t) so I replaced the tubes as soon as full (storing them flat somewhere safe from pests) with a supply purchased from <a href="https://www.masonbees.co.uk/" target="_blank">https://www.masonbees.co.uk/</a> who sell all things mason bee as well as run a bee “guardian” scheme where you can send in your tubes for safekeeping and for allowing them to send out to others to help the population throughout the country. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yUXF9HYBX5k/YReKy2T92pI/AAAAAAABLCA/P3BVmp73nQY08LWyV0DUt1KEVnG0E5YqACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="187" data-original-width="200" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yUXF9HYBX5k/YReKy2T92pI/AAAAAAABLCA/P3BVmp73nQY08LWyV0DUt1KEVnG0E5YqACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="257" /></a></div><p align="center" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 1.15px; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-right: 0.39cm;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><b>Tubes both full and being filled</b></span></p><p align="center" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 1.15px; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-right: 0.39cm;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p align="center" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 1.15px; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-right: 0.39cm;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><b><br /></b></span></p>At the end of the season (August onwards) I soak the inners so they can unravel safely and the cocoons can be removed. This also helps you remove pests and I found a few flesh flies amongst them as well as a few cocoons that hadn't made it. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NcW76aQ3b1U/YReLGVfqR4I/AAAAAAABLCI/g_0Qbhspr2wZrZBSiKzxJJY-klxO4YTKQCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NcW76aQ3b1U/YReLGVfqR4I/AAAAAAABLCI/g_0Qbhspr2wZrZBSiKzxJJY-klxO4YTKQCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="320" /></a></div><p align="center" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 1.15px; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-right: 0.39cm;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><b>Tubes soaking ready for cocoon removal</b></span></p><br /></div>After very carefully unravelling the tubes the cocoons float and various bits of detritus sink, making it easy to sieve off just the cocoons for drying.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8pebTslbJSw/YReLg0-94UI/AAAAAAABLCU/ObavydjhH-oxB0SFD8y9REugPA47u6cGQCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8pebTslbJSw/YReLg0-94UI/AAAAAAABLCU/ObavydjhH-oxB0SFD8y9REugPA47u6cGQCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold;">Cocoons floating in water, while the detritus sinks</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div></span><span style="text-align: -webkit-center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bW6YhTGanSE/YReL6Zg8xRI/AAAAAAABLCc/j30uD028tZMP3iqWi_W2N1b4WCF8JNjkACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bW6YhTGanSE/YReL6Zg8xRI/AAAAAAABLCc/j30uD028tZMP3iqWi_W2N1b4WCF8JNjkACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Once dried they can be stored in a breathable container somewhere frost free like a garage and be checked on regularly.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-scC5_iyMsZs/YReMryDn2DI/AAAAAAABLCk/pu7IVUfV62YnWpFPxrNqv_bKvd1ThwWmQCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-scC5_iyMsZs/YReMryDn2DI/AAAAAAABLCk/pu7IVUfV62YnWpFPxrNqv_bKvd1ThwWmQCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="320" /></a></div><p align="center" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 1.15px; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-right: 0.39cm;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><b>Cocoons in storage container ready for the Winter</b></span></p><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This year I splashed out (though they could be made yourself quite easily) on a hatching box where the cocoons can be placed safe from predators. This will be removed once they are all hatched to discourage those that want to use it as a nesting site.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UbGAzik7_vE/YReM5PQfSJI/AAAAAAABLCo/UFHx4rNjavcXKtf9nCqBQBZS2VFfIaPugCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="911" data-original-width="740" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UbGAzik7_vE/YReM5PQfSJI/AAAAAAABLCo/UFHx4rNjavcXKtf9nCqBQBZS2VFfIaPugCLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="195" /></a></div><br />The box should be about 1.5 metres off the ground as the bees tend to fall rather than fly when they emerge.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-w5RtB0W8NnI/YReNGI1jfxI/AAAAAAABLCw/ekBBUV8MkHoe0rG-ZPUFN1ZgxabDo70gACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="684" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-w5RtB0W8NnI/YReNGI1jfxI/AAAAAAABLCw/ekBBUV8MkHoe0rG-ZPUFN1ZgxabDo70gACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="180" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The cocoons should generally be put out at the end of March/beginning of April but this is likely dependent on the weather and the amount of pollen rich flowers available at the time.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">At the same time I put out fresh nesting tubes ready for the year ahead. so we can begin again ready for a new year of new bees. Note: the tubes should be placed facing South/South-East so that they catch the early morning sun.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jeVI5V8fapw/YReNP4kw3lI/AAAAAAABLC0/R3A50kqfylQzd3SQzs9OCmAT3qAwwt-zACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="1329" height="220" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jeVI5V8fapw/YReNP4kw3lI/AAAAAAABLC0/R3A50kqfylQzd3SQzs9OCmAT3qAwwt-zACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The main reason I use these cardboard tubes is because they are the correct size for mason bees meaning they don’t need to waste more energy trying to nest in larger spaces, the reusable outer cardboard tube protects against parasitic wasps and, to some extent, the elements while the removable inner tube can be replaced once full. Replacing with a new, empty, inner tube also means cleaning out work is not required by the nesting females as well as there being less chance of parasites *</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">* obviously Permaculture is all about working with nature and parasitic wasps (such as the quite beautiful Ruby-tailed wasp who will lay her eggs in solitary bee nests where her young will eat the bee larvae) need our help just as much so you may wish to leave some tubes (or a bee hotel like the ones you can buy from garden centres etc) for the purpose of leaving things a little more to nature.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zCwWR0QcXVk/YReOqQIH2eI/AAAAAAABLDE/DnmLjx9jZxQWuSuzcH6gAiAB_i5YQe46ACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="1079" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zCwWR0QcXVk/YReOqQIH2eI/AAAAAAABLDE/DnmLjx9jZxQWuSuzcH6gAiAB_i5YQe46ACLcBGAsYHQ/image.png" width="284" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: 12px;">Male Red mason bee emerging from cocoon</b></div><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b>Interesting Facts:</b> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I have seen it said that the mason bee can do the job of 120 honey bees when it comes to pollinating apple blossom as their furry bodies make pollination easier and they fly earlier, and in more severe conditions than the honey bee.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Solitary bees are very placid insects and no danger to either children or animals so a fantastic way of teaching children about nature and helping encourage pollinators in your garden or allotment.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><span><!--more--></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Further information, FAQS and tubes/kits can be found at <a href="https://www.masonbees.co.uk/">https://www.masonbees.co.uk/</a> <br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Permaculture magazine can be bought direct from the publisher at <a href="https://shop.permaculture.co.uk/">https://shop.permaculture.co.uk/</a> and this issue at <a href="https://shop.permaculture.co.uk/permaculture-magazine-issue109.html">https://shop.permaculture.co.uk/permaculture-magazine-issue109.html</a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div></span></div><br /><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div></div></span></div><p></p>Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-71636483031627633142021-08-08T10:05:00.000+00:002021-08-08T10:05:32.316+00:00Feeding The SubPod Wormery<p>It's a couple of months now since I received my SubPod wormery from <a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/subpod-in-garden-compost-system">Wiggly Wigglers</a> and blogged about how I set it up - <a href="https://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2021/05/unboxing-and-setting-up-subpod-wormery.html">https://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2021/05/unboxing-and-setting-up-subpod-wormery.html</a></p><p>It's an absolute doddle to look after - so easy in fact that you can forget you have it, especially when you have other more standard tray wormeries to look after. With tray wormeries every time it rains (it's summer in the UK so that's a fair bit) you have to check the sump as the last thing you want is your worms drowning due to excess liquid building up - that and the fact said liquid is an amazing plant feed for tomatoes, bedding plants and hanging baskets etc so should absolutely NOT be wasted!</p><p>Anyway, here's a (very quick and quite poorly filmed) video of me checking the SubPod and adding some new food.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SlEga_E_QUc" width="320" youtube-src-id="SlEga_E_QUc"></iframe></div><br /><p>And finally, I added that layer of shredded paper I mentioned at the end of the video.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ehvRTT4qhxo/YQ-kK2yZ-oI/AAAAAAABK-I/1ETn9SQOD_k766gUFiUDW_wiSfGmDxZPACPcBGAsYHg/s2080/IMG_20210806_122646.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="2080" height="148" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ehvRTT4qhxo/YQ-kK2yZ-oI/AAAAAAABK-I/1ETn9SQOD_k766gUFiUDW_wiSfGmDxZPACPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210806_122646.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">How Am I Finding It?</h2><p>Except for the precious space it is taking up in my (very small) raised vegetable patch I am loving it, and I will most likely expand the vegetable patch anyway to gain more room to grow more. </p><p>It really is the most hassle free wormery I currently own as there's no need to worry about liquid collecting in the sump as it seeps into the ground around it, feeding the soil and, therefore, the plants.</p><p><i>Remember, you don't really need to feed plants, but do need to feed the soil - improving the health of your soil automatically improves that of your plants, making them stronger, more resistant to pests and better able to deal with the weather (both wet and dry).</i></p><p>And, whereas in a tray system (such as the Can-o-worms, Worm Cafe, Urbalive and Worm City etc) the worms are stuck in a container and therefore susceptible to changes in pH and liquid levels, the SubPod makes life very much easier for them as they can just travel through the holes in the part buried in the soil and come back when they are ready. Some people may fear that they all escape and not come back, but there's no need to worry about that at all - if you keep the level of food waste up then they will come from far and wide for a good feed, and likely brings friends from elsewhere as well.</p><p>So, it is going well so far and the worms are working the waste nicely. It's still too soon to find how easy (or not) emptying it will be but if the theory of stopping feeding one side and start on the other until all the worms have moved across is true (no reason for it not to be) then it shouldn't be any harder than a tray system, and likely quite a bit easier. </p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Bokashi</h2><p>I often see people in composting groups asking about adding Bokashi to wormeries. I have done this in the past but you really have to be careful of how much and how often you add Bokashi waste because it can change the pH and cause issues within the bin. I once lost a 10 year old established wormery to protein poisoning as a result of over-feeding and it is not a pleasnt experience (and smells like you wouldn't believe).</p><p>However, in the SubPod you could try adding normal waste on one side and Bokashi waste on the other, safe in the knowledge that the worms can travel freely (out of the bin if necessary) and come back when the pH has leveled off and the waste is in an easier state for them to consume.</p><p>I have yet to put this theory into practise as I mostly Bokashi during the Winter months these days, or in my HotBin, but I do hope to do some experimenting later in the year to see if this theory works OK.</p>Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-69146892132591339772021-05-23T08:05:00.006+00:002021-08-08T10:06:00.655+00:00Unboxing And Setting Up The Subpod Wormery<div class="separator"><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/" style="font-family: arial; text-align: left;">Wiggly Wigglers</a><span style="font-family: arial; text-align: left;">, the company who have been encouraging us to compost with worms as a means of recycling our food waste for decades now have recently started selling a completely different type of wormery, the </span><a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/subpod-in-garden-compost-system" style="font-family: arial; text-align: left;">Subpod</a><span style="font-family: arial;">, which they have kindly sent me to try out.</span></div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqWmmiF_AqM/YKnt8pvICXI/AAAAAAABIYs/JjI4OwBCeA4KXuJs7F_tCmFwB0Bd1CuhACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Subpod%2Binstalled.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1918" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqWmmiF_AqM/YKnt8pvICXI/AAAAAAABIYs/JjI4OwBCeA4KXuJs7F_tCmFwB0Bd1CuhACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Subpod%2Binstalled.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Previous wormeries, such as their <a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/urbalive-wormery-kits">Urbalive</a> </span><span style="font-family: arial;">(</span><span style="font-family: arial;">stylish enough to be used inside) </span><span style="font-family: arial;">system</span><span style="font-family: arial;">, are tray based and can be positioned anywhere. However, the Subpod changes all that, as it is buried in the ground. This means there is no need to worry about excess leachate/worm tea when it rains, or escaping worms - the leachate will feed the ground around it and the worms will come and go as they please through the holes in the sides (designed for free movement of both worms and compost). This is great because the worms can escape to the surrounding soil during hot or cold weather, breed freely (they are limited in space in a standard wormery), as well as aerating the surrounding soil, helping it thrive and become the best growing area possible. And then, when conditions are right/they get hungry, they will come back to feed on your waste, turning it into vermicompost (black gold) you can use elsewhere in your garden. Once running smoothly you will find they rarely go anywhere as they know a good thing when they see it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Wiggly website describes this a lot better with:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 15px;"><blockquote><span> </span>Being underground, Subpod creates a natural environment for compost worms. Having access to the soil means they can feed and breed as rapidly as they like, because there’s always room for their population to grow. Soil is an insulator, and in hot weather, compost worms will instinctively escape into soil to cool down. As the weather turns cold, it will keep your worms warm and active during winter (as long as the soil doesn’t freeze). Every time your worms leave Subpod, their movement aerates your garden soil and increases its nutrient content. </blockquote></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b style="text-align: justify;"><u>Setting Up</u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b style="text-align: justify;"><u><br /></u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3OOKu2w9VwE/YKnwEmLIviI/AAAAAAABIZM/yp6wFZeCY1Ytkxp9LfLcF5Mk-UpsMZtWQCPcBGAYYCw/s2048/IMG_20210519_145034.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3OOKu2w9VwE/YKnwEmLIviI/AAAAAAABIZM/yp6wFZeCY1Ytkxp9LfLcF5Mk-UpsMZtWQCPcBGAYYCw/s320/IMG_20210519_145034.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">I got the <a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/products/subpod-in-garden-compost-system-unit-starter-pack">Subpod and starter kit</a> that arrived in two boxes, one the wormery itself and one the added extra's to help you get started.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XGV6fcma2uQ/YKnwE0xoQ_I/AAAAAAABIZE/m_CROnFEf0csJkzBMxC_1GZnQzXiaQh1gCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h240/IMG_20210519_145123.jpg" width="320" /></span></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The starter kit includes 1kg composting worms, a 2kg bag of worm treat, 2kg lime mix for helping regulate pH, 500g of rock dust and a coir block for starting off the bedding.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><i style="font-family: arial;"><b>Note: </b>Before starting soak the coir block in a bucket of water as it can take a while to absorb the water and be ready to use as bedding. Leave for up to 24 hours to be sure though it can be ready a lot quicker.</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The kit consists of the base, that can simply be unfolded and clipped together. It can be quite stiff so a little bit of force may be required - make sure when you do that everything lines up nicely so you don't damage the moulded plastic, though it is quite sturdy to be fair and can take quite a hammering.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RUV4HLDLFmw/YKn-FMiQMaI/AAAAAAABIZ4/OCyJsVAtdaoAQuVd3qRkkKqAx-oYso1QgCPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210519_150547.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RUV4HLDLFmw/YKn-FMiQMaI/AAAAAAABIZ4/OCyJsVAtdaoAQuVd3qRkkKqAx-oYso1QgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210519_150547.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Once together remove the mats and prepare to fit the lid. Now this can definitely be fiddly and was a lot harder (for me at least) than Subpod lead you to believe. Line up the hinges very carefully and make sure they clip into place. It may be better with an extra set of hands to help keep everything lined up when clipping the lid into place. I found this a bit of a pain on my own, but that could easily just be me!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Once the lid is clipped into place you can fit the middle section (again, I found this a bit fiddly) and then the hinge so the finished product looks like this:</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TOTXWhynyl4/YKn-xge7HhI/AAAAAAABIaM/cTGfF48ACDYgfHib0a0rkCd_hpmMIo9NQCPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210522_111356.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TOTXWhynyl4/YKn-xge7HhI/AAAAAAABIaM/cTGfF48ACDYgfHib0a0rkCd_hpmMIo9NQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210522_111356.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-92ELUNWng8w/YKoGdxdxahI/AAAAAAABIa4/torTTJVSD4sgF_NaYtufJpQjKY390uLnACPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210522_111407.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-92ELUNWng8w/YKoGdxdxahI/AAAAAAABIa4/torTTJVSD4sgF_NaYtufJpQjKY390uLnACPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210522_111407.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><b>Use your fingers to pull gently on the hinge so the lid can be closed</b></span></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><u>Siting the Subpod</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">And now the really fun bit - where to site this. Ideally it will go in a raised vegetable bed but you can place it in a border, or pretty much wherever you want really. Now it's quite big at 75cm long, 45cm wide and a height of 43cm (32cm of which will be buried underground) so you will be sacrificing some growing space. However, the ease of access, improvements it will make to the soil and the fact it really does make a great garden seat all work in its favour. And I've been meaning to expand my growing area anyway to grow more veggies at home so...</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqWmmiF_AqM/YKnt8pvICXI/AAAAAAABIY0/OmZ7IWDHn7U_sADX52Y5bt28U7ebewjuwCPcBGAYYCw/s2048/Subpod%2Binstalled.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1918" data-original-width="2048" height="301" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqWmmiF_AqM/YKnt8pvICXI/AAAAAAABIY0/OmZ7IWDHn7U_sADX52Y5bt28U7ebewjuwCPcBGAYYCw/w320-h301/Subpod%2Binstalled.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Notice how the air holes are above ground to allow good ventilation within the wormery? These are all the way around to promote air movement and keep the wormery aerobic, thereby also promoting microbes that help with the composting process. If regularly aerated as well with plenty of carbon material </span><span style="font-family: arial;">(shredded paper and/or cardboard)</span><span style="font-family: arial;"> added along with your food waste this should keep smells to a minimum - a well run wormery should just smell like fresh earth.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So now in situ, the coir starter bedding can be added. I placed a good few inches of shredded paper in the bottom before adding in the coir and mixing it all together, as this gives the worms that bit of extra bedding. I should add my coir was quite wet so the paper was damp rather than dry when the worms were added.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-59VT6fB5YSQ/YKoCDSckoTI/AAAAAAABIaY/IS7cDId6IyM_3q65wjmqOgNsChQfCdJ6gCPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210522_155949.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-59VT6fB5YSQ/YKoCDSckoTI/AAAAAAABIaY/IS7cDId6IyM_3q65wjmqOgNsChQfCdJ6gCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210522_155949.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><b>Soaked coir block mixed with shredded paper</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yb5SZXoPDz0/YKoCIx8kaAI/AAAAAAABIac/UtTcBdILI6MTRi6gYaTwZ83uNJL22oiCwCPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210522_160239.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yb5SZXoPDz0/YKoCIx8kaAI/AAAAAAABIac/UtTcBdILI6MTRi6gYaTwZ83uNJL22oiCwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210522_160239.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><b>Worms added</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Once the worms were added I put another layer of slightly dampened shredded paper in and then covered with the supplied mat which helps with both moisture levels, insulation and allowing them to work in the dark (which is how they work best!). </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hWus-Zf-wqY/YKoCNHzTGzI/AAAAAAABIag/pVAMNpxhBPwuN3k7vTF5_IxThlYT8Z6GgCPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210522_160445.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hWus-Zf-wqY/YKoCNHzTGzI/AAAAAAABIag/pVAMNpxhBPwuN3k7vTF5_IxThlYT8Z6GgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210522_160445.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">So, there we have it. The completed installation and new garden seat (OK that is just an added extra benefit). I will now leave it a few days before slowly starting to add food waste so as not to over load them too quickly. <b><i>Remember</i></b>, just like a tray based wormery over-feeding is the worst thing you can do, so food waste should be added sparingly at the start. Once they become established and things start to move you can increase the amount of waste given. </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6Q4y-u4VVqI/YKoCzRSVlBI/AAAAAAABIas/29iVPdBls-Ig7DhlYlj6vbWqQL4EIXliwCPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210522_133351.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6Q4y-u4VVqI/YKoCzRSVlBI/AAAAAAABIas/29iVPdBls-Ig7DhlYlj6vbWqQL4EIXliwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210522_133351.jpg" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;">And lastly, a clip is supplied to keep the lid shut (presumably in strong winds). To be honest I'm not sure how long this will stay as, although it is easy enough to use, I am lazy and will soon get fed up with it I am sure.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-V-wHYcCJKfQ/YKoL45p3avI/AAAAAAABIbE/RwjiyWb5uN8rQbzcstVRYvWUO1WhtpnVQCPcBGAsYHg/s4000/IMG_20210522_111440_Bokeh.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-V-wHYcCJKfQ/YKoL45p3avI/AAAAAAABIbE/RwjiyWb5uN8rQbzcstVRYvWUO1WhtpnVQCPcBGAsYHg/w200-h150/IMG_20210522_111440_Bokeh.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u><span style="font-family: arial;">Summary</span></u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></u></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I'm really looking forward to seeing how well this wormery works as it is completely different to my current tray based ones, and at least it's one less to worry about when it rains. The others require regular emptying of the sump to avoid the worms drowning and are all moved somewhere sheltered in the winter to avoid freezing temperatures. With the Subpod, and plenty of bedding for insulation the cold, wet, winter months shouldn't be a bother at all.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Other advantages, taken from the Wiggly website, are:</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><ul style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 7.5px 20px; padding: 0px; text-align: start;"><li aria-level="1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 0.25em;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Smell-free and pest-proof</span></span></li><li aria-level="1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 0.25em;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Composts up to 15kg of food waste a week</span></span></li><li aria-level="1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 0.25em;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Suitable for households of 1 - 6</span></span></li><li aria-level="1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 0.25em;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Dual compost chambers</span></span></li><li aria-level="1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 0.25em;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Effortless 5-minute-a-week maintenance</span></span></li></ul><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">And finally, the packaging is cardboard and can be recycled, either shredded and used in the wormery or compost heaps/bins or via your household waste recycling. Being the perfect size the box has been laid as a path to my compost bins to avoid muddy feet thanks to the lovely UK weather.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">For further information and the options available please see the Wiggly Wigglers page at <a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/subpod-in-garden-compost-system">https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/subpod-in-garden-compost-system</a></span></span></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br /> </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-38337542993605678882019-11-23T08:26:00.001+00:002021-08-08T10:06:17.050+00:00Looking After Your Wormery In The Winter<div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; font-family: Arapey, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 7.5px;">
I originally published this on the <a href="https://wigglywigglers.co.uk/">Wiggly Wigglers</a> blog but a lot of the links are now out of date, and they no longer sell the Worm Cafe or Can-o-Worms but rather the much funkier looking <a href="https://wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/urbalive-wormery-kits" style="background-color: transparent;">Urbalive wormery</a>. So this is basically a refreshed version of the original blog with updated links and the addition of some advice for Urbalive users.</div>
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The nights are drawing in, the temperature is dropping and the rain seems to fall day and night. None of this is good news for your wormery.</div>
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If you have a Worm Cafe or <a href="https://amzn.to/33dODJe">Worm City</a> wormery then the rain isn't so bad because the air holes are in the sides rather than the lid but if you have a Can-o-worms or <a href="https://wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/urbalive-wormery-kits">Urbalive</a> then you need to keep an eye on how much rain is seeping through and filling up the sump. In the summer this is a good thing because you get to feed your vegetables (and especially tomatoes) on a daily basis and get rewarded with a bumper crop of beautiful, home grown veg. However, as winter approaches you'll be less inclined to venture out and don't have so much veg to water/feed anyway. This results in the sump getting full quite quickly so you need to keep an eye on it and often empty it daily or, not only will the wormery get cold and wet, it will fill up with water and drown your worms. Too much wet also encourages anaerobic conditions that can kill your worms as the food rots and the compost becomes compacted.</div>
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<i>So what should you do?</i></div>
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Firstly, try and move the wormery somewhere out of the rain - a shed or garage is perfect for over wintering as it will help keep the frost, as well as the rain, off. If you can't move it under cover keep it as close to the house wall as possible so it gains some heat and is at least a little sheltered from the wind, rain and frost. For the <a href="https://wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/urbalive-wormery-kits">Urbalive</a> wormery, which has wooden feet I would stand it on some bricks or something to save the wood from getting wet and (eventually) rotting. Standing it on something will also make it easier to get at the tap, which is directly underneath the wormery and difficult to get at when it is free standing.</div>
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During the summer I often rely on shredded paper and cardboard for keeping the wormery dry and this doesn't alter much in the Winter either as paper is good at drying a wormery out when too wet, keeps the compost aerated by stopping it getting compacted and adds much needed carbon for the worms while also producing great compost that can be used for top dressing your plants or improving the soil in your borders.</div>
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However, it also helps to try and keep the rain out and the worms warm so that they will continue to break down your waste as well as they can during the winter months. For both the Worm Cafe and Can-o-worms it's well worth buying a couple of <a href="https://wigglywigglers.co.uk/products/moisture-mats-cow-thick" style="background: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black;">moisture mats</a> (these are good for the summer as well but less necessary when it's warmer). They keep the worms in the dark (so they work better), dryer and warmer. It's worth noting that the worms will slow down a bit as it gets colder anyway so every little helps to keep them warm and active.</div>
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If your wormery is one with air holes in the lid then it really is best to get it under some sort of cover but be careful not to block the air holes - they are there for a reason and you don't want to suffocate your worms! A cover is well worth it though if you don't fancy venturing out on one of those miserable, dark, wet and windy winter evenings to make sure your worms aren't drowning!</div>
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If it gets very cold and falls below freezing for a length of time then it really is advisable to get them under cover but if that's not possible then bubble wrap, old carpet and placing it near the flu from the central heating will also help. Not too close to that flu though as the last thing you want is them being affected by carbon monoxide poisoning!</div>
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You'll also want to feed less when it's very cold as they do slow down quite a bit and uneaten waste can easily rot, causing acidic and anaerobic conditions that will make the wormery smell and possibly kill off your worms.</div>
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And don't forget that you can join the brilliant discussion groups in the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#%21/group.php?gid=3120520301" style="background: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black;">Wiggly Wigglers Facebook group</a> where there's plenty of like-minded people willing to share their experiences and help answer your questions with tried and tested advice. It's a great community and everybody is really helpful and friendly.</div>
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Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-52636268493665386022017-10-15T10:38:00.002+00:002021-08-08T10:06:46.059+00:00Unboxing Wiggly Wiggler's new Urbalive Wormery<style>
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Back in 1996, or thereabouts, I bought my first wormery as I wanted a neat way of composting our food waste and producing amazing compost of such quality that I truly think it is more of a fertiliser than a compost. Moving on 20 years I have owned and tried a number of different wormeries, some which have worked well (the one from 1996 is still going strong) and some not so well.<br />
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So when Heather, from <a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/" target="_blank">Wiggly Wigglers</a> (the company that built itself around composting with worms but has now branched out into growing and selling their own bird food mixes and the absolutely brilliant <a href="https://www.greatbritishflorist.co.uk/" target="_blank">Great British Florist</a> supplying flower arrangements made wholly from British flowers) asked me if I would trial a new wormery they want to sell I jumped at the chance.<br />
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The <a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/" target="_blank">Wiggly Wigglers</a> Urbalive worm composter arrived a few days later and I set about assembling it.<br />
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Unboxing it I noticed that it is very different to my usual black plastic outdoor wormeries such as my Can-o-worms, Worm Cafe and Worm City; it has a very modern looking design with rounded corners and real wooden legs.<br />
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The mesh bottom is a great addition as it will stop the worms from getting into the sump, something that comes up a lot in support questions. The small trowel is also a nice touch (but ignore the screwdriver as that is not part of the kit!).<br />
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The legs slot into the holes at the bottom and can be screwed in place. They are very sturdy and will solve the problem of the flimsy black legs of a heavy and full can-o-worms bending and occasionally snapping when being moved. Also of note is that that there is no entry into the wormery from the legs, something that will please anybody who has had the fun/challenge of trying to deter ants from stealing the worm cocoons from a can-o-worms.<br />
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The tap is easily fitted, with a decent handle so should also last longer than that of the can-o-worms which could be very hard to use once the handle wears and snaps off (as it has on two of mine).<br />
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<img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wKVr1rm9wrw/WeMt8-S2MWI/AAAAAAAAbJQ/_BWx4YgJu9EVUiRBHjVEfTHMlfCS77I7QCKgBGAs/s200/IMG_20171013_133104.jpg" width="200" /><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3E30zeK0d6I/WeMt85dgg3I/AAAAAAAAbJQ/xoeAGtIVbdYCysD1pNDzdWRIY9syJjlcwCKgBGAs/s200/IMG_20171013_132615.jpg" width="200" />
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Once the legs and tap have been fitted the mesh can be placed in the sump and sits very firmly. Time will tell how well this lasts and performs but I think it is a great idea and will save a lot of worms from heading down to the sump and drowning (another support question that comes up time and time again with other wormeries). <br />
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You can see from the picture with the first tray added that the holes are a good size to allow free movement of the worms between the layers, and also for allowing 'worm tea' (leachate) to flow into the sump where it can be harvested and used as a fantastic organic plant food (when watered down at a ratio of 10.1).<br />
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To start the wormery off Wiggly Wigglers supply a coir block, which is basically a compressed brick of coconut fibres that makes a good starter bedding for your new wormery. The brick needs soaking in a bucket of water and it never ceases to amaze me just how much water these things can soak up!<br />
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Once ready add the coir to the bottom tray and spread it around to evenly cover the bottom using the supplied trowel. Make sure it isn't too dry but don't worry about how wet it is as the liquid will drain into the sump.<br />
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And now for the worms! Spread them evenly on the surface and leave the wormery for a while in the light. Worms hate the light and will burrow down into the coir to escape it.<br />
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Once they have all but disappeared you can add a SMALL amount of food waste. It is REALLY important not to add too much at this stage as they have plenty of coir to much through and will take time to get themselves established.<br />
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And then you can either cut a piece of corrugated cardboard (Amazon box type cardboard) to fit the tray or cover in shredded paper like in the picture. This helps keep out the light (worms work best in the dark) as well as soaking up excess moisture. I really cannot stress how important shredded paper is in a wormery - not only does it help keep them in the dark and soak up moisture but the worms love the stuff and helps them produce a more balanced vermicompost.<br />
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And that's it! All setup and raring to go.<br />
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So there you have it, a very nicely designed composter that will work as well inside as it will outside. And with it's solid and lid that fits snugly there should be no escapees as can happen when a can-o-worms is brought inside for the winter. For the first time in 20 years I can see this thing living in the kitchen (I admit I haven't yet made that suggestion to my wife) rather than getting holed up in the greenhouse over winter.<br />
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Now for the difficult part though - it will take the worms a while to get established so they need to be left alone for a couple of weeks, after which you can start feeding them more of your waste food scraps.<br />
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So, after a few weeks check them by carefully digging down to see how well they are working the waste. If there is no waste 2-3 inches below the surface then feel free to add some more - try not to over feed as they won't keep up, the waste will start to rot (raising the pH) and you could easily end up with a foul smelling mess and a lot of dead worms. Wiggly Wigglers supply a bag of worm treat and lime mix with the kit so add a handful of the these every now and then to keep the pH down and your worms happy. In about 6 months you should be rewarded with a tray of 'black gold' ready for your vegetable garden, top- dressing house plants or mixing in with potting compost to give your plants a great boost.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 700;">Urbalive is the new face of Worm Composting – Exclusively in the UK from Wiggly Wigglers. Order yours today at <a href="https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/wormeries.html" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #428bca; text-decoration-line: none;">https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/wormeries.html</a></span></div>
Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com2United Kingdom55.378051 -3.4359729999999912.203021 -86.05316049999999 90 79.18121450000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-26208398904581728672015-12-14T20:14:00.001+00:002015-12-17T03:38:16.927+00:00(Business) Trip To India - November 2015<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-center;">If you'd rather just view the pictures from India rather than just the few shown on this page (or rather than trawl through the text below) you can do so by clicking </span><a href="https://goo.gl/photos/FqYFNxxmejzzKcEs8" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-center;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-center;">.</span></i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In November I was able to get across to Gurgaon, which is just south of Delhi in India. The main objective of the trip was to meet our off-shore development and support teams who we have worked (very) well with over the last few years. I don't get to travel much (work or otherwise) so I jumped at the chance, not least because India is high on the list of places I have always wanted to go. The big shame though was that Tamsyn couldn't come with me and see her own country before I did!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So the trip started well, helped of course by travelling Business class, which is just amazing - I'm really not sure what first class gives you over and above that but I really doubt you need it whatever it is. The flight was smooth (good for my "love" of flying) and we landed in Delhi at 08:55 in the morning having flown through night (08:55 is 03:25 in the morning UK time).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As expected the heat hit us as soon as we stepped off the plane. At 28C in November it was nothing short of beautiful, but the biggest shock was the traffic! Oh my, I have never experienced anything like it; everybody uses their horn but not in anger like in the UK but rather to tell other road users they are there. Bearing in mind there is no concept of lanes (or even direction) and that other road users could be lorries, cars, bikes, scooters, cows, horses, pigs and people crossing the road (and even, if it's night, an entire wedding party singing and dancing down the road) it seems to work well and it certainly makes every trip to the office an adventure. It's the one thing I didn't get used to the whole week.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The hotel, The Westin, is beautiful (and 5 star) and proved to be pretty much perfect as it was 20 minutes form the office, which added to the adventure of getting there and back every day...</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">After a bit of a sleep and a wander around the hotel we got to the office at about 4.30pm </span><span class="il" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">India</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> time, got our security passes, shown an office we can use, logged in and answered a few emails before being taken out at 5pm to go to a place called Cyber Hub which is basically a "mall" of restaurants and bars in the middle of an office complex where you have the likes of Google and Microsoft. We ended up in <a href="https://www.zomato.com/ncr/soi-7-pub-brewery-dlf-cyber-city-gurgaon" target="_blank">Soi 7</a> or rather outside it as it has a roof terrace that, once dark, you wouldn't know you were outside (as it was about 25C) having various platters of food and sampling their own brewed beers. You will see from the pictures what happened next but we were all somewhat more subdued come Saturday morning! :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /><br />Saturday we got the cab (at our disposal 24 hours a day until Thursday) and went out to a plant nursery/farm in between Gurgaon (where we are staying) and Delhi, where Prisihita and Prerna (two of the girls from the office) translated for me to ask loads of questions. The nursery was both flowers (many the same as we get here such as Dahlia's, Chrysanthemums, Marigold's and Petunia's etc but also palms of all types as well as weeping figs (Ficus) in pots but about 6 foot tall). The farming side was more like a nursery/large allotment for vegetables as well - a couple of large fields split into beds growing various things; cabbages, mustards, radishes (different to ours - long white things) and so on. They don't mono-crop like we do but split everything into large beds and companion plant. <br /><br /> Apparently butterflies and pigeons (there were plenty of both about) are not a problem but peacocks drive them mad!<br /><br />Both the girls asked about them supplying their local market - most of this stuff goes to Delhi (which is huge) so fresh herbs are harder to come by in Gurgaon. The whole issue of getting people to buy (and sell) local appears to apply here just as much as it does in the UK.<br /><br />On a composting side it was harder to describe so I didn't push it. I also didn't want to bore everybody too much as they had given up their Saturday to show us around. I think they do compost as they rotate crops but the soil was parched and had to be watered regularly so, to me, it looked like it needed a good 2 inches of organic matter. It might get it for all I know but it was very red clay type soil and needs watering daily.<br /><br />The biggest shock for me was finding out that one of the girls husbands had been impressed with how I wasn't embarrassed to say my family were farmers! Apparently, in India, farming is classed as one of the lowest forms of work because you are working in the dirt. Quite the contrast to the UK where everybody expects you to be landed gentry if you own a farm...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Once done there the driver drove us past quite a few similar set-ups causing lots of honking of horns and people swerving around us before taking us into Delhi to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Fort">The Red Fort,</a> which was quite stunning and an experience getting in what with beggars, the crowds and having to check your pockets every time somebody bumped into you! The girls managed to get us a Guide for 100 Rupees (£1) - he had started at 500 Rupees (£5) which I thought fairly cheap but watching them in action was amazing. He turned out to be fairly terrible but I learned quite a bit about the place so it was certainly worth it and I got some great pictures. The big eye opener for me was not necessarily the number of birds (pigeons mostly - they're the same the world over) but the quantity of Eagles flying around. Also parrots and Indian magpies (which were more like prettier Starling's and sang beautifully).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From there we stopped off at a small restaurant the girls knew that was lovely; hidden, small, and won loads of awards apparently. I've no idea what I ate as I told them I like sweet over hot but I tried everything. The one dish I did recognise was Biriyani. What we've noticed here is that everything is smaller portions, brought out regularly rather than all at once and a lot less oily. So you have a great meal and walk away sated rather than bloated and stuffed. It really felt like my taste buds had been awakened for the first time and I think Indian food in the UK will now be a bit of a let down...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Sunday we started off taking it easy; trip to the gym, sitting in the sun by the pool and enjoying the sunshine and hotel facilities before picking up Prishita (who had thankfully volunteered to take us shopping) to take me shopping for gifts and clothes for Tamsyn and the children. I hate shopping and don't think she quite realised what she was letting herself in for but I think it went OK. Except for Christopher that is - I wanted to get him an Indian cricket top but you couldn't find one anywhere. if you want a fecking Manchester United top they were everywhere but nothing for India (we ended up getting it mail order and delivered to the office in the end).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The rest of the week unfortunately involved working but it went well I think and we came back with loads of ideas on how we can improve things at work. Blah blah blah.<br /><br />One thing that I really got from the office was the tea! They brew it differently to the UK by putting all the ingredients in together and bringing the lot to the boil and it was truly amazing! Luckily, Prishita shared my love of tea and we would grab a cup whenever we could. It was divine and again, cheap at 7 Rupees (7p) per cup!!! Imagining the same thing from somewhere like Costa and I reckon it would be nearer 300 Rupees (£3) and not taste anything like as nice.<br /><br /> We did get out a few more times and have a great time with the guys; once to a place called <a href="http://www.kingdomofdreams.in/">The Kingdom Of Dreams</a> where we saw a live show of a Bollywood film called <a href="http://www.kingdomofdreams.in/zangoora/index.html">Zangoora</a>, which was absolutely amazing; a live show with the most energetic dancing and music I have ever seen. It was basically The Lion King set in India with more magic and no animals (OK it was nothing like The Lion King) but it absolutely blew me away (and I felt really bad that Tamsyn wasn't there to enjoy it as this really is more her thing).<br /><br /> Outside of the theatre is a street with buildings from every state in India and live shows of various cultural music and dancing just going on as and when. You can get food specific to the state as well as buy gifts from there as well. In the UK you would expect the food to be rubbish and any gifts to be over priced tat, but here the food was amazing, dirt cheap and the gifts weren't bad either (so I stocked up on some more for the family).</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Having shown us some culture the next night was a trip to Smaash, again at Cyber Hub, where we did bowling and had food. And there's another difference between India and the UK - in somewhere you would do bowling the food would be disgusting and over priced. Not in India - we had an array of dishes bought out to us and they were all amazing. I was starting to get a cold and this Paneer Chili (basically cottage cheese but nicer) enabled me to not only breath through my nose again but also my ears!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From there we went back to Soi 7 for more (much more) brewed on site beer...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was a little depressed to leave to be honest - we achieved a lot work-wise, definitely cemented the working relationship and generally had a ball while doing so.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">However, I was also made up on the way home to capture this picture while flying over the mountains of Afghanistan.</span><br />
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Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-13128716274509924792015-09-01T16:36:00.002+00:002017-10-17T04:53:27.837+00:00The Hotbin 3 years on...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/user/templates/hotbin-green/fast-hotbin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="left" alt="The Hotbin" border="0" src="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/user/templates/hotbin-green/fast-hotbin.jpg" data-original-height="227" data-original-width="165" height="200" title="The Hotbin" width="145" /></a></div>
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I've had my <a href="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/" target="_blank">Hotbin</a> since 2012 and <a href="http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2013/05/hotbin-composting.html" target="_blank">blogged about it a year later to say how I was finding it</a> and got some great advice from the guys at Hotbin which really helped keep it functioning well.</div>
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Recently Hotbin have started up a <a href="http://forum.hotbincomposting.com/" target="_blank">forum</a> for users to get hints & tips, ask general questions and get experience and h<br />
elp from others and I can honestly say it has been a bit of an eye opener for me and I've picked up a few things well worth sharing.</div>
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For the whole of this year I have been struggling to get the temperature above 50C with occasional peaks of 55C on hot days, a far cry from the 60-65C I can normally get during the summer months.</div>
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Well thanks to the forum I heard that the air holes at the bottom can become blocked which seriously impedes the flow of air and therefore stops the bin from reaching the temperatures it is capable of.</div>
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I empty my normal compost bins twice a year and decided to empty the Hotbin as well and give it a good clean, which other than the lid is not really something I've bothered with beforehand. So (and thanks to the forum for this tip as well) I removed the top layer of uncomposted waste and laid it on some cardboard for adding back later. This waste was hot and VERY smelly! The reason for doing this was so that when I emptied the compost from the bottom of the bin the fresher stuff didn't slip down and mix with the ready stuff still stuck at the back.</div>
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The compost at the bottom of the bin wasn't quite ready as it was quite compacted but it was good enough to go in my normal compost bins for ageing. I've done this before and come next March this stuff <b>will</b> be finished and ready for mulching my plants so it's all good.</div>
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And sure enough, once the bin was empty and I started to clean it the air holes at the bottom were completely blocked. While trying to sort them out I noticed that the very bottom could be removed and cleaned separately. That will teach me to read the instructions! </div>
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<span style="font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">This has not been cleaned like this since I got it in 2012 so I'm sure it will make a difference, especially when you see what was underneath the tray!</span></h5>
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That brown sludge is exactly that, almost solid sludge stopping air from coming in from the grill. I removed it with a trowel and gave the whole thing a good wash with the hose pipe before putting everything back together and adding a layer of bark and the previously removed top layer back in.</div>
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The bin is now less than a quarter full and the temperature 2 hours later was already showing at 50C from the thermometer in the lid. I've heard it said that the lid thermometer often shows as 10C less than the actual waste but I wasn't adding the other thermometer as it was too far down and I didn't fancy falling in!</div>
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<b>Tip of the day:</b> Do not clean a Hotbin with a high powered hosepipe while you have washing on the line - it does not make you a popular husband :) </div>
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Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-29217499015154977312015-04-12T13:10:00.003+00:002015-04-12T13:10:33.121+00:00Troubleshooting Your Wormery<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">Further to the damp and compacted conditions you can find in your wormery after </span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">prolonged</span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;"> rain and/or Winter - see </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2015/04/looking-after-your-wormery-in-spring.html">http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2015/04/looking-after-your-wormery-in-spring.html</a> - what else should you look out for?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here’s 5 of the most common things I see in my wormeries:</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">1. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Insects</u></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the winter and early spring there isn't much of a problem but as things start to warm up there are a number of insects who somehow manage to make a home in your wormery. Most are OK as they (or their larvae) eat the waste and generally help in the process of breaking things down nicely. As you get more experienced you will be able to match up the conditions with the insect and act accordingly. </span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Some of the more common ones are:</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">a)</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <u>Pot worms</u></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - these are small white worms that many people mistake for baby worms. They are fine if you don’t mind them BUT they do indicate damp conditions and a compost that is starting to become acidic. To get rid of them in the short term leave a slice of bread in the wormery overnight. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lWqiwaVN4hE/VSpq8nSYY_I/AAAAAAAAJ7g/-_UAl7F0zrw/s1600/3035358218_67b1eff457_o%2B(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lWqiwaVN4hE/VSpq8nSYY_I/AAAAAAAAJ7g/-_UAl7F0zrw/s1600/3035358218_67b1eff457_o%2B(1).jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Small white pot-worms</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">The next morning you will find said bread absolutely teeming with pot worms so remove it and put it on the bird table to give your birds a treat. In the long term you need to aerate the compost so mix in some shredded paper and cardboard as well as a hand full of lime mix if you have some. This will bring down the pH and make for happier worms.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">b) </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Springtails</u></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - these are very small white insects that aid the composting and are totally harmless as they eat fungi that grows on the waste. I use them as an indication that things are generally functioning well.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D4onWVffTNM/VSpNcsDJkuI/AAAAAAAAJ6k/cpyRprPuIQA/s1600/2238694417_9fe524321e_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D4onWVffTNM/VSpNcsDJkuI/AAAAAAAAJ6k/cpyRprPuIQA/s1600/2238694417_9fe524321e_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Springtails in amongst the worms</td></tr>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">c) </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Fruit flies</u></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - they love the fruit you add and do no damage to the worms at all BUT there’s nothing quite like opening the lid and having them swarm up your nose and in your ears so you’re going to want to discourage them wherever possible. The perfect way to do this is to get into the habit of wrapping all your food waste in a sheet of newspaper before adding it to the wormery. The paper soaks up some moisture, the worms will eat it from below and yet the waste is protected from the fruit flies who can’t get to it to lay their eggs. This is an especially good idea during the summer months. Alternatively, bury the waste underneath a good layer of shredded paper, again so the flies cannot get at it to lay their eggs.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">d) <u>Ants</u> - these are a real pain because they cart off the cocoons (worm eggs that each contain a number of baby worms) so your worm population will suffer in the long run. To keep them out you can stand the wormery legs in jars of water (ants won’t cross water) but if they do get in you will probably have to go hunting for the queen and remove her. They are also an indication that the wormery is too dry so it may be worth adding some water to dampen the compost a bit. I know, I've been telling you how to stop the wormery getting too wet! It’s one of the reasons to keep a regular eye on things.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>2. Overfeeding</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Really this is one of the most common problems people have and it can be disastrous, especially with a new wormery.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When you first get a wormery add small amounts of kitchen waste and paper and keep an eye on how the worms are coping. Once the population increases you can start increasing the amount of waste but always keep an eye on things. Once established I try to make sure there is pure vermicompost about 3-4 inches below the top layer and that the worms are working well in your current layer of food. This helps stop them from being over faced with too much to choose from and will keep conditions optimal. </span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Another thing to remember is that most new wormeries come with a coir block to act as an immediate bedding and people worry that the worms are reluctant to move up to their kitchen waste. This is because they are quite happy eating the coir block so only add a small amount of kitchen waste at first, a hefty amount of shredded paper and leave them to it for a bit. They will move onto the kitchen waste once they are ready - just keep a regular eye on things so you know when to start feeding them more.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>3. Type of waste</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So what exactly can you feed your worms? Well, they love variety (as do we all) so try and vary what you give them. The following is a rough list of the things they like and what you should avoid:</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Good:</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Kitchen food waste such as vegetable peelings, tea leaves and coffee grounds. Be aware that with teabags quite a few have a quantity of nylon in them to hold them together so although the worms will break into them and eat the tea leaves you may well be left with the odd teabag ‘ghost’. They won’t bother the worms but you will notice them when you come to use the compost - just remove them when you add to other compost or borders if you want. I use a lot of teabags and it really doesn't cause a problem.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fruit peelings such as banana skins and apple cores (beware of fruit flies with these - follow the tips above for wrapping your waste in newspaper).</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crushed up egg shells - the worms need the grit that these provide and they help with the pH of the compost. Worms lack teeth though so a great tip is to dry the shells in the bottom of the oven while you cook something else. They can then easily be crushed into a powder and sprinkled into the wormery.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shredded or torn up paper; newspaper, bank statements, credit card receipts, toilet roll inners, kitchen paper and tissues as well as brown corrugated cardboard from the likes of Amazon etc.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bad (or at least not so good):</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cooked food such as meat or fish - this will rot and smell as well as invite unwanted guests to appear (to compost such things why not try <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/how-to-use-bokashi" target="_blank">Bokashi</a>, a system that is sealed and works brilliantly with most things that a wormery can’t handle).</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Citrus fruit and onion peelings as they are acidic. Very small doses may be OK but I find it best to avoid where possible, and add some lime every now and then. </span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Animal manure though possibly OK is best avoided as you cannot guarantee that it isn't from an animal recently wormed (disastrous). Worms also cannot break down any pathogens it may contains so the finished compost may not be great for vegetable production etc. I have used a wormery for dogs mess but a lot of care needs to be taken and I've only used the finished product for under the hedge. </span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>4. Position</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Where you keep your wormery can really make a difference. You want it close to the house but sheltered enough to keep it safe.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the Spring and summer try and keep it out of direct sunlight otherwise it will heat up quickly in the sun, bake the worms (or make them try and escape), cause excess condensation that then makes the compost too wet and generally make for a less than stable environment for your worms to work (too hot one minute and then quickly cooling down etc).</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the winter it needs to be out of the wind and rain so it doesn't get too cold and wet for all the reasons mentioned previously.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Try and keep a weight on the lid, such as a house brick. This holds the lid firmly in place during windier weather as well minimising the number of escapees when conditions aren't optimal inside the wormery (especially when newly set-up).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j3uei4Dyxz8/VSpPT5eOUuI/AAAAAAAAJ64/FIkY5LZOM5M/s1600/CanoWorms.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j3uei4Dyxz8/VSpPT5eOUuI/AAAAAAAAJ64/FIkY5LZOM5M/s1600/CanoWorms.png" height="320" width="284" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brick to help keep lid in place and bottle for collecting leachate</td></tr>
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<b style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">5. Regularly empty the sump</b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is a really good idea to get into the habit of emptying the sump on a regular basis. If it gets too full the compost will get wet causing soggy, anaerobic conditions as well as possibly drowning your worms. The worm tea (leachate) makes a great liquid feed during the growing season and can be stored throughout the winter (or just poured directly on your borders). Either way getting into the habit of emptying the sump is good so you avoid the sudden realisation that it hasn't stopped raining for a couple of weeks and you haven’t been doing it. I guarantee you will find the odd dead worm come from the tap when you do get round to it and I wouldn't worry about it. They seem to go to the sump to die - I just re-add them to the top when I check the bin over.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">Conclusion</b><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I appreciate there is quite a lot of information there but if you take the time to give the wormery a Spring clean and check over it will soon reward you with some fantastic compost for top dressing house plants and vegetables such potted tomatoes etc. You can then look forward to another bumper year safe in the knowledge that your waste is now working for you, as are your worms.</span></div>
Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-60745632348481620092015-04-12T11:35:00.000+00:002015-04-12T11:35:34.025+00:00Looking after your wormery in the Spring<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Gc5-MShdbcI/VSpNUx0dbwI/AAAAAAAAJ6I/NmlrvalSM7s/s1600/2238692459_823da4f3a5_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Gc5-MShdbcI/VSpNUx0dbwI/AAAAAAAAJ6I/NmlrvalSM7s/s1600/2238692459_823da4f3a5_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now Spring is starting to show itself it is time to bring your wormery out of the garage, greenhouse or wherever you have kept it over the Winter months to keep your little workers warm and dry and, hopefully, still productive while the temperatures have been lower. Of course some of you may have kept them out during winter and just kept the sump drained during the wetter times so that your hard working wigglers don’t drown but either way it is worth doing a quick check to make sure everything is functioning as we want and to prepare them for another year of transforming stuff we would normally throw away in amazing compost.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>So What Makes A Wormery So Great?</u></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">For a quick run-down of what a wormery is and how it works this post covers the basics - <a href="http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2015/04/so-what-makes-wormery-so-great.html">http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2015/04/so-what-makes-wormery-so-great.html</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-decoration: underline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Getting a wormery moving again in Spring</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Worms work best when it is warm and slow down a lot if the temperature drops. In the winter it is generally a good idea to keep them somewhere warm and dry and feed them slightly less (tips and tricks here can be found at </span><a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/blog/getting-your-wormery-ready-for-the-winter/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/blog/getting-your-wormery-ready-for-the-winter/</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">)</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But now Spring is on the way and the temperatures will (hopefully) start to rise you can bring them out of your shed or garage and start them as normal again (keeping a close eye on how fast they are dealing with what you give them). </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i9sPI0N0yr8/VSpNcQxkOYI/AAAAAAAAJ6Y/E3O9a_kkjCY/s1600/2238693365_ddd1b587ac_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i9sPI0N0yr8/VSpNcQxkOYI/AAAAAAAAJ6Y/E3O9a_kkjCY/s1600/2238693365_ddd1b587ac_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Slightly damp top layer</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s a good time to check the state of the wormery itself as heavy winter rains may have left the bedding wet and soggy, which will compact the waste and block all the air pockets. Worms need oxygen to breathe and function well and don’t do well in compacted soil or compost. Less oxygen also means an increase in anaerobic bacteria that can lead to rotting food, acidic conditions and some nasty smells. These conditions mean your worms will be far from happy and may ultimately die so it’s a good time to check conditions and rectify them so that they are working optimally, ready to start creating that lovely compost you want for the forthcoming planting season. Even if kept somewhere dry and warm it’s certainly worth checking everything is OK.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So what do you need to look for?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>1. How wet is the compost and waste? </b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If it’s very soggy you should mix in some shredded paper and/or cardboard (the Amazon box type cardboard is perfect). I avoid glossy paper but any other shredded paper (credit card receipts and bank statements etc) should be OK as inks are mostly vegetable based these days. Also, check all trays because if it’s wet in the top one it’s likely to be the same in the others and you may need to add a layer of shredded paper to the middle layer as well. This has the added advantage of allowing the worms to climb up to the next layer easier if it’s the type of wormery that holds the trays at a certain layer (can-o-worms and worm cafe for example).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p80Lg3_eKB4/VSpNawIQ6II/AAAAAAAAJ6Q/ngA3xi4yYYU/s1600/2954403356_0fe702eec0_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p80Lg3_eKB4/VSpNawIQ6II/AAAAAAAAJ6Q/ngA3xi4yYYU/s1600/2954403356_0fe702eec0_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Layer of shredded paper</td></tr>
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<b style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">2. Has the waste started to rot?</b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you have overfed during the winter months then there may well be a layer of rotting food that will lead to anaerobic conditions, higher acidity and ultimately some nasty smells and dead worms. Be warned that once a bin goes off in this way mass worm death can easily follow and the smell will be so bad that you will never forget it. It happened to me once with a wormery that had been perfectly happy for about 10 years - the smell was so bad I can actually taste it now just thinking about it! </span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So, waste that is rotten and smelly should be removed as soon as possible and placed in a normal compost bin or heap where it will break down happily over time. Chances are the bin will be quite acidic at this time so if you have some lime mix add a handful or two (most wormeries come with a small bag of lime mix to help you balance out the pH while it is being established). Then fill the tray with as much shredded paper as you can (it is impossible for worms to overdose on paper) and leave them for a while before adding any new waste in small doses.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lime mix and other accessories can of course be purchased from Wiggly Wigglers - <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/composting/wormery-extras/wormery-accessories.html">http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/composting/wormery-extras/wormery-accessories.html</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>3. Do you still have worms?</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Daft as this may sound but worms rot down very quickly once they die and if your bin has suffered a lot from frost, cold or anything else they may not like then they could all have died off. Don’t worry though, they will almost certainly have left behind cocoons that will hatch and build up your population again but it is a slow process. Once you know the Winter is truly over it may well be worth buying a new batch of worms to kick start things again. These can be purchased from <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/composting/worms.html">http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/composting/worms.html</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>4. Emptying the bottom tray</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now your wormery has made it through the Winter the bottom tray is likely ready to empty but there’s likely still the odd worm in there and this has been the cause of many a discussion. Please read a previous article I wrote on emptying the bottom tray that can be found at <a href="http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2009/03/emptying-bottom-layer-of-your-worm-bin.html">http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2009/03/emptying-bottom-layer-of-your-worm-bin.html</a></span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Conclusion</b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">This should be enough to make sure your wormery is in tip-top condition for the new year but you'll still need to keep a close eye on things, especially in the UK where we have such changeable weather and quite a bit of rain. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Make sure you position your wormery somewhere out of extreme weather if possible, empty the sump regularly (for all that free plant food if nothing else) and keep a brick on the lid to stop it from blowing away if it is more open to the elements than necessary.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">And above all else keep an eye on them to check they are keeping up with what you are feeding them.</span></div>
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<br />Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-13491984270708840952015-04-12T11:13:00.002+00:002015-04-12T11:13:10.400+00:00So what makes a wormery so great?<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For those of you who don’t yet own a wormery and wonder quite what all the fuss is about read on…</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-j3uei4Dyxz8/VSpPT5eOUuI/AAAAAAAAJ60/dic8ZCCTMwA/s1600/CanoWorms.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-j3uei4Dyxz8/VSpPT5eOUuI/AAAAAAAAJ60/dic8ZCCTMwA/s1600/CanoWorms.png" height="320" width="284" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can-o-worms wormery</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In short, a wormery is a fantastic way of taking your kitchen waste and transforming it (in the form of ‘castings’) into a compost so high in nutrient value that I often refer to it more as a fertiliser than a mere compost. It diverts such kitchen waste from landfill (if your Council doesn't already collect it) but also saves you from having to then buy in compost and mulch later in the year when you need it in your garden. A wormery will also produce a fantastic liquid fertliser that, when watered down at about 10:1, will provide organic feed to all your plants and vegetables thereby saving you yet more money. If you don’t have plants to feed then just adding it to your borders will help improve the structure of your soil with a multitude of friendly nutrients and organisms. If you don’t have plants or borders I’m sure there will be gardeners a plenty happy to take the castings and liquid feed off your hands (at least if they realise how powerful it is).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Composting with a wormery is a great way for people without the room for a compost bin or heap to compost. They are generally small and neat and can be kept close to the house to save the trip down a cold and windswept garden in the winter. “Eww, but what about the smell?”, I hear you say. Simple, there isn’t one! Really, if a wormery is working correctly the compost should have a slight earthy smell and not cause any problem at all.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They come in all shapes and sizes as well but generally consist of a number of trays and a sump. Once the first tray is full you add the second and the worms will wiggle their way up through the holes in the tray above to get to the layer of new waste (generally once they have finished the tray they are currently in of course). Once that tray is full you add another and the process continues until the last one is full, by which time the bottom one should now consist of a beautiful black gold, known as vermicompost, ready to be applied to plants as a top dressing, mixed with other compost to make a potting mixture or just added to your borders as a fertiliser-come-mulch that will feed the plants every time it rains as well as improve the quality of your soil in the long run.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5wgl31UXc0Q/VSpR82ibPZI/AAAAAAAAJ7A/TiNrja6oOF4/s1600/3395605314_b71c7a0432_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5wgl31UXc0Q/VSpR82ibPZI/AAAAAAAAJ7A/TiNrja6oOF4/s1600/3395605314_b71c7a0432_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bottom tray, ready for emptying</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For help with how best to empty the bottom tray please read <a href="http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2009/03/emptying-bottom-layer-of-your-worm-bin.html">http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2009/03/emptying-bottom-layer-of-your-worm-bin.html</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Resources</u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wiggly Wigglers no longer sell wormeries but they do still sell the necessary items for keeping them in tip top condition - <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/composting/wormery-extras/wormery-accessories.html">http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/composting/wormery-extras/wormery-accessories.html</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Worm City sell a British built stacking wormery - </span><span style="line-height: 1.38;"><a href="http://www.wormcity.co.uk/wormeries.htm">http://www.wormcity.co.uk/wormeries.htm</a></span></div>
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Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-47726445353102088562013-05-12T16:27:00.000+00:002017-10-17T04:57:09.125+00:00HotBin Composting<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/user/templates/hotbin-green/fast-hotbin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="left" alt="The Hotbin" border="0" src="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/user/templates/hotbin-green/fast-hotbin.jpg" data-original-height="227" data-original-width="165" height="200" title="The Hotbin" width="145" /></a></div>
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I've just finished reading Jane Perrone's <a href="http://perrone.blogs.com/horticultural/2013/04/the-hotbin-aerobic-hot-composter-review-part-two.html">post</a> on her experience with her <a href="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/">HotBin</a> and it reminded me I have been thinking of writing about my own experiences for a while, especially now that I've had it over 12 months so have seen it perform in all seasons.<br />
<a href="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/products/105-hotbin-composting.aspx" style="float: left;"></a>Like Jane I was excited to take delivery because it meant I could compost all the things my wormery's and standard compost heaps couldn't, namely meat and cooked foods without the need for a Bokashi bin in the kitchen and the chance of it leaking and stinking the house out. Promised temperatures of 60C mean that even the problem of dogs mess can be eradicated because after half an hour or so at that temperature nothing nasty survives and it just becomes good old fashioned compost, saving me an awful lot of hassle (it sure beats bagging it in a plastic bag and putting straight into landfill).<br />
Jane mentions that the bin is ugly but I disagree: It is a solidly built black polystyrene bin that slots in nicely down the side of the house in between my water butt and wormery's. I would even go as far as saying it is quite stylish looking, but you do have to bear in mind that I'm a bit strange when it comes to my composting set-up (touching on the fanatical when it comes to all things compost, even going as far as collecting banana skins and teabags from people at work and bringing them home to compost rather than let them go in landfill) ...<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--K-Zt84U1sw/UY-y8u3MqpI/AAAAAAAADOY/asX4cuJqWcs/s1600/Hotbin.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img align="right" border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--K-Zt84U1sw/UY-y8u3MqpI/AAAAAAAADOY/asX4cuJqWcs/s320/Hotbin.JPG" style="margin: 0px 5px 5px 0px;" /></a> This is just after arriving and, untidy early Spring garden aside, I think it fits in quite neatly. When not over wintering in the greenhouse the wormery's live next to it so kitchen waste can easily be added rather than traipsing across to the lawn to the compost bins.<br />
So how have things gone in the last 12 months?<br />
<h5>
First few months and emptying</h5>
I found it easy to get going and the compost-geek really kicks in when seeing the thermometer reading 60C and knowing that that means you are composting your waste at 32 times that of a normal compost bin (meaning usable compost in approximately 3 months!). However, Jane is right that it is a pig to empty. You remove the hatch and start forking out the finished compost only to find that the stuff above falls in its place before you get to the back, meaning not only is unfinished compost mixing with the good stuff but the compacted compost at the back stays there.
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The "finished" compost is generally not the compost we are used to and will need ageing if it is going to be used as anything other than a rough mulch. You can either add it to a normal compost heap/bin for aging or add it to your wormery where the worms will go mad for it and turn it into even more beneficial vermicompost (more of a fertiliser than a compost). This is what I do now as I have 3 wormeries that were previously taking my kitchen waste but slowed down once the Hotbin arrived. They now take waste from the Hotbin every month or so and take another month or so to turn into vermicompsot for top dressing plants or adding round my vegetables as a mulch or feed.<br />
<h5>
Keeping the temperature up</h5>
The problem with emptying can cause problems with the air movement, which then results in the temperature dropping thereby slowing things down considerably. Once things get compacted the air vents in the bottom of the bin get blocked and the lack of air flow can cause the temperature to drop <b>very</b> quickly. I use a Compost mate that I bought from <a href="http://www.paidonresults.net/c/27217/9/636/0">Wiggly Wigglers</a> and currently costs £17.50 (worth every penny) for aerating the bin contents from above - you screw the tool into the compost and then pull out a plug of material creating a chimney that keeps the air flow working nicely (and the compost hot). However this can cause the newer stuff to fall deeper into the bin which means slightly longer before you can remove it.
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In the summer keeping the bin hot is reasonably easy because you can add grass cuttings, though add too much and you get leachate leaking out of the bottom that attracts flies resulting in maggots and that silage-type pong oh so loved by ones wife (NOT!).<br />
In the winter months however things are trickier and the bin maintenance becomes a weekly chore. I have found that adding LOTS of shredded paper helps in much the same way as it helps in a wormery; it keeps the air flow possible, dries out soggy compost (that can also restrict the airflow)and also keeps the temperature up as it composts quite quickly. I also add pelleted chicken manure to help keep the temperature up. So, the recipe is for each caddy of kitchen waste I add a handful of bark (supplied with the bin and also used for aerating the compost), a few handfuls of shredded paper and a cup full of chicken manure pellets. This keeps things working nicely as well as improve the quality of the finished product.<br />
<h5>
Conclusion</h5>
Much as I wouldn't swap it - when working well it works <b>very</b> well - and I'm turning kitchen waste round quickly for my plants at home and the allotment I don't think it is the single answer to all things compost. Much like my old <a href="http://blog.sherlock.co.uk/2008/02/my-composting-setup.html">composting set-up</a> I think you need more than one bin, and at £149 that's unlikely because they are not what you would call cheap. With a second bin you would be able to have it composting nice and hot until it's full and then move onto the second bin. By the time the second was full the first should be done enough to be emptied completely and started again, thereby avoiding the emptying issues that make it so hard (and smelly) to use.
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For more information and help Hotbin have a great <a href="http://www.hotbincomposting.com/boards/default.aspx">Frequently asked questions</a> section on their web site and are very good at answering queries both on <a href="https://twitter.com/HOTBINcompost">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HOTBINcomposting?fref=ts">Facebook</a>.Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-90216082703513392932012-08-12T11:19:00.001+00:002012-08-12T11:23:49.340+00:00Portugal 2012<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/7757924448/" title="P1020587 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8305/7757924448_99001601bf_n.jpg" width="320" height="240" alt="P1020587"></a></center><br/> The last thing a colleague at work said as I headed for the door ready to start my holiday was “Try and relax”, not something I'm very good at in general. Portugal in the summer is hot, sunny and laid back, especially where we were staying (Vila Nune) so I didn't think I would have too much trouble.<br />
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However, the start of the journey was typically eventful. When I say that I mean I am a Sherlock so little things go wrong; a last minute diversion to Morrison’s on the way to the airport for tea bags are a classic example of what my life is like.<br />
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On arrival at Porto airport the car we had hired was so smashed up we couldn't have it so we ended up with a much smaller car that, luckily, I could get all the bags in while still managing to fit the wife and children in.<br />
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It was late by this time and I was tired: It would appear so was the Sat Nav and we couldn't find the turning off the roundabout for love or money and even found ourselves about to head back onto the toll road until a kind local who spoke no English helped us reverse back up the road before removing whatever spell was hiding the correct exit so we could be on our way.
Unfortunately, I had already panicked at the toll and driven through the camera bit that means I couldn’t pay for the ticket so would have to phone and pay later. Many minutes on my mobile later both the hire car company and the toll people said “wait for a notification”. I'm guessing that's Portuguese for 'fine' though one quote also said “if they can be bothered to send it”.<br />
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When we eventually found the villa, sometime around midnight, it was stunning. A little bit of unpacking was done while the kettle was on i.e. find those emergency tea bags from earlier, and we sat on the terrace drinking tea and staring at a moon-lit mountain opposite. I wish I had taken a picture as I've not managed to stay up long enough to see the moon again because it hides behind the mountain for quite a while.<br />
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The next morning we woke early (or I did) to stunning views and a pool that appears to be a trap for all things nasty: 1 scorpion, one lizard and at least 5 centipedes of about 10cm in length. Plus ants of all sizes, some of which would be scary looking if shown on Primeval! Once hoovered and the filter changed the pool is amazing and the most used (other than the kettle) part of the villa.<br />
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<center><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/7758262556/" title="View from the villa by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7758262556_d2bff62ef1_t.jpg" width="100" height="75" alt="View from the villa"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/7758248746/" title="View from the villa by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8432/7758248746_b8cd354c7f_t.jpg" width="100" height="75" alt="View from the villa"></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/7758259060/" title="View from the villa by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7255/7758259060_43191c1a4c_t.jpg" width="100" height="75" alt="View from the villa"></a></center>
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The downside to Vila Nune though is definitely the dogs and their incessant barking as soon as it goes dark. If I ever come back I will be either starting a new religion where any dog that barks after 9pm is sacrificed to the STFU God (loosely translated as the God Of Quiet), or smuggling in a silenced pistol and some night-vision goggles. They bark and howl all night and then spend the day asleep in the middle of the road so you have to go round them (the excess on the car hire is far too much to run the bastards over, no matter how tempting).<br />
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I could also do with learning the language; Portuguese reads like Spanish but sounds like an Eastern European language. No matter how hard you try the only word you can remember is obrigado/a for thank you and even then you mess up the gender! Anybody that knows me will be smiling to themselves when I hat not being able to communicate - it didn't stop us visiting places but it curtail some of the exploring in case somebody tried to talk to me (they speak little to no English and it's just embarrassing how little Portuguese I could master). This was highlighted daily when the bread man arrives (07:45 every morning) and I smile, point and shake hands a lot to buy what must be the cheapest bread in the world.<br />
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We visited some lovely places but generally took it easy; trips out in the morning, a meal somewhere for lunch and then back to the villa for a swim in the pool and generally relax in the sun (when it wasn't so hot we hid in the shade). Temperatures were between mid-20's and mid-30's in centigrade and, all in all, it was a glorious holiday, very relaxing, lots of reading, lots of swimming and a little bit of drinking...<br />
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Pictures are on Flickr at <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/sets/72157631015308600/">http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/sets/72157631015308600/</a>Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-45045332446262828292010-10-03T18:46:00.002+00:002011-01-02T08:44:10.332+00:00Is your wormery prepared for winter?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/images_site/header.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="56" src="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/images_site/header.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Over on the <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/?affiliate=sherlo">Wiggly Wigglers</a> blog I have just posted a small article on how you can look after your wormery over the Winter months.<br />
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It takes you through some of the things you need tokeep it as warm as possible so it doesn't freeze during the worst of the winter and how to keep it dry by using a <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/shop/product.html?affiliate=sherlo&product_id=106">moisture mat</a> (or extra paper and cardboard) as well as a <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/shop/product.html?affiliate=sherlo&product_id=375">rain cap</a> to keep the majority of the rain off.<br />
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The full article can be read at <a href="http://wigglywigglers.blogspot.com/2010/10/getting-your-wormery-ready-for-winter.html">http://wigglywigglers.blogspot.com/2010/10/getting-your-wormery-ready-for-winter.html</a>Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-3468348769587643492010-09-12T16:41:00.003+00:002010-09-12T16:45:12.985+00:00Wiggly Wigglers 2010 CatalogueEarlier in the year Heather from <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/?affiliate=sherlo" target="_blank">Wiggly Wigglers</a> asked me to write a piece on composting and wormeries for their forthcoming catalogue.<br />
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I was really pleased with how they presented the article and I've had some great feedback about it (it caused some great discussions on the use of <a href="http://nickpalmer.blogspot.com/2009/05/worms-tea-bags-and-tissues.html" target="_blank">teabags</a> as well) *<br />
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Anyway, the catalogue is soon to replaced by another edition and Heather kindly let me have a PDF version of my article. You can read/download it <a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/Simon Sherlock's Article.pdf">here</a>.<br />
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* I still compost teabags, both in the wormery and the compost bin as I would rather have the odd "teabag ghost" than add to the methane build-up in landfill. If you'd rather not have the ghosts then it's worth trying tea leaves. I can heartily recommend <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/shop/searchresults.html?affiliate=sherlo&findit=P6940" target+_blank="">Trumpers loose leaf tea</a> as an alternative to tea bags, though to be honest I still like my PG Tips as well (sacrilege I hear some of you cry) :)Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-16742345061576298872009-10-18T09:57:00.002+00:002009-10-18T10:00:36.278+00:00Setting up the wormery for Kingsley St. John'sA few weeks ago <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/?affiliate=sherlo" target="_blank">Wiggly Wigglers</a> offered some freebies to organisations who might be able to make use of them and the children's school, <a href="http://www.kingsley-st-johns.cheshire.sch.uk/" target="_blank">Kingsley St. John's</a>, was lucky enough to get offered a re-furbished <a _blank="" href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/shop/product.html?affiliate=sherlo&product_id=96" target="_blank">can-o-worms</a> and value pack.<br />
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<a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0159-756202.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0159-756157.JPG" width="200" /></a>I've been trying to get the school composting in some way shape and form for a while now so I went along to their eco-club to help set it up.<br />
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As you can see from the photo's the children were absolutely fascinated with the whole process of both composting their food waste and having the worms do it for them.<br />
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So while the coir block was soaking for the bedding I took them through adding the legs and fitting the tap while explaining why there was a sump and what the tap was for etc. More than one knew why you collect the liquid and how good it is for fertilising plants but they were really fascinated when it came to adding the bedding and the worms themselves.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0167-751560.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0167-751520.JPG" width="150" /></a><a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0161-771432.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0161-771395.JPG" width="150" /></a><a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0165-711706.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0165-711672.JPG" width="150" /></a><br />
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Everybody got to hold some worms as I pointed out the adults, babies and even a few cocoons (that hold between 1 and 20 baby worms).<br />
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<a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0169-786058.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/uploaded_images/PICT0169-786023.JPG" width="150" /></a>I then explained about the trays and how we should feed food waste (preferably wrapped in a sheet or two of newspaper to stop the fruit flies), add lots of shredded paper for extra carbon and soaking up excess moisture as well as giving them the much needed dark that they work so well in.<br />
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So the school now has a wormery and they have a rota system for emptying the liquid, diluting it with water and applying it to their raised beds.<br />
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I'll be visiting regualrly to keep an eye on things and explain what is happening as the bin becomes more mature and eventually needs the bottom tray emptying.<br />
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Next, to try and persuade them to use Bokashi for their cooked kitchen waste...Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-51127879078834521702009-07-01T12:17:00.002+00:002009-07-01T12:35:06.450+00:00Knee op - bandage off<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3678414398/" title="Bandage off by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2492/3678414398_13745b4ef5_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Bandage off" align="left" vspace="5" hspace="5" /></a>Further to <a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/2009/06/knee-op.html" target="_blank">http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/2009/06/knee-op.html</a> my five days of struggling in the heat (well struggling generally actually) should be over so I settled down to remove the bandage from my knee.<br /><br />As you can see it is still very swollen compared with the left one. I also notice they had managed to cut me while shaving my leg and there was plenty of iodine around (that had scared me when I first saw my foot because I thought jaundice must have set in - the nurse had a right old chuckle when I hit the panic button to ask her about it). Plus, there is a very helpful arrow so that the Consultant knows where do to his thing. The iodine has come off but the arrow is being quite stubborn but it's now covered by the tubigrip I have to wear during the day - at least that gives me some movement, and feels cooler. <br /><br />I also removed the dressings to see the puncture wounds and it's amazing how small they are. They also bleed when you look at them too long so I quickly replaced the old dressings with new and tried not to think about it.<br /><br />It's five days since the op and I seem to be having more pain as the days go on, which is not how I envisaged things at all. I can take small doses of about 10 minutes before pain sets in and I have to move, whether that be lying down, sitting down or standing/walking. It means I'm having to snatch sleep when I can because I'm not making it through the night - even the tennis isn't numbing me enough to sleep longer than 10 minutes or so. The drugs help a little for the really sharp pains but don't help at all with the throbbing and aching. Beer is needed I think, but that interferes with the drugs so I'm not sure just yet.<br /><br />Plus, now the bandage is off I have no excuses for not doing the few physio exercises that I couldn't do before because of the padding. Six times a day I am supposed to put my self through the torture. At least now the bandage is off the ice pack will make a difference - I don't see anybody until next week and figure a bit of pain now will be better than a lot of pain then if I've not been doing them right ...Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-26031715034222740522009-06-27T13:34:00.003+00:002009-06-27T13:51:27.486+00:00Knee opAfter having pain in my knees after exercise for about 3 years now and putting it down to age I went to see somebody just after Christmas. There followed just under 3 months of physio twice a week which helped the knee that had the least pain but played absolute havoc with the other.<br /><br />I tried all sorts of things to align the knee caps and even resorted to my "monkey feet" <br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3665362578/" title="Vibram Fivefingers shoes by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3394/3665362578_4bdcd24460_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Vibram Fivefingers shoes" /></a><br />which use barefoot technology to help you strengthen your feet, ankles, legs and hips etc - <a href="http://sites.google.com/site/primallifestyle/fivefingers/Barefoot">http://sites.google.com/site/primallifestyle/fivefingers/Barefoot</a> but the problems with the right knee just wouldn't go away so the Consultant booked me in for an arthroscopy so he could take a look around and tidy up any messy cartilage, as well as treat the under-side of the knee cap that had some pretty extensive <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chondromalacia_patellae">Chondromalacia patellae</a>. He showed me the pictures of normal cartilage (white and smooth as ivory) and mine, which was grey and rough like the rocks of volcanic larvae you sometimes find on the beach.<br /><br />The result is bandage from just under my knee to just under my bum that has to remain on for 5 days! A normal arthroscopy would mean I could remove the bandage after a few days apparently but because of the extensive work mine has to stay on longer to help keep the swelling down.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3663959073/" title="Knee operation by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2554/3663959073_b48d3108a7_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="Knee operation" /></a><br /><br />The pain yesterday was unbearable and I needed crutches to get about, but today I am able to shuffle around the house without and have managed the stairs in both directions. However the bandage has suddenly gone very tight so I think I may have over done and it has swelled up a bit - it's hard to tell when covered by so much padding!<br /><br />Anyway, now off to attempt the torture, sorry, rehabilitation exercises that I need to do ...Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-60274583417911706322009-05-30T13:34:00.003+00:002009-05-30T14:37:53.086+00:00Trip to Paris<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3575332709/" title="The Eiffel Tower, May 2009 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3414/3575332709_4800994164_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="The Eiffel Tower, May 2009" align="left" vspace="5" hspace="5" /></a>Having thought my wife hated Paris I got a real surprise for my 40th birthday when she presented me with a 2 day trip. Apparently, some seven years ago I had told her I had never been and would love to go so she started saving and lying at every opportunity, telling me what an over priced dive it is and how I'd hate it, not least because a cup of tea is about £5 (she knows how to wound me). Being such a "fan" of cities (dirty horrible places) I fell for it hook line and sinker.<br /><br />Anyway, this made the present a real shock and in the week before setting off I found it very hard to get round the fact that she didn't hate it at all and was, if anything, more excited about the trip than I was (and I was really looking forward to it so that made her fairly excited).<br /><br />So, on Tuesday morning we all (kids as well) set off to Manchester airport and caught an Air France flight to the "city of love". The flight was good (by good I mean I didn't scream or stop breathing once). The landing was a little hairy, but only by my standards - nobody else even realised it had landed!<br /><br />It was a little disappointing to get there and realise we had left behind a glorious sunny day and arrived in a downpour. The day got no better as most of the Metro was on strike for the day and it took 3 hours to get to the hotel. It appears to be something the French do regularly and this time they were striking to complain about the fact there hadn't been a strike for over a week. Actually it was something to do with the economy, and when the price of a cup of tea was nearer £7 I think I see what they mean :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3575272953/" title="Novotel Hotel from Eiffel Tower by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3001/3575272953_1488a8d889_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Novotel Hotel from Eiffel Tower" align="right" vspace="5" hspace="5" /></a>We eventually got to the hotel which was a plush 4-star jobby and outwardly very nice (by outwardly I mean the inside finishes: from the outside it truly was ugly and I realised why it wasn't shown on the web site - it is the one made of red Lego in the picture).<br /><br />It was nice enough though and the staff were amazingly helpful and friendly. And boy did they put up with a lot - there was a Japanese bloke giving them hell every time I walked past the desk and a multitude of Americans stepped in whenever he stopped to draw breath. Little things let the hotel down though, like the fact the computers were made by Apple and crashed a lot (actually that bit was amusing, as was the French keyboard) and that the swimming pool was shut for refurbishment. The travel agency could and should have told us about that before taking all my wife's money and upsetting the children. All this made me live up to my "Victor Meldrew" persona so the rest of the family made fun of me a lot, so I calmed myself down with a beer, purposely not looking at how much said beer was costing, or the fact it was Heineken.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3576037160/" title="Notre Dame, May 2009 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2482/3576037160_3cdd189542_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Notre Dame, May 2009" align="left" vspace="5" hspace="5" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3575250899/" title="View from Notre Dame, May 2009 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3628/3575250899_cc31407a6f_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="View from Notre Dame, May 2009" align="right" vspace="5" hspace="5" /></a>As it turned out we were probably far too knackered for swimming after all the walking we did; after dropping off our bags we went to Notre Dame and then a boat ride down the Seine, getting off at the Eiffel Tower and walking back to the hotel. <br /><br />That evenings meal was taken at the hotel and the food was nice, but nowhere near nice enough to cost £85 for the four of us - I thought I was going to need oxygen to get over paying that one and I paid by credit card because I couldn't bring myself to pay in cash.<br /><br />The next day we walked to the Eiffel tower and got the lift to the second floor, which has amazing views (see the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/sets/72157618876634717/" target="_blank">pictures</a>). We then queued for about an hour to get the lift to the very top, which wasn't nearly as amazing as I thought it should be but well worth it all the same. My legs did have a strange jelly like feel to them and my peripheral vision was a bit blurry if I turned too quick so I'm guessing there was a touch of vertigo kicking in :) We used the steps down from the second floor and that in itself was amazing because you had time to appreciate the views and what an intricate (and extremely sturdy) structure it is.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3575283463/" title="The Louvre, May 2009 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3400/3575283463_48d22ed82b_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="The Louvre, May 2009" align="left" hspace="5" vspace="5" /></a>Once we got down from that we did the double-decker train of the RER and then the Metro to Sacre Coeur, a place surrounded by shops (never a favourite of mine unless they sell CD's, books or electronic stuff). Another good view and probably our cheapest meal (a mere £35 for the four of us - a pricey burger, but I was getting used to the cost by now and was no longer having to pretend that Euros aren't real money). After a quick run round Sacre Coeur and seeing the artists square we headed off to the Louvre where Tamsyn and Zoe feigned complete disinterest so they could go off shopping. Christopher and I loved it, right up until the point where we got lost and I thought my feet were about to fall off from all the walking. What an amazing place though! Even the miserable Mona Lisa woman was fairly awe-inspiring - not because it's a good picture (it's actually very ordinary and dull) but because of the history and how famous it was. I was quite shocked at how awed I was by it to be honest, though that was eclipsed by some of the other pieces of art and history on display. Christopher and I decided we could spend at least another four days there but we'd need a GPS to find our way around or out.<br /><br />As it was we managed to get out by accident and we crawled back to the hotel for a meal and in time to see Manchester United get bounced out of the final, something that truly made Christopher's day.<br /><br />The flight back was again very easy and I even managed to keep my eyes open for the landing. Things are truly looking up in the flying department I think (I can say that now I'm back on land with little prospect of flying again for ages).<br /><br />Pictures of the trip can be seen at <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/sets/72157618876634717/" target="_blank">http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/sets/72157618876634717/</a> and more will be added when I get round to uploading some of the children's pictures.<br /><br />The main thing that did strike me was just how like London it all was - except for the cigarettes everywhere (amazing how quick we got used to not being enveloped in smoke over here while they continue to smoke like tyre fires over there). I also wondered briefly whether it would be cheaper for a Parisian to fly over here and eat out every night than eat out over there but it was quickly pointed out that they would probably rather die than eat British food, which made me chuckle a little.Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-1476496190196125542009-05-16T17:48:00.004+00:002009-05-17T09:03:15.214+00:00Using Bokashi to grow vegetables in potsFor the last few years I have grown a few vegetables in pots and last year I used Bokashi in the base and was astonished with the results. I had cherry tomatoes continually from mid-July to November and my dwarf beans were also superb.<br /><br />People often wonder what to do with Bokashi once it has had it's 2 weeks fermenting and the majority either add it to their worm bins or just dump it in a compost bin/heap. By using it to layer the bottom of a large pot that you then plant some veg in means it works right where you need it.<br /><br />I've just potted on this years cherry tomatoes. I started with a layer of normal potting compost in the bottom, though there's probably no reason you couldn't just start with the Bokashi.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3536722524/" title="Compost Layer 1 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3218/3536722524_277ed66863_m.jpg" width="240" height="212" alt="Compost Layer 1" /></a><br /><br />I then added about 3 inches of Bokashi, before filling to about 3/4's full with organic peat free grow bag compost.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3536724366/" title="Bokashi Layer 1 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2023/3536724366_f6bef8e966_m.jpg" width="240" height="217" alt="Bokashi Layer 1" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3536727296/" title="Top layer compost by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3323/3536727296_854551fe66_m.jpg" width="240" height="214" alt="Top layer compost" /></a><br /><br />The idea here is that by leaving a quarter of the pot empty you can top-dress with either vermicompost, compost from your bin/heap or even just more grow bag. The joy of vermicompost and compost is it will act as a mulch during the hotter days. Vermicompost has the added benefit of being extremely high in nutrients as well, and therefore ideal for hungry tomatoes.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3535913673/" title="Planted by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2150/3535913673_000ccbac97_m.jpg" width="240" height="173" alt="Planted" /></a><br /><br />Once more established these plants (and all my veg) will be fed with a good dose of worm tea throughout the growing season.<br /><br />I also planted up a runner bean in the same way. These should probably be grown outside but this one will be grown in the greenhouse. I did this a few years ago and had a surprisingly good crop, but this will is the first time I have done it with a Bokashi base to the pot. I'll post the (hopefully pleasing) results.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3536740984/" title="Runner bean in pot by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2023/3536740984_efb290a3f6_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Runner bean in pot" /></a>Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-82210400823161784592009-03-29T15:48:00.004+00:002009-03-29T16:53:54.564+00:00Emptying the bottom layer of your worm binIn many of the discussions on worm bins people ask about either adding the next layer or how do they go about emptying the bottom layer (or even knowing when it's ready to empty).<br /><br />I generally empty mine when the top layer is almost full (generally twice a year with my family) and I try and do it in the Spring and the Autumn i.e. while the weather is still reasonable.<br /><br />A common misconception is that all the worms will have vacated the bottom layer and moved up. I've owned a wormery since 1998 and I have never yet known this to be the case - there are always a few of the stubborn ones quite happy in the bottom layer.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3395605314/" title="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3558/3395605314_e5a871b34b_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3394791663/" title="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3641/3394791663_df0b7327ed_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin" /></a><br /><br />So how do you separate them from the compost?<br /><br />You have a few choices: <ul><br /><li>The first is don't bother. You can just empty the whole bottom layer in your border or compost bin where the few stragglers and eggs will either live in the garden, become live food for the birds or in the case of the compost bin carry on regardless. I like the last option because they can then colonise your compost and thereby speed up that process as well.<br /><br /><li>You can empty the whole lot into a barrow or onto a plastic sheet and hand pick them out, either adding them to your wormery again or even box them up and head off fishing. The choice is yours.<br /><br /><li>Put the bottom layer on the top with the lid off. Scrape away and remove compost until you come across some worms and then leave it for a bit. Worms hate the light and will burrow down into the compost that remains. Repeat this process until they have all burrowed into the layer below, by which time you will have harvested all the compost.<br />Be warned though that this is a lengthy process.<br /></ul><br />When you remove the bottom layer you will almost definitely find that the sump is full of worms. Many beginners panic and worry about worms getting in the sump but they always do. <br /><br /><strong>It's yet another reason to make sure you empty the sump regularly so that they don't drown</strong>.<br /><br />They can and will climb out when they are ready but you're very lucky indeed if you never find any there.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3394788251/" title="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3451/3394788251_f72f296d01_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3395593126/" title="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3594/3395593126_7b3b1516d0_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin" /></a><br /><br />As you can see from the pictures both my bins have plenty of worms in the sump. So while we're emptying the bottom layer make sure you empty the contents of the sump (drain it of liquid first though) into the top layer. It tidies the sump up as well as helping establish worms in the new top layer.<br /><br />So now you've emptied the bottom layer and cleaned out the sump you can place the now empty tray to the top of the bin.<br /><br />When adding this new layer be careful to make sure that it fits snugly. If there's too much stuff in there then a) you'll be squashing them with the new one and b) they can get out of the sides.<br /><br />I just add the layer and start adding waste - they will move up when they are ready i.e. they have eaten most of the layer below and fancy some of the new stuff.<br /><br />I guess it wouldn't harm to take some of the bottom layer and add it to the new one, especially if it's quite full and stops the new layer fitting snugly. Definitely add the moisture mat (or a layer of cardboard) as the darkness will further attract them into the new layer.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3395596448/" title="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3448/3395596448_d4e4891264_m.jpg" align="left" vspace="2" hspace="2" width="240" height="180" alt="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin" /></a><br /><br />As you can see from the pictures, adding what's in the sump can make the wormery look quite wet and soggy so make sure you add a fair amount of shredded/scrunched paper and/or cardboard to help dry things out.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3395590002/" title="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3474/3395590002_84e49c203e_m.jpg" align="right" vspace="2" hspace="2" width="240" height="180" alt="Emptying the bottom layer of the worm bin" /></a> You can never have enough paper in a worm bin, something that people often forget. It helps keep things dry and adds a god dose of carbon. The worms will munch their way through it as fast (if not faster) than the food scraps and the resultant compost will be of a higher standard.Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-79926011868081906182009-03-22T07:49:00.002+00:002009-03-22T07:57:55.093+00:00I've won an award!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_HN_jkTbObHg/ScVAnZ-1N1I/AAAAAAAABXM/bNj-GlYayAo/s400/210320091226.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_HN_jkTbObHg/ScVAnZ-1N1I/AAAAAAAABXM/bNj-GlYayAo/s400/210320091226.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br /><br />Turns out that I have won the 'The Bokashi Backup Award' in the <a href="http://therubbishdiet.blogspot.com/2009/03/rubbish-diet-awards-2009.html">The Rubbish Diet Awards 2009</a>.<br /><br />I'd like to thank <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/03566374419318255177">Almost Mrs Average</a> for the honour - I'm really pleased that some of my advice and help was able to be used in her extremely successful attempts at getting us to slim down our bins by reducing, re-using, recycling and generally buying more carefully.<br /><br />I'm off to celebrate now with a nice cup of tea ...Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-63928586345294147692009-03-15T19:58:00.009+00:002009-03-15T22:08:33.283+00:00Creating a raised bed for vegetablesFor the last few years I have grown a few vegetables in pots: spinach, tomatoes, dwarf beans and even a single runner bean plant. They have all done well, as have the odd lettuce and rocket.<br /><br />With my small garden I've relied on these pots (and the greenhouse), while keeping the main garden for lawn and borders full of flowers, as well as shrubs for attracting birds and insects (it's also nice to look at).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3357957820/" title="link-a-bord system newly assembled by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3466/3357957820_66ef5b8c44_m.jpg" hspace="4" width="240" height="180" alt="link-a-bord system newly assembled" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3357958226/" title="Layer of cardbooard for suppressing the grass by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3571/3357958226_78822b6dd8_m.jpg" hspace="4" width="240" height="180" alt="Layer of cardbooard for suppressing the grass" /></a><br />This year though I have decided to expand the vegetable production and will be utilising two raised beds by the greenhouse for this purpose. I purchased a <a href="http://tinyurl.com/det8xa">link-a-bord</a> kit from <a href="http://tinyurl.com/det8xa">Wiggly Wigglers</a> and have today set it up. The kit itself took all of 5 minutes to assemble and is made from recycled uPVC. I think I would have preferred wood but this kit is light, simple to assemble and won't rot.<br /><br />I didn't fancy the back breaking job of digging up the turf so laid some cardboard on top of the grass. This should stop the grass growing through yet still allow the bed to drain well. By the time the season is over the grass should be dead and the cardboard rotted enough to just be dug over like a normal plot (well that's the theory anyway).<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3357958584/" title="A layer of Bokashi by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3451/3357958584_90ce86336b_m.jpg" hspace="4" width="240" height="180" alt="A layer of Bokashi" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3357959008/" title="A layer of compost from one of the bins by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3649/3357959008_2e99b6e8a0_m.jpg" hspace="4" width="240" height="180" alt="A layer of compost from one of the bins" /></a><br />Next came a bucket of Bokashi for the base followed by a layer of home made compost from my third <a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/2008/02/my-composting-setup.html">bin</a>. Both these will add nutrients to the soil as well as help stop the soil drying out. I did exactly this in my pots last year and had the best crop of veg ever, even though our summer was atrocious, so I'm sure that it will help just as much this time around.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3357143671/" title="Finally, a layer of John Innes multi-purpose compost by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3603/3357143671_49643e5e9d_m.jpg" align="left" hspace="4" width="240" height="180" alt="Finally, a layer of John Innes multi-purpose compost" /></a><br />Finally I topped it off with some John Innes multi purpose compost as that will be ideal for planting the veg plants into. Once established in this the roots will find their way down to the compost and Bokashi and all the nutrients they contain will keep the plants fed and healthy.<br /><br />The second raised bed kit is on order and I'll be setting that up next to this giving me quite a bit of growing room. I'm hoping to utilise this room properly once I've read <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1844480127?ie=UTF8&tag=sherlockcompu-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=19450&creativeASIN=1844480127">Growing Fruit and Vegetables on a Bed System the Organic Way</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.co.uk/e/ir?t=sherlockcompu-21&l=as2&o=2&a=1844480127" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /> by Pauline Pears.Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-941256550136285382009-01-14T12:50:00.004+00:002009-01-14T14:11:42.139+00:00Keeping your solitary bees warm in the winterDuring the recent cold spell in the UK where temperatures were below freezing for over a week and fell as low as -12C in places I brought in my solitary bee nesting tubes and put them in the fridge to keep them warm (a fridge keeps them at between 3 and 4C, still cool enough to stop them hatching).<br /><br />Having written about this on the <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk">Wiggly Wigglers</a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=3120520301">Facebook</a> group Heather also mentioned it during <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/podcasts/index.html?-session=shopper:C3897EE402c911E8AFkPFE165503">Podcast 165</a> so that other people could save their own bees.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3195932017/" title="Solitary Bee nesting tubes by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3499/3195932017_24e0e6b5c5_m.jpg" width="240" height="173" alt="Solitary Bee nesting tubes" align="left"/></a> During the podcast Richard questions why I would do this so here are my reasons: Bees in the UK (solitary, Bumble bees and honey/hive bees) are suffering a lot in the wild at the moment and disappearing from our gardens at an alarming rate. By putting in these nesters we are encouraging solitary bees, such as the Red and Blue Mason bees, into our gardens thereby saving them the bother of hunting around for suitable nesting sites and encouraging pollination of our plants during the summer. Plus they are amazing to watch, none aggressive and therefore suitable for a garden that also has children.<br /><br />However, they suffer the effects of the crazy British seasons just the same as anything else. For the last few years they have hatched early only to find there are very few flowers for them and this year we have had the first real Winter in years where it didn't get above freezing for over a week.<br /><br />So by putting the tubes in the fridge for a few days you actually keep them warm enough to survive the very low temperatures but cold enough not to start hatching in your fridge (and thereby saving me from an almighty talking to from Mrs Sherlock!).<br /><br />I originally got this idea from Christopher O'Toole, author of "The Red Mason Bee", which is available from Wiggly Wigglers by clicking <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/shop/product.html?product_id=175&-session=shopper:C3897EE402c911DD8FVOQ10EA667">here</a>.<br /><br />Although he does state that they can be over-wintered in a shed or greenhouse he also states that a fridge is fine as it keeps them at a constant temperature and stops them emerging too soon into a cold Spring.<br /><br />HOWEVER, I would recommend only putting them in the fridge when you know the temperature is going to drop very cold i.e. -10C or slightly less if it's for a prolonged spell and even then only for a few days at a time. <strong>This is because modern fridges (often with auto-defrost) don't appear to keep the required humidity very well and you run the risk of drying the cocoons out.</strong> There is more about this on the <a href="https://id408.van.ca.siteprotect.com/beediverse/catalog/newsletter.php?subaction=showfull&id=1212793972&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&">Beediverse</a> web site.<br /><br />Another reason for using your fridge is when Spring looks like it will come early. As mentioned above this then keeps them cool enough not to hatch out too soon. To quote Christopher O'Toole again: <em>"... keep an eye on the weather and check with the long range weather forecasts. About seven to ten days before you think the fine weather will begin, put your bees out on your plot."</em>Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13794587.post-26768016223070681902008-11-16T16:57:00.003+00:002008-11-16T17:19:19.754+00:00Just how quickly does Bokashi break down? - compost binFurther to <a href="http://www.sherlock.co.uk/blog/2008/10/just-how-quickly-does-bokashi-break.html">Just how quickly does Bokashi break down?</a> the wormery is looking rather wet and miserable after all the rain we have had recently.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3035358218/" title="wormery by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3202/3035358218_731eae605f_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="wormery" /></a><br /><br />Normally I would have added a good dose of shredded paper to help dry it out (as well as add some much needed carbon), but for the purpose of this experiment I haven't so that I can see what is happening with the added Bokashi. However, the temperature recently has dropped considerably, which has slowed everything down and, in true British fashion, it hasn't stopped raining so the whole thing is looking wet and slimy. Rather than hide the Bokashi with shredded paper I have added a <a href="http://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/shop/product.html?product_id=106&foldrequest=more&-session=shopper:C3897EE41b3f829B64iNyo4E54EC">Wiggly Wigglers moisture mat</a> in the hope of drying things out a little and giving the worms some much needed warmth so they can continue their job.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3034521655/" title="wormbin with moisture mat by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3274/3034521655_936039371a.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="wormbin with moisture mat" /></a><br /><br />I also have a Bokashi bin ready to empty:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3035354140/" title="Bokashi 16/11/2008 by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3059/3035354140_01e19c64b7_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Bokashi 16/11/2008" /></a><br /><br />and decided to add it to the compost bin so I can compare how that breaks down against within the wormery. Here's the bin before I added the bokashi:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3035355346/" title="compost bin before bokashi added by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3001/3035355346_521ee942fc.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="compost bin before bokashi added" /></a><br /><br />and here it is after:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/simonsherlock/3035356732/" title="compost bin with bokashi added by simon_sherlock, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3002/3035356732_9b7a312306_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="compost bin with bokashi added" /></a><br /><br />Let's hope the weather doesn't get too cold over the next few weeks so that we can see some progress...Simon Sherlockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10849669982521032764noreply@blogger.com2