Chicken Chart for redworms
January 18th, 2009
One of the techniques I learned in my permaculture class is the “chicken chart”. This is basically of a list of the inputs (needs) and outputs (products) of a component in a system. If you can match up the outputs of one system with the inputs of another, you end up doing less work; the systems support themselves.
Here’s my chicken chart for redworms.
Inputs
- controlled temperature
- food (nitrogen source)
- protection from predators
- moisture
- bedding (carbon source)
- harvesting effort
- grit
- oxygen
- other beasties (bacteria to break down food)
Here’s the outputs worms give
- castings
- surplus worms
- vermicompost
- educational opportunity
- soil
- carbon dioxide
Did I miss anything? Is there more that we need to give redworms, or that they can give us?
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4 Comments Add your own
1. Howard Heidenstrom | January 19th, 2009 at 7:20 am
I enjoyed you article. One thing you forgot was worm tea. I have quite a few question about worms myself/
Some farmers say you can out worms in a compost pile, compost piles can reach 160 degress. Can they survive that temperature?
Some farmers say dont feed worms bread because it absorbs moisture, clumbs up and gets mold..
Some say eggshells are no good for worms.
How can sellers say there are 600-800 worms to the pound. Ive ordered worms and there should have been 2000 in 6that pound. We somebody to regulate. Rather than have somebody appoint one.
I have many if somebody would like to answer.
The Berwick Worm Farm
FEEDYOUR WORMS AND STARVE THE LANDFILL
2. vermicomposting | January 22nd, 2009 at 2:46 am
Thanks Howard. Worm tea is a great extra output from vermicomposting.
As for your other questions:
Heat of 160 degrees will certainly kill worms, but if your piles are in contact with the ground, the worms can descend into the earth and return when the pile cools.
I have never had trouble with bread or mold in my piles.
Eggshells are fine with worms, though the worms won’t actually eat the shells–they just eat any soft material in the shell. Therefore, in your vermicompost, you’ll have eggshells of whatever size you put in at the start.
Not sure about regulation of worm weight to number–do you have any dealers you’d like to advise other to avoid?
3. Howard Heidenstrom | February 21st, 2009 at 10:16 am
Yes Ive had trouble with Uncle Jims and Worms Wrangler. Uncle Jims Worms were so small you can hardly see them. I should have gotten about 1500 to the pound. Worms Wrangler doesnt ship worms until they want to ship. Sometimes two or three weeks.
4. Worms in aquaculture aka &hellip | March 12th, 2010 at 11:10 am
[...] kind of integrated system fascinates me (which is why I drew up a chicken chart for redworms), so I went looking for other information. Someone has registered vermiponics.com, but [...]
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