"Are BSF timid creatures, or am I most likely going to have them crawling on me or flying around when I'm checking out my bin?" Some people really love their BSFL, as much as we love our worms. They too worry about them when they have to leave them for a few days. My understanding is that when BSFL are about 3/4 inch long and smaller they are white. Then as they mature they turn black and hard like little armadillos. Then they hide. The flys that emerge are like large houseflies but they do not land on poop and then on food. They avoid people, poop and food and want to find a bit of rot to lay their eggs on. They fly erratically. Slow when they are just warming up. Then faster. They are black with some of their leg area white. I think you would like the fly and the mature larvae and not be afraid of them. The thing that is cool about the white larvae is if one puts lets say the remains of a fish that the fillets have been harvest from into the bin, the the BSFL boil over the remains so actively that the remains float over the top of the activity and wonder around the container while getting smaller and smaller until they are all gone. Maybe let your helper know that these types of things in the bin are normal so they will not be startled. There is the cutest youtube that shows a little girl with a handful of BSFL feeding then to her chickens. If they knew that even little girls are not afraid of them then they might be more ok with them. Me I do not even touch my worms except with a 10 inch stick. Not even with gloves on. Maybe the scarriest thing to ever happen was I had noticed a few things out of place around the bin lately. Things were a bit mess with the vermicomost. I thought I was just sloppy. One day I put food in the top of the bin and out of the bottom a mouse jumped and darted off of my leg. I screamed like a little girl. Then I laughed a lot because I screamed. Many people love furry mice as pets. Maybe not me. I wonder if he was eating my worms. I move the material around in my bin to learn what is going on. As I am more confident I know what is happening in there and as vermicomposting is not my newest hobby, and I am not possessed with knowing what is going on with the little guys, I am more likely to leave them alone. Then my activity with the bin would more resemble how sbryce advises. Like him I would flip the bottom material over for the same reasons. Or gain interest in flow through bins like I have. I would think the cloth worm inns would work nice for you. Just put the stuff food by the tons and bedding in at the top. Zip it in. Water frequently. Harvest at the bottom. Supposedly no need to separate worms. They do dry out fast but the activity of adding water is pleasant for some. Others may have fish tank change water they want to use. I would think that maybe the condition of the material might be gauged a tiny bit by just squeezing the bag. I do not have one. Some people sew their own. Having a strong enough stand to hold mega weight is important. I guess like not buying the first year of a car I am waiting for them to come out with the new and improved version. I think mine would dry out. That would be ... ... .,. very bad for the worms. A homemade plastic bin is more resilient in that way.

OMG, this is so funny! The exact thing happened to me. We found a tiny kitten walking in our back yard. We took "her" in, even took it to our vet for check-up and the vet pronounced our cat a female. We gave her a unisex sounding name "Suki". But Suki then grew two furry things on her back end and started to "hump" blankets and even acted very affectinately toward our female (spayed) dog. It was so funny. But we explained to our kids and everyone "got it". It wasn't a shock. Don't worry. Just be honest. It's hard to tell when animals are so young. Even a vet can make a mistake.

Awesome pic of a great looking plant, Harold, thanks for posting it. I'm so thrilled it's doing well for you for so long! I gave one to a former coworker and she's going to give me a baby so I think I'm set. THANK YOU for the wonderful offer though, I doubt any of mine will ever look as great as yours, thanks for posting it! :) As far as garden updates go, here are a few quick-pics. Matucana madisoniorum blooming again. They really DO flower off an on all spring/summer/autumn. If you like cacti flowers, GET SOME. AZ Cactus Sales down in Chandler usually carries them (call first, LOL). This virtually-spineless (bred as cattle feed for arid regions) Opuntia canacapa 'Ellisiana' is making a ton of flowers and buds. So pretty even before they open for the day: Parent/baby of one of my favorite scented "geraniums", Pelargonium 'French Lace'. I rooted the baby directly in soil and just repotted it into the colorful talavera pot. Wilson the tennis ball to show size. Happy gardening all! Grant

It all depends on your current soil conditions and how big the garden is. A vegetable garden doesn't have to be tilled or plowed every year. If it has grass on it, the biggest job will be breaking that up. If the soil is poor - low in organic matter - you'll want to incorporate a lot of compost up front and more each year to maintain the levels and build a better soil. Sounds like you are ready to do that. I had my garden plot initially tilled by a guy with a tractor, not sure of the size (of the tractor) but it was finely broken up (tilled) rather than plowed. I would recommend a tiller rather than a plow for gardening. I don't know of any rock-removing implement. Your own two hands is pretty much it. If you pick a spot to toss them into a pile and do that whenever you see them, over time there will be fewer and fewer. I keep a small pot in the corner of each raised bed for rock pieces - mine are gravel about 1-2" across and there are not many at this point. Re planting, you don't HAVE to plant in rows. You probably do want to establish some paths to walk on and beds that you don't walk on. If you plant tomatoes, peppers or other plants that are not grown from seed, you can plant them in a grid rather than rows. You might want to start small with one bed rather than a huge area the first year. Expand it each year as you have time and materials.