wfike, are you adding wood shavings to improve the texture of the casts or to help aerate the bedding? I've read, and surmise, that wood shavings take a long time to break down, so I'm assuming you aren't adding them as feedstock, am I figuring this correctly? I've also read, from several older vermi books (and the Vermiculture_FarmersManual), that horse manure by itself is not the best feed, but that cattle manure is good. Do you mix the 2 as feedstock and bedding? I guess what I'm trying to understand is whether you use horse manure as feedstock and feel it is an adequate feed by itself. I added soaked, torn corrugated cardboard to the horse manure because I'd read that it has excellent nutrition due to the high-protein glue that is used to hold the layers together. Another advantage that corrugated cb has is it's water absorbancy, so the 2 (horse manure and corrugated cb) mixed together make a good bedding and a good feedstock. But, you know, you can find all sorts of contradictions when comparing books, websites, and opinions...so I'm interested in what you find to be true, based on your experience. Cheryl, I have been freezing the food waste lately. It does seem to speed things up a bit, but there is still the issue of varying amounts of water being released, mold/fungus, and odors if you use too much or have strong smelling foods to vermicompost. I've found that as much as I want to keep food waste from the landfills, it's a lot of aggravation (too much water, mold, fruit flies, fungus gnats, march flies, houseflies, odors..etc), inconvenience (both of my freezers are half full of food waste for the worms, leaving only half for my own food), and guess-work involved in feeding food waste to the worms. Now, if I didn't have access to horse manure and corrugated cardboard, I would still use primarily food waste. But since I do have access to those materials, I much prefer using them. I have encountered very few issues/problems using horse manure and corrugated cb. So, I ease my conscious by reminding myself that these 2 items would have been dumped in a landfill somewhere, had I not taken them. I still plan on freezing some food waste to use as trench feedings in my raised beds. This practice has eliminated all issues/problems with using food waste because it is buried 4-6" under the soil, and I have many worms in my raised beds who process this food quickly (and thank me for the cold stuff when it's hot outside). The junk mail I use are advertisements for credit cards, various insurance, and a hodgepodge of solicitations. I just remove them from the envelope and tear into strips that could be used as bedding (I put them in the compost crate, so they will be partially composted by the time the worms get to it). I don't use glossy papers, not because they are bad for the worms, but because they take forever to break down and I don't like the look of them in the compost. The Vermiculture FarmersManual recommends shredding cardboard that has a waxed coating, so I assume wax is safe to use if shredded or had the wax seal broken in some other fashion . I've read that oils are not good for worms (I assume oil would smother them since they breath thru their skin), but I wouldn't think a small amount would be harmful. The boxes that you have should be fine. Most of the corrugated cardboard that I use has colored printing on it and I haven't noticed any problems with it (the majority of people say that most inks are soy based now). I also use shredded office paper in the indoor bin I just created, and to absorb water from the barrel bins outside when rain has been heavy, and that paper has been thru laser printers. I haven't seen any ill effects from any of the paper products I have used. Welcome to the thread, Cheryl. I look forward to reading about your experiences in the vermi-world.

you won't find the type you're lookin for on the market - they live deeper in the soil, and not in quantities that would 'till' your subsoil, nor provide drainage - sounds like you've already got a good start by adding the compost and worms, just make sure you can continue w/ at least yearly additions of compost, even just as a topdressing, and the worms will breed and take care of the topsoil layer, which is the important part - few things smaller than trees put roots down deep, and those that do can handle the hardpan if they need to if you have a real drainage problem [kinda wet in CA this year? :-)] then you need to put in some drain tile in that area, also if you'll not be able to work the soil there later, dig it over as deep as you can and incorporate somea that better soil and compost deeper than 6" Bill

I agree with hydroponica about the indentured servitude issue and such. The correlation of water prices was pointless and had absolutely nothing to do with anything. Starbucks puts the Christian coffee shops in our area to shame. Those Christian coffee shops charge nearly the same prices and get their coffee from wherever is cheapest so, yeah, Starbucks is pretty standup in my book. With the same token, I do feel that it is pointless to go out and stop at Starbucks daily and get coffee when I can make it at home. Starbucks sells bags of coffee in stores. It's not overpriced. Price of a luxury is determined by what you can get for it. And coffee is most certainly a luxury (and seems a necessity if you are an addict like me). I also agree with takadi that there are other sources for worms. I started by digging for my own in manure. My grandfather spreads the horse manure at the woodline and after it sits awhile it's teeming with worms. But, I also recognize that I am physically able to do that digging and not all people are. I'm sure takadi's initial response was with the able bodied individual in mind when it comes to the digging. Leearnold, though, was pretty polite in the response. Sometimes it is good for us to be reminded that there are other circumstances. Honestly, I wouldn't have considered Leearnolds circumstance, either, and am glad it was shared as a reminder. I think takadi's point was that people will purchase worms form many miles away despite having local options and it was made quite clear in his post that started with an admission to miswording his first post. Geez, the guy was trying to be helpful for crying out loud! We don't have a local garden center thanks to Walmart and the jackasses living in the area that failed to realize what their patronage is doing to our small businesses and local economy, but I digress. I also didn't know where to find worms other than by digging when I first started. If I wouldn't have had my grandfather's horse manure spreads, I would have ordered them by mail from somewhere far away, too. I would like to point out that if you go to your local garden center for worms you are likely producing more waste than by ordering them by mail, takadi. Those garden centers order them normally if they even carry them. So they are being shipped AND you are driving to pick them up (unless you are within walking/biking distance). The other options takadi mentioned are helpful leads for anyone, though, so give him a little credit rather than assault him. I've seen hydroponica's stuff and takadi's stuff on other forums. I actually think the two of you would get along and agree on a lot more than you disagree on, believe it or not.

They look like red wigglers to me. Red wigglers will live where ever there is enough organic matter to sustain them. It's not unusual to find them in a garden, at all. The more organic matter in your garden, the higher the numbers of red wigglers there can be. However, it would be a mistake to purchase pounds of worms and dump them in the garden thinking that they will thrive. There has to be a corresponding and ongoing supply of organic matter to keep them going. Otherwise, they will just die and their only contribution to your garden will be their dead bodies. On the other hand, if you are just starting out making a worm bin, and you don't have any money to buy worms to start your herd, you can use these worms to get you going. Start a small bin and toss whatever worms you find into it along with your organic output. In time they will multiply, and you will have built your herd from scratch.