I'm thinking of those sweet little red things that live in composting rubbish rather than in the earth. I had an estimated 6000 of them in France, and the little sweeties ate up all my leftovers and gave great compost and liquid plant food in exchange. Unfortunately it was a bit difficult to arrange 6000 passports in time for the move, so they went to stay with a neighbour. :( :'(
I've got a couple of banana plants, a passion fruit, a cherry bush and various other edible and non-edible plants in my small garden and they're going to need a lot better soil than the standard Tamaragua building rubble. Besides, it just isn't "green" to go on putting coffee grounds and suchlike in the dustbin. I did find a website earlier that I think was saying (in Spanish) that they were supplying worm farms to Tenerife, but I can't find it now. So, has anyone heard of suppliers here? It's the worms themselves that are vital - you can make DIY bins at a pinch.
BTW, I'm not in the market for your unwanted roaches, ants, mosquitos... thanks all the same. :o :D
Can you legally take worms to FV, Sheila? They are an alien species so I would check first at the appropriate govt office.
I think you want Dendrobaena, otherwise known as Tiger Worms although Brandlings would compost just as well. I use them for fishing when enough have bred but I've never been able to find them on FV and for some reason the tackle shops don't sell any kind of worms, which is strange. I do know that indigenous worm species are few and far between.
Quote from: waggy on September 01, 2012, 17:49:31 PM
Can you legally take worms to FV, Sheila? They are an alien species so I would check first at the appropriate govt office.
I think you want Dendrobaena, otherwise known as Tiger Worms although Brandlings would compost just as well. I use them for fishing when enough have bred but I've never been able to find them on FV and for some reason the tackle shops don't sell any kind of worms, which is strange. I do know that indigenous worm species are few and far between.
I guess its probably that they have difficulty burrowing through solid volcanic rock, lol
Quote from: waggy on September 01, 2012, 17:49:31 PM
Can you legally take worms to FV, Sheila? They are an alien species so I would check first at the appropriate govt office.
Oh hell, you might be right, waggy. :( I'm up to my ears in "appropriate govt offices" already and I don't think I've got the strength to add to my troubles. >:( Yes, tiger worms are one type that are used for composting. I hadn't thought of tackle shops, but it looks like a non-starter anyway.
Tiger worms compose things so that the land can be more fertile. But having them around is like eeeeeekkkkk. Proper maintenance is needed on a large scale.
homes for rent (http://www.forleasebyowner.com)
A friend of ours is into composting. He mentioned that he got some worms locally, I think from a fishing shop. Next time I see him I'll ask where. I think the big problem is keeping flies, ants, cockroaches, mice, rats etc away. That's the bit that has put me off.
You could probably manage without worms - think of the tumbler composters that they sell in the UK - just warmth and air for them! That would probably keep some of the pests away as they are off the ground. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Draper-07212-180L-Compost-Tumbler/dp/B005IXEKP0/ref=sr_1_1?s=outdoors&ie=UTF8&qid=1346804802&sr=1-1 (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Draper-07212-180L-Compost-Tumbler/dp/B005IXEKP0/ref=sr_1_1?s=outdoors&ie=UTF8&qid=1346804802&sr=1-1)
Let me know if you decide to give it a go - I'd be interested to know how you get on.
I don't think we're entirely talking of the same thing, Tamara. This is the government-subsidised worm bin I had back in France: http://www.abundantearth.com/store/canoworms.html (http://www.abundantearth.com/store/canoworms.html) I had it in a sort of scullery, but it's fine in a corner of the living-room too. A normal composter would smell a bit more. The food in a worm bin doesn't really rot - the worms eat it just when it gets to the 'soft' stage (hope everyone had their dinner some while ago ;D). You certainly do get a problem with fruit flies, but I've got that already because I've got fruit growing in the garden. Nothing else is a problem unless you feed them too much or if you give them meat etc.
I'd really appreciate any input from your friend. :-*
Hi Sheila
Spoke to my friend. He was given some worms by a friend, he didn't buy them as I had thought. Despite the language barrier I did get that he 'feeds' his worms, so hopefully they are the right type. He is going to give me some to pass on to you - I'll let you know when they arrive! :o
I had been thinking of a differnt kind of composting but I read your linked article with great interest - might try it myself. Did you bring your worm house with you?
Does anyone have any experience in using bananas, or just the skins, as a high potassium fertiliser out here? I'm worried that it might attract fruit flies.
Thanks ever so much, Tamara! I look forward to that. ;D
Unfortunately, I couldn't leave the worms homeless when I left them with a neighbour, so I don't have any accommodation for them. But that can be solved - they'll just have to live in makeshift accommodation for a while. I can order a home from abroad or the mainland easily enough. The real problem is the worms, both regards their health in transit (a couple of days is OK but with the parcel post here... ::)) and the fact that you can't post things like that without customs getting funny.
Actually, two favourite worm foods are bananas (although they're just as happy with the peel, fortunately) and coffee grounds. We're gorging ourselves on homegrown bananas at the moment 8) so I'm hoping for a "recycling circle": we consume bananas and coffee; worms process peel and grounds into worm casts; worm casts feed banana plants; plants produce more bananas to eat with coffee! ;D Can't get greener than that! Anyone know if you can grow coffee over here?
You will get fruit flies, Tamara, if you keep banana skins around, but don't you get them just from your fruit bowl? Loads of them around mine :( but I used to live among French vineyards so I'm used to them. Like most bugs, they can be managed, but they can't (and probably shouldn't) be eradicated.