Worm Ratios

[YesMamNoSir]

Hello all. I am once again here with another question. I am about to finish up my first worm bin and harvest it, BUT it had a rocky start and went through some trying times before it progressed. I used manure and organic mushroom compost and cardboard/ newspaper to start out the last one. It was really soilly and not much like the ones I see starting out on the interweb. I want to do it right, but no one seems to throw ratios around or have real numbers. My bin is 5ft by 2 ft and about 6 inches deep. the materials I have are:

-Brick of coco
-BIG grocery bag of dead leaves/mould(found miles from nowhere off appalachian trail
-2 gallon zipperlock bag of veg/fruit/food scraps in freezer
-mountain of old NY Times
-few dead tomato plants(all brown froze over winter)
-3 jiffy pucks
-cow manure
-mushroom compost

I am wanting to add amendments. I have another month before I am going to harvest and I have read it's best to let the bin sit and age a little especially if adding ammendments.

-kelp meal
-organic food grade kelp powder
-nettle leaves
-blood meal
-bone meal
-dolomite lime (pellet and pulverized)
-azomite
-alfalfa
-organic rolled oats
-organic soybean meal
-seabird guano
-espoma biotone
-jobes biozome
-rock phosphate
-greensand

Any advice will ne appreciated. Last time I made it, then researched, and then had oh shit moments. I would like to nail it from the beginning this time. Population in current bin is booming so I have the rest down good but this will be my first harvest and reset.

 

[YesMamNoSir]

I found on another website that a 3:1 ratio is something to aim for. That ratio is bedding:food. Does that sound accurate to anyone else? Bedding being paper/coco/leaves amd food being scraps. Iplan on throwin a cup of composted manure in to get it started and let it age begore worms go in.

Still at a loss with ammendments though...

 

[YesMamNoSir]

There has to have been someone out their that has used amendments successfully in their worm bin......

 

[VortexPower420]

Kelp nettle alfalfa oat soy can all go in there just watch with the meals heating everything up. The minerals (azomite RP) i do at 1 tlbs gal of vc I would out some local soil in there and some basalt or other rock dust

 

[YesMamNoSir]

Is rock phosphate or greensand considered rock dust?? I have been told that I can go to a stone masonry place and collect rock dust from them. Is that more of what you were referring too?

It is my understanding that the mineralization process is very lengthy and I would like some of the longer breakdowns to start occurring while they're in the worm bins for several months that way they're already aged 4 months before they even touch my roots. Thank you VortexPower420.

 

[supermanlives]

forget the blood meal and guano . no need for them as they break down quick and are water soluable... I have added most of your list in minute amounts without issues altho not all at once..

 

[Granger2]

Check the Worming 101 sticky in this section.