AMAZING WORM CLASS!!!

I can not begin to tell you how much I learned tonight. And I met some of the greatest people. Half of the class were teenagers who are part of a group of volunteers that help the city in their gardening ad landscaping project.

Here is the anatomy of a worm; they have 5 hearts, they have both male and female parts but still need a partner to fertilize, they are omnivores and they have a gizzard that requires grit just like a chicken.



They convert this:





Into this:



This was a great group of people:




We learned about two basic kinds of vermicomposting: interior and outside biodigester.

I won't do the inside because I don't need to. It is the Biodigester that is so exciting to me.

This is a 5 gallon bucket with a snap on lid (you can get these free from the grocery baker that had icing in it or a fast food place that gets pickles in it...or a lot of other sources) and you take a 1/4" drill bit and drill a whole lot of holes in the bottom and on the sides up to 3" from the bottom. You then put a layer of dirt in the bottom, then above that layer food scraps, leaves, etc in a a lasagna layer.

You take this and bury it only 3-4 inches into the ground. You have just created a worm diner. The worms make their way into the bucket through the holes you drilled and they stay there because there is food. When they are done eating the food and converting it into worm castings, you just pick up the bucket, dump it into your garden and start over....or you can sift it.

Here is the sifter that Elbert made out of a 5 gallon bucket and some hardware:








It is put together with zip ties:










When you dump the worm castings into the open end without the handle and then turn the handle, it sifts the castings this way...the finished castings are at the top and the unfinished product comes out the back end to be added back to the bin.











Elbert made a dryer out of two old computer fans on a wooden cross. It makes sifting easier:





They had magnifiers so we could get a better look at the worms and also see the eggs:

IS THERE GOING TO BE A SPRING THIS YEAR?

Have I said lately that I hate mud????

I leave my office in the corporate world but before I do I go to the bathroom and put on my mud boots. I know what I have waiting for me at home because I have been watching the downpour all day out the window.

Of course I waited until it is cold and wet to go get chicken food. So with the hen house entry under ankle deep water I have to unload 100 pounds of chicken food into the container.

Now mind you I have on mud boots but the thought of wading around in angle deep liquid chicken poo isn't my idea of a fun evening.

So I took old lumber and laid it out in the water to make a plank walk way. It worked great.

I also bought another hanging feeder to fill up and leave out in the entry part for the guineas. They get up much earlier than the chickens do.

Cold weather is here again. In the 20s at night but getting up in the high 30s to low 40s in the day time. Rain today and snow on Thursday though.

I got new bedding to fill the nest boxes but lost my day light. I will have to do that on Wed or Thursday.

Tomorrow is my earthworm composting class. I am very excited. My dad is going with me! I will post what I learn.

For now everyone is fed and watered and I am in my jammies.

BULL

It is a weird night outside. It is very dark. No stars no moon.

Bull (who weighs in at 124 pound) is very agitated tonight....as are the dogs up on the hill.

Bulls focus is in the dark...he charges out growling and barking his deep bark...pees and then comes back to sit beside me...deeply growling.

Occasionally he looks up at me and I see in his eyes the burden he carrys keeping this home safe from preditors and strangers.

Of course this is tempered by the half full bottle of chocolate milk he is carrying around in his mouth.

UNPACKED SOME STORED BOXES

COLLECTIONS

I have a shelf where I keep all of the cool things that matter a lot to me or that I think are cool.

UPDATE ON N TX WORMWORLD

THEY LIVE!!! THE WORMS ARE STILL ALIVE. I DON'T KNOW IF THEY ARE THRIVING YET BUT AT LEAST THEY ARE ALIVE.

WE WILL BE ADDING 2 POUNDS OF WORMS NEXT FRIDAY. WOOOHOOO

FUN TIME WITH THE BOYS

We don't normally get the boys this weekend but as a surprise my daughter got to keep them overnight.

I picked them up and as always enjoyed my conversations with them in the truck. For all parents who get in their vehicle and turn on a tv or the radio, you are missing out!

D informed me that he was half Tiger. I asked him why he thought that. He said because he has 4 sharp teeth...




And he only likes meat. He hates all things veggie.

I asked J if he liked only meat and he told me that he likes both meat and some veggies.

D looked at me and said, "He's an Ombnivore"....yes he added the B so I did too.

I really love kids.

Today I am going to check on the worms. It looked really wet in there although it has had a cover on it through the torrential downpours. I may need to add a tarp.

I will add the rest of my manure after breakfast.

Last night my daughter made a wonder meal of Orange/Lemon zest chicken that is really to die for.

This morning the smell of frying baoon, eggs and potatos is coming from the kitchen as I sit here and sip coffee.