Last spring I set up an indoor red wiggler “farm”.  I put the plastic bins in the bathtub and things went well. I was able to divide the worms several times and give some to others. They thrived.

I made one BIG mistake. On a nice day during the early summer, I put the bins in the garage. I was thinking fresh air would be good for my worms. Later that day I brought them inside.

Not long after, my bathroom was filled with flies. I took the lid off the worm bins and more flies swarmed out. This went on for a week or more. I opened the bathroom window each morning and let all the flies out. It seems, that while outside in the garage, flies laid eggs in my worm bins. Subsequently, the hatched in my bathroom.

Also, something unidentifiable started growing in the bins. That is when I decided that the red wigglers would be “outside” worms. However, they cannot live in the soil. They cannot survived exposure to cold temperatures. Red wigglers only survive in composting matter.

Soooo, I expanded my compost piles and added the red wigglers. Over the late summer I added quite a few layers to insulate the worms in the winter. I watered the piles until I turned off the water in the fall.

In October, I added a top layer of composted cow manure. My hope is that they can burrow around and find a warm enough spot to survive the winter. I am also hoping for some moisture, which they will surely need.

In early spring I will dig into the compost piles to see who made it through the winter. I plan on having some high quality compost for the early garden.