Tissues for earthworms?

[frdnicholas]

This needs some explanation, so bear with me. Every morning I put a quarter of a fig newton cookie on a clean tissue with our chihuahua's medicine. After giving her the cookie, the tissue is clean. If I tear it into shreds and add it to my garden bed, would the worms be interested in it? I've added rabbit manure which had worms in it and leaves to the bed. I'm trying to add elements that will keep the worms interested in staying in the bed. I should mention the beds are the 4x4 round cloth beds, not ground. I've also filled the bed with commercial soil, manure and compost. Thanks.

 

[roadrunner]

The worms would probably eat it eventually, but worm don't really eat organic matter we throw on the ground, rather they eat the microbes that eat the organic matter we throw on the ground. I would recommend mulching with organic matter, such as leaves, cut grass, even weeds, just make sure they don't have seeds included. I'm constantly chopping and dropping organic matter (AKA weeds) in my garden areas to keep all the soil organisms feed.

So, go ahead and throw all the tissues you want on the bed, but for a really healthy soil throw much more than just tissues.


P.S. If the tissues have some sort of perfume/lotion infused, then I would just throw in the trash.


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[frdnicholas]

No perfume or lotion on the tissues, but I see your point about using other organic stuff as well. We just don't seem to have a lot of organic stuff, living as simply as we try to do. I make compost in the spring with green leaves and peat moss, which I know is not cost effective, but it does seem to make good stuff, especially when I can add rabbit manure from my friend's rabbits.

 

[big rockpile]

So far my Worms get Carboard, Compost, Shredded Leaves, Crushed Egg Shell and Coffee grounds with filter.

Very happy just seen many babies.

big rockpile

 

[DirtMechanic]

Some time in the past someone pointed out to me that one should not flush tissues as they were not the same as toilet paper. It would be in this biodigestable area that I would research first. Just because I have dealt with the greywater plumbing lines enough over the years for something like that to perk up my ears. I cannot tell you a wet wad of tissue vs a wet wad of TP from a line I have cleaned out only there have been some and my wife loves a kleenex.

 

[roadrunner]

Yeah, you should only flush TP down the toilet. Good thing soil organisms are better at breaking down non-TP paper without clogging

BTW, I think those baby wipes and other disinfecting wipes contain plastics, so I always throw them away in the trash. Personally, I don't care how long something takes to breakdown, as long as there's no chance of toxins/plastics being left behind.


An interesting video from the pandemic days on only flushing TP down the toilet.

 

[Mr_Yan]

Nice work @roadrunner with the subtlety of worms eating the microbes not the veg and organic matter directly.

In a worm compost bin any paper product can go through as "bedding" but this a very different environment than a compost in place garden.

I have put layers of corrugated cardboard or newspaper in my garden beds and it broke down just fine. Usually when you peel back the layer of cardboard there would be a few worms hanging out there.

But just adding paper products to the ground won't help feed and attract worms. Add plant matter into the soil and that will improve the soil as a whole then it will be a better environment for the worms to live in. Look into something like the thread An experiment in Hugelkulture in containers. That method is great but skip a few of the early pages in that thread as there was some stupid flaming posts.