Wanting to cast away some sweet treats for your worms? We can’t blame you. If you want to save scraps for your worms from one or more fruit salads, you need to be careful around citrus fruit. But what about watermelons?
Worms will eat almost any organic decaying matter and they definitely have a sweet tooth. There’s no point in throwing away all of the delicious nutrients that can be found in all kinds of fruits, especially when we know that we can put them to good use on a compost pile!
So, do worms eat watermelon rinds? Yes, worms eat watermelon rinds. There’s nothing quite like having a nice cool piece of watermelon on a hot summer’s day and whilst you get to enjoy the lovely soft pink area of the watermelon, your little helpers will love the green rind.
Of course, before you go ahead and give anything new and organic to add to the top of your compost pile for worms to eat, it’s always a good idea to read through whether or not what you want to throw in is going to be really healthy for them in the long run. Keep reading if you’re looking to save a melon rind or two!
Do Worms Eat Watermelon Flesh?
Yes, worms do eat watermelon flesh.
In fact, they love it! Watermelon flesh happens to be very sweet and are a lovely treat for your little helpers if you have some left over.
Wigglers will happily chow down on the interior of the watermelon, if you have some that has gone bad.
But if you only have rind left over, don’t worry. Worms will happily munch their way through that too as we’ve mentioned, without complaint (though it’s best to cut rind into smaller pieces for easier decomposition.)
You will see that worms like it so much, it will all be gone very quickly. In fact, it’s no surprise to see watermelon go down in a compost bin within a day or two.
Watermelon flesh has plenty of benefits for your worm composting bin including being full of nitrogen, which is great for the compost that you are creating.
It is also good news for worms as it will provide a nice and moist environment – and it’s soft on their delicate skin, too. The soft texture of watermelon flesh is also perfect for them to dig into as a worms mouth is quite small.
Do Red wigglers like watermelon?
Yes, red wigglers do like watermelon.
Red wigglers have sweet tooths as much as any worms do, and they do tend to make their way through the sweeter foodstuffs such as fruits, far quicker than any other food.
Many vermicomposters have found that watermelon is an ideal source of food for their red wigglers. It is very easy for them to move through and consume, being soft and mainly made up of water.
If you would like to make it easier for them – and this is very much recommended – then you could chop the watermelon into smaller pieces.
This will help the decomposition go far quicker and will therefore make things easier for worms to eat.
Some choose to put in larger amounts of watermelon or even, depending on the size of the vermicomposting system, entire pieces of fruit.
However, given that they are mostly made up of water, putting an entire watermelon in at once could be dangerous for the worms.
Too much water will be released from the fruit and may create an inadequate environment for the worms. As much as they need moisture, too much water will drown worms – so keep an eye on moisture levels.
So, if you are considering putting watermelon in your vermicomposting system, do so with caution!
If you do find the moisture in your bin is getting too high, adding extra bedding along with the watery foodstuffs will help absorb some of the moisture.
Suitable bedding includes coffee grounds, shredded paper, cardboard, manure, etc.
Why Do Worms Love Watermelon Rinds?
There are multiple reasons why worms love watermelon rinds.
First of all, they are very sweet. Although we wouldn’t necessarily know it, rinds are indeed very sweet which makes for a nice change for most worms’ diets.
We are very much in the same boat as worms in that we do not have access to watermelons year round and therefore making a point of taking advantage of them during the warmer months.
If you do have a worm bin and/or vermicomposting system, then chances are that your little friends will be living on a very similar diet to you, feeding off of your kitchen waste.
In the winter months they will most likely be fed more vegetables, such as potato peelings, carrot peelings, courgettes, bell peppers, etc.
Of course, they will most likely have access to other fruits which we can find anywhere year round such as banana peels, apples, etc.
So, just like us, when melon season comes around they will welcome the diversity in their diet and the sweet taste of the watermelon.
Secondly, watermelons, as the name suggests, are primarily made up of water. This is fantastic for composting worms!
As you know, worms breathe through their skin and therefore require a damp habitat at all times. Watermelon being a very watery food will help keep their environment nice and moist.
If you put in larger chunks of melon rinds, then you may even find that the rooms regroup inside of the rind.
This is because they will be enjoying the taste, the texture and the feel, as the rind will be particularly soft, making it perfect for their soft skin.
Really, there is no downside to giving melons to your composting worms, they will love and will thank you with wonderful worm castings (poop)
How to Prepare Watermelon Rind For Your Worms
Rinds are much harder than the soft, fleshy part of the watermelon so it’s best to chop it up into smaller, bite-size pieces for your worms.
This makes it easier to decompose for your worms and saves the hard rind from lingering inside your bin for a few weeks.
Other Benefits of Putting Watermelon Rinds in Your Worm Bin
There are so many benefits to putting watermelon rinds in your worm bin.
High in Nutrients including Nitrogen
First of all, melons are full of nitrogen and other nutrients which are fantastic for compost.
A good amount of rind put into your farm every now and then, which contain these important nutrients, will only boost the compost that your worms are helping you to create!
Keeps Worm Bin Moist
Secondly, they are composed mainly of water. This is fantastic for keeping your worm composting bin nice and moist.
The last thing that you want is a dry worm farm, as a lack of moisture will kill the worms inside.
Though too much water and moisture will also do the same.
That is why we notice more worms when it has rained or if you are watering the garden.
They will do their very best to flee an inadequate environment but, being trapped in a worm bin, they will simply suffocate and die, so keep testing their environment to make sure it’s one they like.
Detect Mite Infestation
Thirdly, a great aspect about watermelon that is often ignored is that they are great at detecting mite infestations.
If you have found that your worm bin and/or vermicomposting system is full of mites, then a quick and easy way of dealing with it is by simply putting in some watermelon rinds for a few days.
The mites will rush to the watermelon and will stick there for as long as possible!
They will choose watermelon rinds over any other kind of food, including worms.
All you then need to do is to take the rind out of the bin, with the mites still on it, and dispose of it elsewhere.
Summary
Wanting to add watermelon rind to your worm bin? This is wonderful worm feed and a firm favorite that’s going to keep your worms well fed and will help them start providing a fresh harvest of castings for your compost.
Why not take a look at our other guides about foods worm like to eat and bedding you can use and add to your worm bins?
If you have any other suggestions or comments, we’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment below
