Feeding worms potato peels | Complete Guide

Worms love to eat potato peels and they can be added straight to your worm farm. Potato peels that have started to break down are easy for worms to digest. They will wiggle their way amongst the peels to eat them and the bacteria that are there digesting the peels.

When adding whole potatoes to a worm farm, it is ideal to cut them into small pieces so they don’t sprout and grow in your worm farm.

This article will explore how to feed your worms potato and potato peels so they break down quickly and will not take over and grow.

Top tips for adding potatoes to your worm farm

Here are my top tips for adding potatoes and their peels to your worm farm. Follow these easy tips to feed your worms potatoes.

  • Peel your potatoes to make it easy for worms to eat your scraps
  • Don’t worry about washing potatoes before putting them in your worm farm
  • Cut up whole potatoes into small pieces to avoid the sprouts from growing
  • Mix the peels gently through the top of the worm farm to cover it and make it easy for the worms to eat
  • Your worms may come and eat the peels after they have started to break down over a few days so don’t worry if they aren’t eating them straight away.

How to feed potato peels to worms

Potato peels are fantastic food for your worms. They can be added raw, unwashed or washed. Worms love soft potato peelings and will eat them quickly. Potato peels are quick to break down because they are thin and have a high surface area.

Worms will wiggle in amongst the potato peels. They may wait a week or so for the peels to start to break down before they move in and start to eat them. Potato peels are great because they don’t attract ants or flies in the same way that fruit does. They are low in water content so will not cause your worm farm to become too wet.

You could add around 1-2 handfuls of potato peels per week in a healthy growing worm farm. This will help your worms to rapidly grow, reproduce and increase their population.

Feeding whole potatoes to worms

There is a funny thing that will happen when you add a whole potato to your worm farm. It is highly likely that the potato will grow. If you have old potatoes in your cupboard that is starting to sprout it will probably continue to grow if you add it to your worm farm.

To successfully add whole potatoes to your worm farm the best way is to cut it into slices. I like to cut it into thin slices to give the worms a greater surface area to eat, more room for bacteria to digest the potato and to prevent it from growing in your worm farm.

Don’t worry if the potato does start to grow in your worm farm, simply take it out and chop it up with a spade. You can return it to your worm farm in small pieces before it takes over.

Washing potatoes before giving them to worms

Whether you are normally buying washed potatoes or unwashed you don’t need to worry about this for the worms. The worms will deal with any soil, bacteria or anything else on the skin of the potato. It is up to you as to whether you wash your potatoes before or after peeling.

I always buy washed potatoes because I find them easier, but either way your worms will love all potato peels. Even try sweet potato or yam skins to feed your worms. They contain a range of different nutrients that will be released into the worm castings and are great for your soil.

How fast will worms eat potato peels

A small worm farm will break down and digest 2-3 handfuls of potato peels in around 2 weeks. Larger worm farms can consume much more than this. The weather also makes a difference and worms will digest potato peels slower in winter and faster in summer.

The warm seasons are the peak time for worms to be active, digesting food and turning it into worm castings.

How fast will worms eat whole potatoes

If you place a whole potato in a worm farm it could take weeks for it to be broken down. While worms will attempt to eat the skin, they will struggle to digest the potato if it starts to grow. You may find that if the potato grows stems, the worms may leave them alone opting to eat rotting fruit and vegetables rather than ones that are growing.

Feeding worms yams, sweet potato and pumpkin peel

Other vegetable peels including sweet potato, yams, pumpkin or purple skin potatoes are all fantastic for worms. These are easy for the worms to eat and will add a range of nutrients to the worm farm and soil. Cover the scraps with some hay and a worm blanket and leave your worms to eat your peels.

Feeding worms potato peels | Summary

Worms will devour potato peels quickly as they are thin, break down quickly and are a good food for worms. They do not contain the sugar or acid that is contained in fruit so will not attract flies or ants as much as fruit will. If you have whole potatoes to get rid of, cut them into smaller pieces so they don’t sprout and grow in your worm farm.