Worms will eat watermelon rind and flesh. Worms will eat watermelon flesh first, and then start to eat the watermelon rind. It will take up to 4 weeks for 500 worms for worms to eat watermelon rind from 1/4 of a watermelon. Cut the watermelon rind in thin slices to help the worms break it down quicker and cover in sugar cane mulch to stop ants.
How to feed watermelon rind to red wigglers
The most common worms for worm farms are red wigglers and they will happily eat watermelon rind. These are a composting worm so will to eat through the soft watermelon flesh and then the rind. Watermelon will add a lot of moisture to the worm farm so adding sugar cane mulch or extra coconut coir is essential to stop your worm farm from becoming too wet.
Feeding worms watermelon rind
Watermelon flesh and watermelon rind are the first things my worms will eat. At the same time I added watermelon and rind I also added cucumbers, strawberries and apples. The worms ate the watermelon and rind first and are still eating it. I only have 500 worms so they will take around 4 weeks to eat through ¼ of a watermelon rind.
How to stop ants from coming in your worm farm
Watermelon and rind will attract ants to your worm farm because it is sweet. A simple solution to prevent ants from coming into your worm farm is to bury the watermelon and rind slightly under the surface of the worm farm. Then you can cover this with hay, sugar cane mulch or coconut coir. For me, this has stopped any ants from being attracted to my worm farm.
Feeding Worms and Composting Watermelon – FAQ
Does watermelon rind attract flies to my worm farm?
Watermelon rind does not attract small vinegar flies or black flies to my worm farm at all. I have found that following the method of burying the watermelon rind slightly under the top of the worm castings and covering with sugar cane mulch prevents any flies from being attracted. I also use a worm blanket on top of my worm farm which helps to deter any pests. You could also use cardboard or layers of newspaper to cover your worm farm.
Can I bury watermelon rind into my garden?
You can bury your watermelon rind into a hole in your garden beds if you don’t have a compost bin or worm farm. A simple way to create in ground compost is to simply dig a hole about the size of a bucket and fill it with vegetable scraps, leaves or hay. Cover the hole with the soil and then mulch and water it in.
Over time worms and soil microbes will come and break down the material creating compost in the ground. You may find that the area that you buried the watermelon rind starts to sink over time so you can top it up with more vegetable scraps, soil and mulch on top. After 6 months this will be the perfect place to plant something new or just allow the nutrients to spread through the soil.
Does watermelon rind make my worm farm smell?
Adding watermelon rind to your worm farm won’t make it smell. It will take up to 4 weeks for the rind to break down but if your worm farm is not overcrowded with other vegetable scraps they won’t smell. Worm farms only smell when too much organic matter or vegetable scraps are added. If the worms can’t eat them fast enough they will start to rot and smell.
Sometimes fruit will start to grow mold in my worm farm, particularly strawberries but this doesn’t smell. If you find that you have added too much fruit and vegetables to your worm farm, just add some extra hay or sugar cane mulch to the top. This should absorb the liquid and block any smell until the worms have time to catch up and break down the food.
If your worms can’t eat the amount of food scraps that your family makes you may need to look into getting a bigger or multi-tiered worm farm. These will hold thousands of worms and will consume much more food than a small Styrofoam box like the one I made for free.
Watermelon in my worm farm after 2 weeks Covering watermelon with sugar cane mulch
Is watermelon rind good for compost?
You can add watermelon rind to your compost if you don’t have a worm farm. The most important thing is to try to chop it up into smaller pieces so it will break down quicker. Make sure you mix the watermelon rind into the compost so that it won’t attract insects and will be covered. Watermelon rind has a high water content so will break down over 6 weeks.
I am an accredited practicing dietitian, experienced gardener and a dedicated cook. I love writing and sharing my experience so you can learn from my successes and mistakes.
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