Are Mealworms Good for Compost? Literally, A Can of Worms

Are Mealworms Good for Compost? Or Is There A Better Choice?

Mealworms can play an important role in the composting process, making mealworms good for compost. Mealworms aren’t actually worms though. They are larvae of the darkling beetle.

Their main food source is organic material, such as food scraps and plant matter, found in a cold compost heap or compost bin, making them a great choice to add to the compost pile.

Why Are Mealworms Good for Compost?

Mealworms can often be found naturally in your own compost pile, as they thrive on organic waste and table scraps, making mealworms good for different types of compost. They are a great way to help speed up the process of a cold compost pile by breaking down the ingredients in your pile.

Benefits of Mealworms in Compost

Mealworms can be beneficial to a compost pile by helping mix and churn the nutrients in the pile.  Since they thrive on organic matter, they are continually on the move in search of their next food source.

The mixing and churning of ingredients in your compost pile, helps speed up the composting process, making mealworms good for compost. 

Why Are Mealworms Bad for Compost?

While mealworms themselves aren’t necessarily bad for your compost pile, they can become a problem when they grow into the darkling beetle.  Meal beetles, or the darkling beetle, is of no benefit to your compost pile and can become an infestation if left unchecked and could call critters, like racoons, to your compost pile. 

Downsides to Mealworms in Compost

Mealworms are excellent decomposers of organic material, but here’s the catch, their castings or mealworm manure, are not a beneficial byproduct to use as a good fertilizer.  

Most gardener’s go-to choice is to add red wigglers to their compost heap, as they have the double benefit of decomposing organic material and producing a good fertilizer in their castings.

 

So, Can You Use Mealworms to Compost?

Mealworms are an excellent choice to use in your composting system if you are looking to break down lite organic material, such as veggie scraps, or food waste, like table scraps.  However, they are not very useful in breaking down woody organic matter like sticks, wood chips, or thick cardboard. 

What to Do if You Have Mealworms in Your Compost

The mealworm population will likely control itself through the cycle of the cold compost pile.  Since they thrive on organic matter, once that is consumed their food source will be gone and likely, the pile will be ready to use.

If hot composting is your goal, the high temperature of the pile will not be a suitable environment. They will not thrive. 

What Worms are the Most Beneficial to Compost?

As you can see, mealworms in your compost pile can be beneficial. However, some worms, such as red wigglers, are a better choice than others. If I were choosing a worm to add to my compost I would add the red wiggler worm for its dual benefit of decomposing organic matter and adding castings, that are more nutrient rich than mealworm castings. 

What Are the Ideal Conditions for Mealworms in Compost

Worms will thrive in compost as long as the temperature isn’t too hot, it isn’t too wet, and they have a food source. There are several different methods of composting. As a general rule, successful composting requires 4 things.

• A source of green material or nitrogen (one part nitrogen)
• A source of brown material (two parts of brown material)
• Adequate moisture (moist to the touch, not wet)
• Adequate oxygen (turned at regular intervals to provide oxygen)

Putting together a compost pile is simple. You just need bulk ingredients.

Mealworms can be used for Composting in Different Ways

It’s not a simple as just having mealworms in your compost pile. Mealworms can be beneficial in other forms of composting.

Worm Composting Vs. Worm Bins Vs Mealworms in Your Compost

Let’s open the can of worms, shall we? We’ve talked about how mealworms are good for compost but there are other uses for red wigglers and mealworms, such as a worm bin, also called worm composting, vermicomposting, or worm farms.

What is a Worm Bin?

Worm composting, simply put, is using mealworms in a worm bin to compost your food scraps or other organic material to reduce waste, making mealworms good for compost.  Often times, this can turn into a mealworm farm if maintained correctly.

This is different from mealworms in compost pile, which often happens naturally. Worm bins are an actual container used to house and produce a large colony of worms.

Benefits of Using Mealworms in a Worm Bin

Not only will a worm bin reduce food waste, it can also turn into a mealworm farm.  Meal worms can be a  valuable protein source for your feathered friends in the chicken coop.  They are a great way to add crude protein to your chicken feed, as they have a high protein content and are nutrient rich.

How to Set Up a Vermicompost or Worm Bin

Setting up your own worm bin to is a great way to produce nutrient rich fertilizer in a small space for your vegetable garden. Worm bins can be set up in 5 easy steps.

1. Choose a Container

When choosing a suitable environment for mealworms, use a big container that has smooth sides and short walls to let heat escape. Heat can kill your mealworms so be sure to keep it out of direct sunlight.  Consider using a glass or plastic container instead of cardboard and wood so they don’t escape. 

2. Prepare the Bedding Material

You can use bedding material made of powdered or crushed oatmeal, wheat bran, or cornmeal at the bottom of your container. Bedding should be 3 inches deep, replaced at regular intervals, and kept dry.

3. Add Food

Mealworms love vegetables. Add half a cup of fresh vegetables like potatoes, carrots, and small portions of other food. Mealworm chow, found at the pet store, is one of the best sources of essential nutrients and crude protein.

4. Added Moisture

Low moisture can kill mealworms. They must stay hydrated. However, they can drown in regular water. The best way to keep your mealworms hydrated is moisture from raw vegetables. 

Alternatively, a container of water with a well fitting, ventilated lid, that worms can’t fall into can be put into the bin for moisture.

5. Introduce the Mealworms

Start with large healthy worms. These will grow into beetles faster than small ones, and will grow into a large colony faster. Once the larval stage turn into beetles they will breed. Their eggs will hatch into new mealworms. Adult beetles are part of the food chain and may eat the eggs so be sure to take them out. 

How to Use Mealworms in a Worm Bin for Composting?

Not only are mealworms good for compost, you can use your mealworms as a protein source for your backyard chicken flock. They can also be used to cut down on waste, in the form of kitchen scraps, by continually needing to be fed.

How to Care For Mealworms

Taking care of mealworms requires very little. With a proper environment and a good food source they will thrive.

What Do Mealworms Eat?

We already know that meal worms like food scraps such as potatoes and carrots, and even banana peels. You should have plenty of food for them with kitchen scraps alone. They do need a food source with water content so they stay hydrated. 

Maintain a Suitable Environment

Maintaining the specific needs of the worm bin environment is simple. Their bedding must be changed out in regular intervals and kept dry. You want to keep their container well ventilated and at warmer conditions around 75*F. 

Potential Challenges and Solutions

1. Maintaining the Correct Temperature can be monitored by installing a small thermometer in your worm bin. Moisture Levels can be controlled by adding a small container of water that mealworms can fall into. 
2. Odors can occur when bedding is not kept dry or too many table scraps are added at once. 
3. Predators and Pests can be a problem if beetles are left unchecked or if your worm bin has an odor
4. Escaping Mealworms can be a problem if your container doesn’t have smooth sides and a well fitting, ventilated top.

Mealworm Castings for Plants and Gardens

Worm castings can be an excellent source of fertilizer but not all worm castings are created equal. Let’s dig a little deeper.

Are Mealworms Good for Compost and a Vegetable Garden?

While mealworms play an important role in breaking down organic matter in a compost pile, their castings, or manure, is NOT beneficial for the garden as earthworms or red wigglers castings are. Putting mealworms into a garden will also attract birds, which you may not want in the garden.

Do Mealworms Eat Plants?

While it is possible that mealworms may eat something other than food scraps, like live plants, they actually prefer to eat decaying organic matter.

Are Mealworm Castings Good for Plants?

Mealworms are good for compost but their castings are not a good source of nutrients or good fertilizer for your vegetable garden. Using red wrigglers are the best form of worm castings to harvest for using on your plants.

The Lifecycle of a Mealworm

They have four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, adult.

Adult beetles will produce eggs that turn into the larvae of the darkling beetle, producing a 2nd generation of mealworms. By giving mealworms a suitable environment, you can have healthy worms that produce their own mealworms.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the Best Worms for Composting?

In my opinion, red wigglers are the best worm for composting. Not only do they churn the compost pile but they add valuable nutrient rich fertilizer to your compost pile that can be used in the vegetable garden and garden bed.

Larvae in Compost Bin: Mealworms Vs Black Soldier Fly Larvae?

How to Identify What Larvae Are in Your Compost

Often maggots are in the larval life stage in a compost pile. These are often the larvae of black soldier flies.

What Are Black Soldier Fly Larvae?

Black soldier fly larvae are the juvenile state of the black soldier fly. The adults look a little like wasps, and the larvae might remind you of mealworms. The black soldier fly larvae and mealworms are different species, with different advantages. 

How Do Black Soldier Fly Larvae Differ From Meal Worms?

Both black soldier fly larvae and mealworms are nutritious feeder insects, they differ in many ways.

Appearance

The difference between a mealworm and a black soldier fly larvae is pretty easy. The black soldier flies larvae is black in color, with leathery skin. 

The mealworms, or the larvae of the darkling beetle, are golden brown.

Mealworms look more worm-like, thanks to their cylindrical bodies. Where black soldier fly larvae have a slightly flattened body. 

Calcium Content

Black soldier fly larvae are the winner when it comes to crude protein, with a calcium content of 2%. Mealworms only offer a slight amount of calcium. 

Sustainability

Black soldier fly larvae are superior when it comes to sustainability. 

To begin with, their ability to consume almost any kind of organic material make them great thing when it comes to food waste management. Black soldier fly larvae can decompose large volumes of organic matter.

Why Are Black Solder Fly Larvae Are Beneficial for Your Compost?

Black solider fly larvae are good for your compost pile because they can consume all organic matter in a fraction of time.

How Do I Get Rid of Mealworms or Black Soldier Flies in Compost?

If you feel like your compost pile or compost bin has too many mealworms or black solider fly larvae, take some time to turn the pile at regular intervals and add more brown materials to the pile.

Have You Heard Mealworms Can Compost Styrofoam?

The good news is, it’s actually true! In recent years, a study at Stanford University shows that mealworms have the superpower of actually decomposing Styrofoam plastic and packing peanuts. While the better choice may be not using Styrofoam plastic to begin with, at least we know that mealworms can safely decompose it.

Like I said in the beginning, it’s literally a can of worms.

Hopefully you have a better understanding if mealworms are good for compost, what a worm bin is, and what worms are the best worms to use in your compost bin.

So go ahead and build your compost pile or worm bin soon so you will have nutrient rich compost to use in your vegetable garden! While you are waiting on your compost you can download our FREE Seed Starting Guide and get busy starting some seeds!

You may also enjoy reading The Best Dry Amendments for Soil

Happy Homesteading & Composting!

Jenny @ The GrahamStead

(No date) Life cycle of a mealworm – school district of Clayton. Available at: https://www.claytonschools.net/cms/lib/MO01000419/Centricity/Domain/442/Life_Cycle_of_a_Mealworm.pdf (Accessed: 19 October 2023).

Jim, U. (2023) How to store your mealworms, Uncle Jim’s Worm Farm. Available at: https://unclejimswormfarm.com/how-to-store-your-mealworms/ (Accessed: 19 October 2023).

Author :  Backyard Poultry Contributor (2023) Black soldier fly larvae farming, Backyard Poultry. Available at: https://backyardpoultry.iamcountryside.com/feed-health/black-soldier-fly-larvae-farming/ (Accessed: 20 October 2023).

Can mealworms help solve our plastic problem? (no date) Stanford Earth. Available at: https://earth.stanford.edu/news/can-mealworms-help-solve-our-plastic-problem#:~:text=Not%20only%20are%20they%20able,published%20in%20Environmental%20Science%20%26%20Technology. (Accessed: 20 October 2023).